What

1

The World Bank SafeguardPolicies An
Overview Zagreb, May 2009
2
Overview of Presentation

• World Bank SG Policies in context what are they,
  why do we have them, where do they come from?
• Overview of each SG Policy (10 1)

3
1. Safeguard Policies in Context
4
World Bank Operational Policies

• Based on WBs Articles of Agreement, General
  Conditions, specific policies approved by WB
  Board
• Set out in WB Operational Manual (Manual covers
  OPs, BPs (Bank Procedures), Guidance Notes, etc.)
• Guide all aspects of WB Operations
• Cover wide range of topics (e.g. financial
  terms/conditions of WB loans, emergency
  response, tobacco, Development Policy Lending,
  Financial Intermediary lending, economic
  evaluation of investment lending, water
  resources, procurement, project cycle steps, etc.
  )

5
WB Safeguard Policies (101)

• Environmental Policies
• OP 4.01 Environmental Assessment
• OP 4.04 Natural Habitats
• OP 4.09 Pest Management
• OP 4.36 Forestry
• OP 4.37 Safety of Dams

• Social Policies
• OP 4.11 Physical Cultural Resources
• OP 4.12 Involuntary Resettlement
• OP 4.10 Indigenous Peoples

• Legal Policies
• OP 7.60 Disputed Areas
• OP 7.50 International Waterways

BP 17.50 Bank Disclosure Policy
6
Purpose of the World Bank Safeguard Policies

• Do no harm protect people and environment from
  adverse impacts
• Reduce and manage risk for the Client and for the
  WB
• Do good enhance social equity and environmental
  sustainability
• Respond to a world-wide constituency

7
Environmental and Social Due Diligence

• WB Managements fiduciary responsibility to its
  shareholders (along with Financial Management,
  Procurement) assurance that all reasonable
  measures have been taken to ensure lending is
  environmentally/socially sound
• Applies to sub-projects within projects
• Applies to all project components and investments
  regardless of source of financing
• Safeguard Documents Assessments and plans
  required by SG policies (publicly disclosed)

8
Key Roles Who does What?World Bank

• WB Board (representing Donor Borrowing
  Countries) identifies needs and approve policies
  
• Operations Policy and Country Services Unit
  (OPCS) and Legal Dept (LEG) draft OPs, BPs, set
  Bank-wide standards for interpretation and
  compliance, report to Management and Board
• ECA Region Safeguards Team (in consultation with
  Task Team and as needed with Senior ECA
  Management and/or OPCS, LEG) for each project,
  determines which OPs are triggered, appropriate
  EA category specific compliance requirements
  approve Due Diligence instruments (may
  delegate) clear Appraisal and Legal Documents
  
• WB Project Task Team work with Borrower and SG
  Unit to ensure appropriate triggering/screening
  advise Borrower on compliance throughout project
  cycle evaluate Due Diligence instruments and
  Client capacity disclosure (Infoshop) verify/
  report to Management throughout project cycle
• Quality Assurance Group and Internal Evaluation
  Group Review performance of WB Staff and
  Management and quality of operations vis a vis SG
  (application, compliance, implementation, impact)
  
• Inspection Panel Independent body, investigates
  complaints by affected people Reports
  independently (makes recommendations) to WB Board

9
Key Roles Who Does What?Borrower/Client

• Implementing Agency/Entity responsible for
  preparation, disclosure/consultation and
  implementation of Due Diligence instruments
  reporting to Government and WB
• WBs official Government counterpart (e.g., MoF)
  legal commitment to implement DD instruments
• Sub-project grant/loan recipients specific
  obligations as spelled out in sub-grant or
  sub-loan agreements
• Contractors/suppliers/consultants specific
  obligations as spelled out in contracts
• Public (civil society,Project Affected Persons,
  NGOs) advise on project design (consultations)
  raise legitimate grievances and complaints
  through appropriate channels

10
Who Influences the Safeguard Policies?
WB Management
WB Board
Borrowers
Donors
Media
Civil Society
NGOs
Project Beneficiaries
Affected Persons
11
Cross-cutting Principles of SG Policies

