NIGERIA

Following protests from environmentalists, the World Bank's International Finance Corporation ( ifc ) has withheld a us $15 million loan to Royal Dutch Shell, the multinational oil company. The funds were meant for implementing many projects, including software development in the Niger Delta. The ifc board took the decision following a complaint by Environmental Rights Action ( era ), a campaign group. era director Nnimmo Bassey had urged ifc not to extend the loan, alleging that the projects "would have a detrimental impact on the environment and aggravate tensions that already exist around Shell activities in the region" (see Down To Earth , Vol 10, No 3, June 30, 2001, p13).