Mandate & Governance
CAO's independence and impartiality are essential to fostering the trust and confidence of stakeholders involved in complaint processes. CAO is not identified with, or beholden to, any sector of interest, and reports directly to the IFC and MIGA Boards.
Mission & Mandate
CAO’s mission is to serve as a fair, trusted, and effective independent accountability mechanism that facilitates access to remedy for project-affected people and enhances the environmental and social performance of IFC and MIGA.
Governance
Under CAO's governance structure, the CAO Director General reports directly to the IFC and MIGA Boards. CAO's three functions and CAO staff report to the CAO Director General All CAO case reports are circulated to the Board, IFC/MIGA, complainants, client and disclosed to the public. CAO provides a quarterly and annual update of its activities to the Board's Committee on Development Effectiveness (CODE), and conducts periodic technical briefings to supplement this information. CAO's budget is submitted by the Board annually. CAO publishes an Annual Report at the end of each Fiscal Year which is disclosed publicly.
Policies & Guidelines
Our mandate, core principles and functions are articulated in CAO's Policy.
External Reviews
CAO conducts independent reviews that assess its effectiveness. The most recent is the 2026 Targeted Review of the CAO Policy, commissioned by the IFC and MIGA Boards in line with the requirement to review the Policy within five years of its effectiveness.
This follows the 2020 External Review of IFC and MIGA’s Environmental and Social Accountability, including CAO’s role and effectiveness. Our mandate, core principles, and functions are articulated in the CAO Policy.