• Avoid negative impacts where possible otherwise
  minimize, reduce, mitigate, compensate (in that
  order)
• Match level of review, mitigation and oversight
  to level of risk and impacts
• Inform the public and enable people to
  participate in decisions which effect them
• Integrate environmental and social issues into
  project identification, design and implementation
• Strengthen Borrower capacity

Ingredients of Sustainable Development
12
2. Overview of Safeguard Policies
13
World Bank Safeguard Policies Three-Part Format

• Operational Policies (OP) concise statement of
  policy objectives and operational principles
  including the roles and obligations of the
  Borrower and the Bank
• Bank Procedures (BP) Mandatory procedures to
  be followed by the Borrower and the Bank
• Good Practice (GP) Non-mandatory advisory
  material

14
OP/BP 4.01 Environmental AssessmentObjectives

• To inform decision makers of the nature of
  environmental and social risks
• To ensure that projects proposed for Bank
  financing are environmentally and socially sound
  and sustainable (promote positive impacts,
  avoid/mitigate negative impacts)
• To increase transparency and participation of
  stakeholders in the decision-making process as
  one essential element

15
OP/BP 4.01 Environmental AssessmentKey
elements

• Applies to all Investment lending (not
  Development Policy Lending) triggered for almost
  all investment projects
• Umbrella EA policy subsumes elements of others
• Based on screening of operations (Category A, B,
  C, FI)
• Scope of EA issues (integrated env social)
  types of EA instruments (based on risks and on
  type of lending)
• Bank and Borrower responsibilities (incl.
  consultation and disclosure)
• Operational Annexes

(more details later)
16
OP 4.04 Natural Habitats

• Objectives
• Protect, maintain, restore natural habitats and
  their biodiversity Ensure sustainability of
  services and products which natural habitats
  provide to human society
• Precautionary approach to natural resources
  management

17
OP 4.04 (Natural Habitats)Key elements

• no WB support for significant conversion or
  degradation of critical natural habitats (if
  unavoidable, compensation through additional
  protected area of equivalent value)
• Precautionary approach to natural resource
  management in interests of sustainable
  development
• Where potential for impacts exists,
  assess/address Client capacity to implement
  protection
• Preparation/appraisal/supervision to include
  qualified experts
• Take into account views/roles/needs of local
  communities, NGOs involve in planning,
  implementation (incl. PA management), monitoring
  support local conservation incentives

Definitions in Annex A
18
BP 4.04 (Natural Habitats)

• Any project with potential for significant
  conversion or degradation of natural habitat
  Category A
• Other projects involving natural habitats
  Category A or B
• Use of compensation approach requires V.P.
  approval
• Costs of compensatory conservation (offsets) are
  included in project financing

19
OP 4.09 Pest Management

• Objectives
• Support Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach
  for sustainable agriculture and health (promote
  use of biological/ environmental/ agronomic
  controls, reduced reliance on synthetic
  chemicals)
• Reduce human exposure and health risks
• Help develop national capacity for IPM and
  pesticide regulation/monitoring

20
OP 4.09 (Pest Management)Key Elements

• Assess issues through EA process (mitigation
  through EMP or separate Pest Management Plan
  depending on scale)
• Pesticides may be financed in context of IPM
  (criteria for pesticide selection and handling)
• No BP 4.09 - Pest Management Handbook

21
OP 4.10 Indigenous Peoples

• IP distinct, vulnerable, social and cultural
  group attached to geographically distinct
  habitats or historical territories, with separate
  culture than the project area, and usually
  different language
• Objectives
• To foster full respect for human rights,
  economies, and cultures of IP
• To avoid adverse effects on IP during the project
  development
• One of the most controversial and contested OPs
  in other regions few applications in ECA
  (Siberia only)

22
OPN 4.11 Physical Cultural Resources

• Objectives
• Physical Cultural Resources (PCR) are identified
  and protected in World Bank financed projects
• National laws governing the protection of
  physical cultural property are complied with
• PCR includes archaeological and historical sites,
  historic urban areas, sacred sites, graveyards,
  burial sites, unique natural values

