Complaints Mechanism report 2025

The 2025 Complaints Mechanism Annual Report highlights the key achievements of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group’s accountability mechanism in addressing public concerns related to EIB-financed projects and activities.

With 94 cases handled and 62 closed in 2025, the Complaints Mechanism continued to ensure that individuals, communities and civil society organisations affected by the Bank’s operations had their voices heard. The report reflects a year of progress in efficiency, monitoring and responsiveness, including the reduction of long-overdue cases to their lowest level since the adoption of the current policy in 2018.

A major milestone in 2025 was the start of the review of the Complaints Mechanism Policy, following an independent external assessment. The review aims to strengthen the way project-related concerns are addressed, enhance access to remedy for affected people and ensure closer alignment with international good practices on accountability and transparency.

Another important achievement was the signature of the Complaints Mechanism’s first-ever accountability agreement with the Independent Project Accountability Mechanism of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The agreement sets out how the two mechanisms will cooperate when handling complaints concerning mutual reliance projects, while safeguarding complainants’ rights, confidentiality and protection from retaliation.

Throughout the year, the Complaints Mechanism also:

• conducted site missions and held in-person meetings with complainants, project promoters and other key stakeholders in several countries;
• strengthened its dispute resolution work, with 14 processes handled during the year;
• advanced its monitoring activities, including the publication of the first compliance monitoring reports;
• organised outreach and engagement activities with civil society organisations, local facilitators, mediators and peer accountability mechanisms.

Structured around the Complaints Mechanism’s core functions - complaints investigation, dispute resolution and monitoring - the report also outlines selected cases, outreach initiatives and the priorities for 2026. Overall, it shows how the Complaints Mechanism continued to promote accountability, responsiveness and transparency across the EIB Group’s work.