82740 Republic of Senegal – Proposed Sustainable and Inclusive Agribusiness Project (PDIDAS - P124018) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT Introduction The overall project objective is to promote growth through increased private investment in productive agricultural sectors (mainly horticulture) in the region of St Louis. The strategic objectives are: (i) To support the development of inclusive and sustainable horticulture in the areas of Ngalam and Lake Guiers - these having been chosen as pilot areas (see third objective below); (ii ) To promote the production, processing and marketing of horticultural products for domestic markets (food security and import substitution), and sub-regional and international markets; (iii) To develop and implement sustainable solutions, that are replicable in other sub-sectors and areas of Senegal. Sites to accommodate projects are not yet finally selected and works to be done are not specifically described at this stage of the project implementation process. However, it is known that under the PDIDAS, some planned activities, including support to agricultural production and processing, can have negative effects on the environment during implementation or during operation. It is in this context that it is envisaged to prepare an ESMF to ensure that environmental and social concerns of future project activities are properly taken into account from planning, to implementation and monitoring/evaluation. Objective of the ESMF The Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) can help guide the project activities so that environmental and social issues are addressed and managed in all activities implemented. For this, the aim is to identify the risks associated with various project interventions and to define mitigation and management procedures and measures to be implemented during project implementation. The Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) is designed also as a screening mechanism for environmental and social impacts of investments and project activities. As such, it serves to guide the development of Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (ESIA) specific to the project, for which the precise layout and environmental and social characteristics are still unknown. In addition, the ESMF provides a framework for monitoring and surveillance as well as institutional arrangements for project implementation and the implementation of activities to mitigate the adverse environmental and social impacts, to eliminate or reduce them to acceptable levels. National environmental legislation To ensure effective management and protection of the environment, the Environmental Code provides that “Any development or activity likely to harm the environment, as well as sector-wide policies, plans, programs, and studies shall be subject to an environmental assessment (EA).” The elements of the environmental assessment are: the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), the Strategic Environmental Assessment; and the Environmental Audit. The Environmental Code is supplemented by five orders of November 28, 2001. World Bank Safeguard Policies The environmental and social safeguards policies of the World Bank that may apply to the activities of PDIDAS are: OP 4.01 “Environmental Assessment”; OP 4.04 “Natural Habitats”, OP 4.09 “Pest”; OP 4.11 “Physical Cultural Resources” OP 4.12 “Involuntary Resettlement of populations”; OP 4.36 Forests, OP 4.37 “Safety of Dams” and OP 7.50 “Projects related to International Waters Courses”. Activities that trigger the policies indicated above should be considered by the PDIDAS. The remaining operational policies are not triggered by the PDIDAS. Specific measures are proposed in the ESMF to allow the project to comply with the policies triggered. Map of land use areas of Lake Guiers and Ngalam 3 Environmental and social issues in the area of intervention in the three countries The major environmental and social issues of the project area are: • Sensitivity of Lake Guiers (pollution; various use; invasion by plants); • Presence and sensitivity of wetlands (migratory birds, etc.) • Population health hazards (waterborne diseases, etc.); • Sensitivity of land issues (customary rights, etc.). • Sensitivity of transhumance issues (corridors, areas of camelids); • Strong pressure on water and land resources • Degradation of natural resources due to drought cycles since the 70s, combined with irrational practices of resource exploitation. • Pollution (water and soil) due to industrial discharges, use of fertilizers and pesticides • Proliferation of invasive floating plants which constitutes a threat to waterways and hydraulic axes of the area • Threats to protected areas and natural reserves (in the neighborhood) • Resurgence of certain human endemic waterborne diseases, including malaria, urinary and intestinal schistosomiasis, and diarrhea • Anarchical space occupation (non-compliance with local Land Use and Allocation Plans, with development standards, with the Charter of Irrigated Areas etc.) • Degradation of the banks of Lake with increased activities • Reduction in grazing areas (land disputes); • Incursion of livestock in farmlands (land disputes). Negative environmental and social impacts Activities that could cause negative impacts are: • The development of approximately 10,000 hectares in the Ngalam valley and at Lake Guiers. The implementation of the primary, secondary and tertiary irrigation network; • The provision of an offer of farmlands to agricultural investors; • The introduction and adoption of innovative practices (farm tracks, post-harvest practices); • The development of production and post-harvest infrastructure; • Support for semi-industrial processing and packaging enterprises; • The development of power grid in both intervention areas; • The development of agricultural tracks in the two intervention areas. The environmental and social impacts of the PDIDAS projects will mainly involve: the risk of soil erosion (soil instability) due to agricultural development, the risk of water pollution and degradation (Lake Guiers), loss of vegetation due to deforestation in preparation of agricultural plots, the risk of pollution and degradation of streams associated with the use of pesticides and fertilizers, etc. The terrestrial and aquatic habitats (wetlands) may be altered mainly during the startup phase and during the implementation of agricultural activities. On the social side, we may see a rise in tensions between farmers on land issues, or between pastoralists and farmers; unauthorized (nonconsensual) occupation of land belonging to local communities; population growth, which will result in pressures for land requirements. 