Terms and Conditions

Last updated: June 2023 

Acceptance of the Terms of Use

Welcome to the website of IFC Beyond the Balance Sheet (https://www.ifcbeyondthebalancesheet.org) operated by International Finance Corporation ("IFC", "we" or "us"). The following terms and conditions, together with any documents expressly referred to within (collectively, "Terms of Use"), explain how you may access and use this site and/or any related site (such as a related mobile application) that links to this site, including any content, functionality and services offered on or through the site(s) (the "Site"), whether as a guest or a registered user.

Please read the Terms of Use carefully before you start to use the Site. By using the Site or otherwise indicating your consent, you accept and agree to be bound by and comply with these Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy and Copyright Statement. If you do not agree to these Terms of Use, the Privacy Policy and/or Copyright Statement, you must not access or use the Site.

Changes to the Terms of Use

We may revise and update these Terms of Use from time to time. Our revised Terms of Use will be posted on the Site and your continued use of the Site following such changes means that you accept and agree to the changes. You are expected to check this page from time to time so you are aware of any changes, as they are binding on you.

Accessing the Site

We may withdraw or amend this Site, and any service or material we provide on the Site, at any time as we see fit. We will not be liable if for any reason all or any part of the Site is unavailable at any time or for any period. From time to time, we may restrict access to some parts of the Site, or the entire Site, to users, including registered users.


You are responsible for:

  • Making all arrangements necessary for you to have access to the Site.
  • Ensuring that all persons who access the Site through your internet connection or device are aware of these Terms of Use and comply with them.


You acknowledge you use the Site at your own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws where they apply. 
To access the Site or some of the resources it offers, you may be asked to provide certain registration details or other information. It is a condition of your use of the Site that all the information you provide on the Site is correct, current and complete. You are responsible for making sure that your password and any other account details are kept secure and confidential. 

We are not obliged to permit anyone to register with the Site and have the right to refuse registration or disable any user name, password or other identifier, whether chosen by you or provided by us, at any time in our sole discretion for any or no reason, including if, in our opinion, you have violated any provision of these Terms of Use.

Information About You and Your Visits to the Site

Your privacy and personal information are important to us. You agree that all information you provide to register with this Site or otherwise, including but not limited to through the use of any interactive features on the Site, and all information we collect on this Site is subject to our Privacy Policy. By using the Site, you consent to all actions we take with respect to your information consistent with our Privacy Policy.

Intellectual Property Rights

The Site and its entire contents, features and functionality (including but not limited to all information, software, text, displays, images, video and audio, and the design, selection and arrangement thereof), are owned by IFC, its affiliates, business partners, service providers, licensors or other providers of such material and are protected by United States and international copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret or other intellectual property or proprietary rights laws.

These Terms of Use permit you to use the Site for your personal, non-commercial use only. You must not reproduce, distribute, modify, create derivative works of, publicly display, publicly perform, republish, download, store or transmit any of the material on our Site, except as follows:

  • Your computer may temporarily store copies of such materials in RAM incidental to your accessing and viewing those materials.
  • You may store files that are automatically cached by your Web browser for display enhancement purposes.
  • You may print or download one copy of a reasonable number of pages of the Site for your own personal, non-commercial use and not for further reproduction, publication or distribution.
  • If we provide desktop, mobile or other applications for download, you may download a single copy to your computer or mobile device solely for your own personal, non-commercial use, provided you agree to be bound by our end user license agreement for such applications.

You must not:

  • Modify copies of any materials from this site without explicit IFC’s written permission.
  • Delete or alter any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notices from copies of materials from this site.

You must not access or use for any commercial purposes any part of the Site or any services or materials available through the Site.  
If you wish to make any use of material on the Site other than that set out in this section, please address your request to: AskSustainability@ifc.org;

If you print, copy, modify, download or otherwise use or provide any other person with access to any part of the Site in breach of the Terms of Use, your right to use the Site will cease immediately and you must, at our option, return or destroy any copies of the materials you have made.


No right, title or interest in or to the Site or any content on the Site is transferred to you, and all rights not expressly granted are reserved by IFC. Any use of the Site not expressly permitted by these Terms of Use is a breach of these Terms of Use and may violate copyright, trademark and other laws.

Screen Scraping

The use of automated systems or software to extract data from the Site or https://www.ifcbeyondthebalancesheet.org for commercial purposes, (‘screen scraping’) is prohibited unless the third party has directly concluded a written license agreement with IFC in which IFC permits access to the Site’s content for an agreed purpose.