23
OP 4.11 (Physical Cultural Resources)Key
Elements BP 4.11

• Implemented as integral element of EA (EMP to
  include PCR Plan as needed, or Chance Finds
  provision)
• Typically triggered by
• any project involving significant scale
  excavation, earth moving, flooding
• any project in or near PCR site recognized by
  borrower
• Archaeological survey to identify/characterise
  PCR (or to confirm none are present)
• Mitigation may range from full protection to
  salvage documentation (Borrower decides)

24
OP 4.12 Involuntary Resettlement

• Objectives
• Minimize displacement
• Treat resettlement as a development program
• Provide affected people with opportunities for
  participation
• Assist displaced persons in their efforts to
  improve their incomes and standards of living, or
  at least to restore them
• Assist displaced people regardless of legality of
  tenure
• Pay compensation for affected assets at
  replacement cost
• The OP Annexes include descriptions of
  Resettlement Plans and Resettlement Policy
  Frameworks

Details in following presentation
25
OP 4.37 Safety of DamsObjectives, Key Elements

• To protect downstream populations and ecosystems
  from consequences of dam failure
• Triggered if WB project finances dam construction
  or rehabilitation, but also when performance of a
  WB- financed project is dependent on an existing
  dam
• Distinguishes between large and small dams
• 15 m , or 10 m with other risk factors
• Reservoir size
• Likelihood of later increase in height/size
• Requires dam independent panel to assess
  design/construction detailed plans for
  construction/quality assurance instrumentation,
  operation maintenance, emergency preparedness

due diligence requirements more modest in this
case
26
OP 4.36 Forests

• Objectives
• Forests are managed in a sustainable manner
• Significant areas of forest are not encroached
  upon
• The rights of communities to use their
  traditional forest areas in a sustainable manner
  are not compromised

27
OP 4.36 ForestsKey Elements BP

• Applies to projects which may have impact on
  health and quality of forests projects which aim
  to bring about change in management, protection
  or utilization of forests
• Applies to natural forests plantations
• OP 4.04 applies, also to critical downstream
  habitats which may be affected
• Plantations preferred to be made on unforested
  sites
• Attention to risk of invasive species
• Commercial harvesting may be financed for areas
  not identified as critical forests/natural
  habitats

28
OP 7.60 Projects in Disputed Areas

• Legal Safeguard Policy
• The Bank may support a project in a disputed area
  if governments concerned agree that, pending the
  settlement of the dispute, the project proposed
  for one country should go foreword without
  prejudice to the claims of the other country

29
OP 7.50 Projects on International Waterways
(Legal SGP)

• Objective to ensure projects will neither affect
  the efficient utilization and protection of
  international waterways, nor adversely affect
  relations between the Bank and its Borrowers and
  between riparian states
• Triggered by any project which involves
  utilization of, or release of effluents into, an
  international waterway, regardless of scale, but
  exemptions may be approved in some cases
• Legal Safeguard Policy requirement for
  notifying other riparian States

30
BP 17.50 Disclosure Policy/Disclosure Handbook

• Supports decision making by the Borrower and Bank
  by allowing the public access to information on
  environmental and social aspects of projects
• Mandated by six safeguard policies that have
  specific requirements for disclosure
• In country
• Before project appraisal in local language and in
  English
• World Bank INFO-Shop
• Before project appraisal in English (documents
  can be in draft but must meet WB standards)

31
Consultation (beyond disclosure)

• Mandated by Environmental Assessment, Involuntary
  Resettlement and Indigenous Peoples Policies
• A two-way process in which beneficiaries provide
  advice and input on the design of proposed
  projects that affect their lives and environment
• Promotes dialogue between governments,
  communities, NGOs and implementing agencies to
  discuss all aspects of the proposed project
• At least 2 consultations for a Category A Project
  (or Sub-project) and one consultation for a
  Category B Project (or Sub-project) before
  appraisal (or sub-project approval)

32
THE END