4 The process for environmental and social screening of projects The process for environmental and social screening complements the national environmental assessment procedure, particularly with regard to project screening and classification. The ESMF is meant to address this discrepancy with national regulations. The determination of the environmental and social categories of activities will be determined by the result of environmental and social screening. The review and approval of activities will be conducted by qualified staff at local and regional level. This screening process is designed to: (i) determine the activities of the PDIDAS project that may have adverse impacts at the environmental and social levels, (ii) determine the appropriate mitigation measures for activities with adverse impacts; ( iii) identify activities that require separate ESIAs, (iv) describe the institutional responsibilities for analysis and approval of the screening results, the implementation of proposed mitigation measures, and the preparation of separate ESIA reports; and (v) provide environmental and social monitoring during the implementation of activities, and their management. Measures to strengthen the Environmental and Social Management of the project The PDIDAS has made provision in its design for environmental and social measures that will be improved and strengthened. The environmental issues in the project area and the capitalization of knowledge and lessons learned from previous agricultural projects require strengthening environmental and social management of PDIDAS by the measures described below: • Strategic measures (Prioritization of areas of intervention according to the environmental and social challenges; Requirements of coordination and synergy among the various stakeholders in the area; Conservation Strategies of wetlands dynamics in the project area; Policies for access to water and land management; promote gender mainstreaming); • Measures for institutional strengthening (Strengthening environmental and social expertise of the firm of consultants and project coordination unit); • Technical reinforcement measures (studies to be done; enforcement and monitoring measures; manual of good agricultural practices for investors; Special Program for fighting against the degradation of vegetation cover, and for protecting and restoring natural habitats; Measures for environmental and social management and monitoring of Lake Guiers; measures to eliminate vulnerabilities of agricultural and pastoral activities; measures to eliminate vulnerability factors of agricultural and pastoral activities; technical reinforcement through the establishment of a laboratory for water quality analysis; Training of stakeholders involved in the implementation of the project; information and awareness of stakeholders involved in the implementation of the project; monitoring and evaluation of the PDIDAS activities • Measures for compliance with environmental and social safeguards triggered by the project. The total cost of environmental activities under the ESMF is estimated at 1.65 billion CFA francs (US$3.3 million equivalent) to be incorporated into the project costs. Institutional arrangements for implementation and environmental and social monitoring The implementation of activities will be provided by private investors, but also public services. Social and environmental monitoring will be structured as follows: (i) supervision of activities will be provided by the Environmental and Social Experts of PDIDAS project coordination unit, but also the National Investment Promotion Agency (APIX) and the project Technical Committee; (ii) Close internal oversight for the implementation the environmental and social measures will be ensured by control offices (control mission) that will be committed to that task, but also by the Office of Lake Guiers (OLAG), Regional Directorates for Rural Development (DRDR) and the Regional Health Service (RHS); (iii) “external” monitoring will be performed by the regional environmental and social monitoring committee (CRSE), under the coordination of the Regional Division of Environment and Classified Establishments (DREEC), 5 in rural communities where the projects will be implemented; (iv) the evaluation will be conducted by independent consultants, half-way and at the end of the project PDIDAS. Summary of steps and institutional responsibilities Steps Responsibility Preliminary step: Formulation of a land offers by Rural Communities and Project coordination unit (UC-PDIDAS) Villages Step 1: Preliminary Validation of offers of land by the CR Firm of consultants Step two: preliminary design (APS) following multi-criteria evaluation and Firm of consultants baseline, capacity building of CRs in Land Management Step 3: Preparation of calls for expressions of investment projects APIX Step 4: Marketing to potential investors APIX Step 5: Call for proposals and selection of investment projects APIX and Firm of consultants Step 6: Environmental and Social Screening and Classification of projects UC-PDIDAS Step 7: Validation of the environmental and social classification of projects DEEC Step 8: Implementation of the environmental and social work UC-PDIDAS 8.1. Enforcement of simple mitigation measures UC-PDIDAS 8.2. Conducting Environmental Impact Assessment (ESIA) UC-PDIDAS Step 9: Review and approval DREEC / Technical Committee Step 10: Public Consultation and dissemination • UC-PDIDAS • DREEC Step 11: Completion of Preliminary Project Summary (APS) • Firm of consultants Step 12: Negotiations and allocations Rural Communities, Technical Committee and Private Firm Step 13: Incorporating environmental and social measures into tenders UC-PDIDAS Step 14: Implementing measures, including the preparation of implementation Investors and private providers ESMP) Step 15: Environmental and Social Surveillance and Monitoring Supervision: • UC-PDIDAS • PDIDAS Steering Committee Members Surveillance: • Control Offices • OLAG, RHS, DRDR • Local Administrations Monitoring: • DREEC/CRSE Evaluation: • Independent Consultants