Trademarks

The names “International Finance Corporation” and “IFC”, the terms Beyond the Balance Sheet, Beyond the Balance Sheet logo and all related names, logos, product and service names, designs and slogans are trademarks of IFC or its affiliates or licensors. You must not use such marks without IFC’s prior written permission. All other names, logos, product and service names, designs and slogans on this Site are the trademarks of their respective owners.

Prohibited Uses

You may use the Site only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms of Use. You agree not to use the Site:

  • In any way that violates any applicable national, state, provincial, local or international law or regulation (including, without limitation, any laws regarding the export of data or software).
  • To send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use or re-use any material which does not comply with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use.
  • To transmit, or procure the sending of, any advertising or promotional material without our prior written consent, including any "junk mail", "chain letter" or "spam" or any other similar solicitation.
  • To impersonate or attempt to impersonate IFC, an IFC employee, another user or any other person or entity (including, without limitation, by using e-mail addresses or screen names associated with any such persons or entities).
  • To engage in any other conduct that restricts or prevents anyone's use or enjoyment of the Site, or which, as determined by us, may harm IFC or users of the Site or expose them to liability. 
     

Additionally, you agree not to:

  • Use the Site in any manner that could disable, overburden, damage, or impair the site or interfere with any other party's use of the Site, including their ability to engage in real time activities through the Site.
  • Use any robot, spider or other automatic device, process or means to access the Site for any purpose, including monitoring or copying any of the material on the Site.
  • Use any manual process to monitor or copy any of the material on the Site or for any other unauthorized purpose without our prior written consent.
  • Use any device, software or routine that interferes with the proper working of the Site.
  • Introduce any viruses, trojan horses, worms, logic bombs or other material which is malicious or technologically harmful.
  • Attempt to gain unauthorized access to, interfere with, damage or disrupt any parts of the Site, the server on which the Site is stored, or any server, computer or database connected to the Site.
  • Attack the Site via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack; 
    Otherwise attempt to interfere with the proper working of the Site.

User Contributions

The Site may contain message boards, chat rooms, personal web pages or profiles, forums, bulletin boards, blogs, and other interactive features (collectively, "Interactive Services") that allow users to post, submit, publish, display or transmit to other users or other persons, or to engage in discussions with such users or persons (hereinafter, "post") content or materials (collectively, "User Contributions") on or through the Site.

All User Contributions must comply with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use.

Any User Contribution you post to the site will be considered non-confidential and non-proprietary. By providing any User Contribution on the Site, you grant us and our affiliates, business partners and service providers, and each of their and our respective licensees, successors and assigns the right to use, reproduce, modify, perform, display, distribute and otherwise disclose to third parties any such material for any purpose/according to your account settings.

You represent and warrant that: 

  • You own or control all rights in and to the User Contributions and have the right to grant the license granted above to us and our affiliates, business partners and service providers, and each of their and our respective licensees, successors and assigns.
  • All of your User Contributions do and will comply with these Terms of Use. 

You understand and acknowledge that you are responsible for any User Contributions you submit or contribute, and you, not IFC, have fully responsibility for such content, including its legality, reliability, accuracy and appropriateness.

We are not responsible, or liable to any third party, for the content or accuracy of any User Contributions posted by you or any other user of the Site.

Monitoring and Enforcement; Termination

We have the right but not the obligation to:

  • Remove or refuse to post any User Contributions for any or no reason in our sole discretion.
  • Take any action with respect to any User Contribution that we deem necessary or appropriate in our sole discretion, including if we believe that such User Contribution violates the Terms of Use, including the Content Standards, infringes any intellectual property right or other right of any person or entity, threatens the personal safety of users of the Site or the public or could create liability for IFC.
  • Disclose your identity or other information about you to any third party who claims that material posted by you violates their rights, including their intellectual property rights or their right to privacy.
  • Take appropriate legal action, including without limitation, referral to law enforcement, for any illegal or unauthorized use of the Site. 
  • Terminate or suspend your access to all or part of the Site for any or no reason, including without limitation, any violation of these Terms of Use.

Without limiting the above, we have the right to fully cooperate with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing us to disclose the identity or other information of anyone posting any materials on or through the Site. 

You waive and hold harmless IFC and its affiliates, business partners, licensees and service providers, including the world bank, its members, its partners, volunteers or contractors, from any loss, claim or liability resulting from any action taken by any such parties during or as a result of its investigations and from any actions taken as a consequence of investigations by any such parties or law enforcement authorities.

