ABSTRACT
In this chapter we analyse the trajectory, achievements and failures of the InterAmerican Development Bank’s Initiative on Social Capital, Ethics and Development (the Initiative). Established at the beginning of the millennium, with the support of the Norwegian government and directly under the responsibility of the President’s office, this is a particularly clear case of an institutional mechanism inside a multilateral bank specifically focused on introducing the role of ethics in development work. The goal of the Initiative was to ‘contribut(e) to the strengthening and deepening of democracy, economic and social growth, and the forging of a participatory, just, and booming Latin America to which all the communities of the region aspire’ (IDB website). It took off with the full support of Enrique Iglesias, its charismatic President, who was highly influential not only in the IDB but in the whole region, with a strong commitment to the social aspects of development. The Initiative seemed to be particularly timely, in view of the substantial political changes in the region – with increasing discontent with neo-liberalism and its consequences, and greater openness to debate and alternative ideas. The Initiative was very visible – with well attended public conferences, the
enrolment of key figures such as Amartya Sen as guests at events and activities, the creation of a programme for social responsibility in academia, a digital library and a web portal, and a host of projects and activities aiming to promote social capital, ethical thinking and concern for the poor and marginalised; but by the time of writing, 2008, its practical achievements are few. The new President, Luis Alberto Moreno, is in the process of restructuring the Bank and orienting it towards more private sector and infrastructure funding. Sadly, and ironically, the coordinator of the Initiative, Bernardo Kliksberg, was, in 2007, found guilty of violating the code of ethics and professional conduct of the Inter-American Development Bank. The Initiative’s status was of course negatively affected by this, but it was already falling far short of its ambitions, despite the commendable efforts of the remaining staff to salvage its projects and its ideas. A unique opportunity was lost; but it may nevertheless be possible to learn from a critical analysis of the experience. This we seek to provide in the rest of this chapter.
