The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) Project Information Document/ Integrated Safeguards Data Sheet (PID/ISDS) Concept Stage | Date Prepared/Updated: 28-Oct-2017 | Report No: PIDISDSC23207 Sep 08, 2017 Page 1 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) BASIC INFORMATION A. Basic Project Data OPS TABLE Country Project ID Parent Project ID (if any) Project Name Tajikistan P165313 CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) Region Estimated Appraisal Date Estimated Board Date Practice Area (Lead) EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA Dec 21, 2017 Feb 28, 2018 Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience Global Practice Financing Instrument Borrower(s) Implementing Agency Investment Project Financing Ministry of Finance State Enterprise “Project Management Unit for Energy Sector Projectsâ€?,OJSHC Barqi Tojik Proposed Development Objective(s) The Project Development Objective is to improve access to energy, increase access to social and economic infrastructure services, and strengthen local governance capacity in communities in the project area. Financing (in USD Million) FIN_SUMM_PUB_TBL SUMMARY Total Project Cost 18.00 Total Financing 18.00 Financing Gap 0.00 DETAILS -NewFin3 Total World Bank Group Financing 16.00 World Bank Lending 16.00 Environmental Assessment Category Concept Review Decision B-Partial Assessment Track II-The review did authorize the preparation to continue Sep 08, 2017 Page 2 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) Other Decision (as needed) B. Introduction and Context Country Context 1. Despite 15 years of strong economic growth and progress in poverty reduction, Tajikistan has yet to fulfill its potential for sustainable and inclusive development. A post-Soviet country with a young population of 8.4 million, Tajikistan has natural endowments of rivers with promising hydropower potential; extractive mining, including gold, silver, antimony and selected rare metals; as well as mountain/eco-tourism sites. According to official statistics, Tajikistan experienced an average growth rate of 7.7 percent per year between 2000-2015, and a corresponding decline in the poverty rate from 80 percent to 31 percent over the same time period. This rate of economic growth was driven by high remittance inflows and strong regional economic performance, high international prices of cotton and aluminum (Tajikistan’s major exports), and generous ODA inflows until 2013, and has been sustained by substantial levels of public investment since then. However, the high rate of economic growth has masked various structural economic challenges that have increased vulnerability to economic shocks, including, a persistent trade deficit, considerable reliance on remittances, a small and fragile financial sector, and limited internal labor mobility as well as overall employment. Furthermore, the coverage and quality of public services is limited in core sectors, including education, health, electricity supply, waste management and water supply networks. 2. Concurrent with increased socio-economic vulnerabilities, the risk of fragility has grown on multiple fronts. Most cross-national indicators that examine fragility and conflict place Tajikistan in a category of elevated risk1. Economic weaknesses in Tajikistan increasingly stem from factors such as shrinking migration opportunities for its growing youth population, sharply falling remittances, and banking sector problems. Youth, ages 14-30, account for 35 percent of Tajikistan’s population, making Tajikistan the country with the youngest population in Central Asia.2 Yet 41 percent of youth are neither in employment or education (NEETs)3. With limited socioeconomic opportunities at home, many Tajik youth, particularly young men, emigrate to Russia for seasonal or long-term employment, often leaving their families behind. The Russian economic crisis in 2015 led to the return of some 300,000 to 400,000 Tajik migrants who were confronted with limited opportunities for employment and socio-economic integration in their communities. This has increased strain on basic public services, and escalated the potential for the recruitment of youth to violence. In addition, Tajkistan’s performance on international governance indices suggests that factors such as limited voice and political participation, poor governance and rule of law may precipitate the risk of fragility. Tajikistan scores well below the Europe and Central Asia average for all six Worldwide Governance Indicators4. In 2016, Tajikistan scored - 1.67 (on a scale of -2.5 to 2.5) for voice and accountability and -1.02 for government effectiveness,5 down from -1.38 1 The Fund for Peace Fragile States Index assessed Tajikistan to be a country of “High Warning;â€? Tajikistan is one of 56 countr ies OECD classifies as “fragileâ€? or “extremely fragileâ€? in its States of Fragility 2016 Report. 2 Tajikistan Living Standard Panel Survey, Information Brief. State Committee on Statistics, World Bank, 2009./ UNICEF, 2012. Situation analysis of children and women’s rights in Tajikistan (reanalysis of TLSS 2003, 2007, 2009 data). 3 Jobs Diagnostic Tajikistan, World Bank Group, 2017. 4 These are Voice and Accountability, Political Stability and Absence of Violence/Terrorism, Government Effectiveness, Regulatory Quality, Rule of Law, and Control of Corruption. 