However, we cannot ordinarily review material before it is posted on the Site, and cannot ensure prompt removal of objectionable material after it has been posted. Accordingly, we assume no liability for any action or inaction regarding transmissions, communications or content provided by any user or third party. We have no liability or responsibility to anyone for performance or nonperformance of the activities described in this section

Content Standards

The content standards below (collectively, “Content Standards”) apply to any and all User Contributions and use of Interactive Services. User Contributions must in their entirety comply with all applicable national, state or provincial, local and international laws and regulations. In addition, User Contributions must not:

  • Contain any material which is defamatory, obscene, indecent, abusive, offensive, harassing, violent, hateful, inflammatory or otherwise objectionable.
  • Promote sexually explicit or pornographic material, violence, or discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age.
  • Infringe any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other intellectual property or other rights of any other person.
  • Violate the legal rights (including the rights of publicity and privacy) of others or contain any material that could give rise to any civil or criminal liability under applicable laws or regulations or that otherwise may be in conflict with these Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy 
    Be likely to deceive any person.
  • Promote any illegal activity, or advocate, promote or assist any unlawful act.
  • Cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety or be likely to upset, embarrass, alarm or annoy any other person.
  • Impersonate any person, or misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person or organization. 
  • Involve commercial activities or sales, such as contests, sweepstakes and other sales promotions, barter or advertising.
  • Give the impression that they emanate from or are endorsed by us or any other person or entity, if this is not the case.

Copyright Infringement

If you believe that any User Contributions violate your copyright, please see our Copyright Statement for instructions on sending us a notice of copyright infringement.  
 

Reliance on Information Posted

The information presented on or through the Site is made available solely for general information purposes. We do not promise the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of this information. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. We accept no liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on such materials by you or any other visitor to the Site, or by anyone who may be informed of any of its contents.

This Site may include content provided by third parties, including materials provided by other users, bloggers and third-party licensors, syndicators, aggregators and/or reporting services, as well as affiliates, business partners and service providers. All statements and/or opinions expressed in these materials, and all articles and responses to questions and other content, other than the content provided by IFC, are solely the opinions and the responsibility of the person or entity providing those materials. These materials do not necessarily reflect the opinion of IFC. We are not responsible, or liable to you or any third party, for the content or accuracy of any materials provided by any third parties.

Changes to the Site

We may update the content on this Site from time to time, but its content is not necessarily complete or up-to-date. Any of the material on the Site may be out of date at any given time, and we are under no obligation to update such material. 

Linking to the Site and Social Media Features

You may link to our homepage, provided you do so in a way that is fair and legal and does not damage our reputation or take advantage of it, but you must not establish a link in such a way as to suggest any form of association, approval or endorsement on our part

This Site may provide certain social media features that enable you to:

  • Link from your own or certain third-party Sites to certain content on this Site.
  • Send e-mails or other communications with certain content, or links to certain content, on this Site.
  • Cause limited portions of content on this Site to be displayed or appear to be displayed on your own or certain third-party Sites.

You may use these features solely as they are provided by us and solely with respect to the content they are displayed with and otherwise in accordance with any additional terms and conditions we provide with respect to such features. Subject to the foregoing, you must not:

  • Establish a link from any website that is not owned by you.
  • Cause the Site or portions of it to be displayed, or appear to be displayed by, for example, framing, deep linking or in-line linking, on any other site.
  • Link to any part of the Site other than the homepage.
  • Otherwise take any action with respect to the materials on this Site that is inconsistent with any other provision of these Terms of Use.

You agree to cooperate with us in causing any unauthorized framing or linking immediately to cease. We reserve the right to withdraw linking permission without notice. 
We may disable all or any social media features and any links at any time without notice in our discretion. 

Links from the Site

If the Site contains links to other sites and resources provided by third parties, these links are provided for your convenience only. This includes links contained in advertisements, including banner advertisements and sponsored links. We have no control over the contents of those sites or resources, and accept no responsibility for them or for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of them. The display of any link and reference to any third party advertising or website does not mean that we endorse that third party's website, products or services. If you decide to access any of the third party websites linked to this Site, you do so entirely at your own risk and subject to the terms and conditions of use for such Sites.

Disclaimer of Warranties

You understand that we cannot and do not guarantee or warrant that files available for downloading from the internet or the Site will be free of viruses or other destructive code. You are responsible for implementing sufficient procedures and checkpoints to satisfy your particular requirements for anti-virus protection and accuracy of data input and output, and for maintaining a means external to our site for any reconstruction of any lost data.  
 

WE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY A DISTRIBUTED DENIAL-OF-SERVICE ATTACK, VIRUSES OR OTHER TECHNOLOGICALLY HARMFUL MATERIAL THAT MAY INFECT YOUR COMPUTER EQUIPMENT, COMPUTER PROGRAMS, DATA OR OTHER PROPRIETARY MATERIAL DUE TO YOUR USE OF THE SITE OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE OR TO YOUR DOWNLOADING OF ANY MATERIAL POSTED ON IT, OR ON ANY WEBSITE LINKED TO IT.

