By Jamie Kneen: Mining and the World Bank/International Monetary Fund - A Special Focus on Ghana, Honduras, Mexico, and Peru. Since the 1990s, foreign-backed mining activity in the “developing world” has been expanding rapidly. Increased mineral exploration and mining activity displaces local communities, destroys ecosystems, and creates poverty while primarily benefiting investors (mostly foreign) and local elites. Conditions of “development” are imposed by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), favouring foreign direct investment and exports over self-sufficiency and sustainable development.