Each year, multilateral development institutions provide billions of US dollars in financing for projects around the world. Such extensive investment, often in infrastructure and natural resource sectors, means that whether development is sustainable depends not only on the scale of financing, but also on how effectively environmental and social (‘E&S’) risks are governed throughout project implementation. This talk examines how integrity sanctions systems already operating within multilateral development banks (“MDBs”) can strengthen E&S governance and advance sustainable outcomes in MDB-financed projects.

Using the World Bank Group’s Sanctions System as its principal case study, the talk explains how sustainable procurement reforms embed E&S requirements in bidder representations and contractual performance requirements. These requirements create jurisdictional touchpoints through which existing prohibitions on fraudulent, corrupt, collusive, coercive, and obstructive practices can be applied to E&S-linked misconduct by contractors and other third parties. The Sanctions System thereby complements the World Bank’s established E&S oversight mechanisms by enabling direct accountability for project implementers and providing additional investigative capacity, deterrence, and compliance-based rehabilitation.

The talk then broadens the analysis by examining additional ways in which integrity sanctions may contribute to sustainable outcomes in MDB development financing. It considers, for example, how financial remedies imposed through integrity sanctions regimes may be used to support remediation and other sustainability-related purposes. The talk will also offer preliminary reflections on the governance frameworks and other enabling conditions that may be relevant to the utilization of such measures by the MDBs.

About the Speaker:
Mr. Chang Liu is Counsel in the World Bank’s Office of Suspension and Debarment, where he participates in the review of sanctions cases to assess whether companies or individuals should be suspended or debarred from eligibility for World Bank–financed contracts. Before joining the World Bank, he practiced at leading international law firms, advising clients on white-collar defense, internal investigations, and complex cross-border commercial disputes. Outside his role at the World Bank, Mr. Liu serves as Diversity and Inclusion Officer for the International Bar Association’s Forum for Government and Public Lawyers. He speaks regularly on the World Bank’s Sanctions System and broader integrity and anti-corruption issues at universities, professional associations, and international conferences. Mr. Liu holds a B.S., with honors, in Economics and Urban Studies from Trinity College (CT) and a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School, where he served as Executive Editor of the Harvard International Law Journal.

Register here to attend the seminar on or before 13 October 2026, 12:00noon (Hong Kong Time).