YOUR USE OF THE SITE, ITS CONTENT AND ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. THE SITE, ITS CONTENT AND ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS, WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. NEITHER IFC NOR ANY AFFILIATE, BUSINESS PARTNER, LICENSOR OR SERVICE PROVIDER OF IFC OR ANY SHAREHOLDER, EMPLOYER, AGENT, OFFICER OR DIRECTOR THEREOF, MAKES ANY WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION TO YOU WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPLETENESS, SECURITY, RELIABILITY, QUALITY, ACCURACY OR AVAILABILITY OF THE SITE. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, NEITHER IFC NOR ANY AFFILIATE, BUSINESS PARTNER, LICENSOR OR SERVICE PROVIDER OF IFC OR ANY SHAREHOLDER, EMPLOYER, AGENT, OFFICER OR DIRECTOR THEREOF, REPRESENTS OR WARRANTS THAT THE SITE, ITS CONTENT OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE WILL BE ACCURATE, RELIABLE, ERROR-FREE OR UNINTERRUPTED, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, THAT OUR SITE OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES IT AVAILABLE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS OR THAT THE SITE OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE WILL OTHERWISE MEET YOUR NEEDS OR EXPECTATIONS. 

IFC HEREBY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, STATUTORY OR OTHERWISE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT AND FITNESS FOR PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY WARRANTIES WHICH CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.

Limitation on Liability

IN NO EVENT WILL IFC, ITS AFFILIATES, BUSINESS PARTNERS, AND SERVICE PROVIDERS OR ANY OF OUR AND THEIR RESPECTIVE LICENSORS, SHAREHOLDERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OFFICERS OR DIRECTORS, BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR USE, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE SITE, ANY WEBSITES LINKED TO IT, ANY CONTENT ON THE SITE OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES, INCLUDING ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PERSONAL INJURY, PAIN AND SUFFERING, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS OR ANTICIPATED SAVINGS, LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF DATA, AND WHETHER CAUSED BY TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), BREACH OF CONTRACT OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF FORESEEABLE.

THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY LIABILITY WHICH CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.

Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless IFC, its affiliates, business partners, licensors and service providers, and their respective shareholders, employees, agents, officers or directors, from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, judgments, awards, losses, costs, expenses or fees (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or relating to your violation of these Terms of Use or your use of the Site, including, but not limited to, your User Contributions, any use of the Site's content, services and products other than as expressly authorized in these Terms of Use or your use of any information obtained from the Site.

Events Beyond our Control

We are not liable to you if we fail to comply with these Terms of Use because of circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including, but not limited to, strikes, lock-outs or other industrial disputes; breakdown of systems or network access; flood, fire, explosion or accident; or epidemics or pandemics.

Governing Law and Jurisdiction

All matters relating to the Site and these Terms of Use and any dispute or claim arising therefrom or related thereto (in each case, including non-contractual disputes or claims), shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the District of Columbia, United States of America, without giving effect to any choice or conflict of law provision or rule (whether of the District of Columbia or any other jurisdiction). 
You agree that any legal suit, action or proceeding arising out of, or related to, these Terms of Use, the Privacy Policy or the Copyright Statement or the Site shall be instituted exclusively in the federal courts of the United States located in Washington, D.C. You waive any and all objections to the exercise of jurisdiction over you by such courts and to venue in such courts.

Waiver and Severability

No waiver by IFC of any term or condition set forth in these Terms of Use shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or condition or a waiver of any other term or condition, and any failure of IFC to assert a right or provision under these Terms of Use shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. 
If any provision of these Terms of Use is held by a court or other tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable for any reason, such provision shall be eliminated or limited to the minimum extent such that the remaining provisions of the Terms of Use will continue in full force and effect. 

Preservation of Immunities

Nothing herein shall constitute or be considered to be a limitation upon or a waiver of the privileges and immunities of IFC, which are specifically reserved.

Rights of Third Parties

No one other than a party to these Terms has any right to enforce any of these Terms of Use.

Entire Agreement

The Terms of Use and, our Privacy Policy and our Copyright Statement constitute the sole and entire agreement between you and International Finance Corporation with respect to the Site and supersede all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, representations and warranties, both written and oral, with respect to the Site. 

Your Comments and Concerns

This Site is operated by International Finance Corporation, 2121 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20433. 
All notices of copyright infringement claims should be sent to the copyright agent designated in our Copyright Statement in the manner and by the means set forth therein. 
All other feedback, comments, requests for technical support and other communications relating to the Site should be directed to: AskSustainability@ifc.org.

Thank you for visiting the Site.