EFSD discusses environmental and social standards at MFI working group meeting in Vienna

VIENNA, 4 May, 2026 — Officials from the Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development (EFSD, the Fund) attended a three-day meeting of the Multilateral Financial Institutions Working Group on Environmental and Social Standards (MFI-WGESS) in Vienna, Austria. The session was held under the auspices of the OPEC Fund for International Development.

The meeting brought together department heads and experts from more than 20 international financial institutions and development agencies.

Participants discussed the harmonization of approaches to implementing environmental and social (E&S) requirements, with particular focus on the following topics:

• Digitalization and AI: Integrating artificial intelligence tools to automate the development of project documentation and compliance monitoring.
• Co-financing: Developing shared MFI approaches to E&S requirements in multi-donor projects.
• Emerging challenges: Current priorities in nuclear energy, biodiversity conservation, and environmental flow management in rivers.

During the session, Olga Sosnina, Director of EFSD's Department of Monitoring, Policies and Standards, presented the Fund's achievements in advancing E&S standards and outlined its plans for the medium term. EFSD confirmed its readiness to host the next Working Group meeting, scheduled for spring 2027 in Astana, Kazakhstan.

The MFI Working Group on Environmental and Social Standards (WGESS) is a forum with a 30-year track record, bringing together leading MFI experts to share knowledge, develop unified standards, and coordinate efforts in environmental and social risk management. EFSD has been an official member of the MFI WGESS since May 2024.