5 2016 Worldwide Governance Indicators for Tajikistan. Accessed at http://info.worldbank.org/governance/wgi/index.aspx#reports. Sep 08, 2017 Page 3 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) and -0.95, respectively, in 2011. Finally, Tajikistan must contend with regional and cross-border tensions, including along its 1,400-km border with Afghanistan. Sectoral and Institutional Context 3. Tajikistan has abundant water resources and relies on hydropower for 92 percent of its power supply, yet continues to suffer from winter energy deficits due to variability in water flows and electricity demand. In the summer, snow melts contribute to heavy water flows and thus surplus electricity supply, while in the winter reduced water flows lead to perennial power shortages. Winter power outages have increased since households started using electricity for heating purposes after Tajikistan’s power system was severed from the Central Asian power system in 2009. As a result, load-shedding occurs in winter. Despite high rates of connection to the electricity grid (95 percent), customers receive electricity only three to seven hours per day in every region except in Dushanbe and Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province (GBAO). Launching the operation of the second line of the Dushanbe-2 combined heat and power (CHP) plant helped to reduce load-shedding to 3 hours per day during the winter of 2015-2016. Still, approximately seventy percent of the population, predominantly in rural areas and small towns, continues to be energy deprived. Energy deprivation and affordability especially affect the poorest quintile of rural households who spend 25 percent of their monthly consumption expenditure on energy, compared to 15 percent of the poorest quintile in urban areas outside Dushanbe and 14 percent in Dushanbe. 4. To leverage its excess summer energy supply, Tajikistan entered a regional agreement with Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan and Pakistan to create a regional electricity market– the Central Asia South Asia Regional Electricity Market (CASAREM). As part of this agreement, summer surplus electricity resources from Central Asia will be supplied to meet unmet demand in South Asia. The first phase of this agreement is the Central Asia-South Asia Electricity Transmission and Trade Project (CASA-1000), which aims to facilitate electricity trade by putting in place the commercial and institutional arrangements and the transmission infrastructure to enable a trade of roughly 1,300 megawatts of electricity. 5. The CASA-1000 program is aimed at improving the reliability and efficiency of electricity services, and increasing the country’s energy export potential. The Tajikistan portion of CASA-1000 is a 170-km transmission line that extends from Sughd province in the north bordering the Kyrgyz Republic through the Districts of Republican Subordination (DRS) to Khatlon province in the south, through approximately 14 districts (rayons) and 24 jamoats. The transmission line’s 3-km (1.5 km on either side of the transmission line) corridor of impact (CoI) includes communities that are economically and socially vulnerable with limited access to public infrastructure and services. Like much of the country, communities in the CoI suffer from winter energy shortages. However, a 500 kV high-voltage transmission line will not directly provide electricity to communities located nearby. 6. The proposed Tajikistan CASA-1000 Community Support Project (CSP), in addition to providing benefits to communities in villages and jamoats in close proximity to the CASA-1000 infrastructure, will benefit the other three CASA-1000 countries by contributing to the implementation of Tajikistan’s sections of the CASA-1000 infrastructure, the absence of which would undermine the viability of the overall CASA-1000 program. The success of the overall CASA-1000 program hinges on the successful implementation of the CASA-1000 infrastructure in all four countries. As such, Community Support Projects will be implemented the four CASA-1000 countries to mitigate social risk and maximize the socio-economic benefits of the energy investments. The CSPs will be predicated on a community-driven approach to ensure local investments are tailored to community needs and enjoy broad local support. Furthermore, the CSPs will lay the groundwork for the institutional and implementation arrangements for the benefits-sharing Sep 08, 2017 Page 4 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) mechanism that has been agreed among the four governments to fund local development needs from a portion of project revenues from each unit of energy exported/imported during the commercial phase of CASA-10006. 7. 75 percent of Tajikistan’s population, and 80 percent of its poor, live in rural areas where access to quality energy and infrastructure and social services is lacking. Rural-urban disparities in access to social services are illustrated through examples such as access to piped/improved water, which is 36 percent in rural areas compared to 72 percent in urban areas. A 2012 survey of 2,000 households found overall low levels of satisfaction with education quality throughout the country’s five regions, with only 19 percent of rural households expressing satisfaction. Subnational administrative units are responsible for delivering most of the country’s public services, including education, health, culture, sports, road construction and maintenance, and transportation. Though the division of expenditures between oblast (region), rayon (district), and jamoat (local self-governing bodies) is not formally delineated, data suggests, according to a 2012 World Bank analysis, that rayons account for the majority of subnational spending, with oblasts playing an administrative and supervisory role.7 There are no notable institutionalized processes through which citizens or civil society participate in decision-making on local development priorities or resource allocation, or hold subnational administrations to account for service delivery performance. 8. There is a long-running debate in Tajikistan over reforms aimed at improving the quality of service delivery and public sector responsiveness to citizens, tasks that are challenging given a range of factors, including the legacy of civil war, the country’s topography, and limited public resources. Nonetheless, the country has put a legal framework in place on paper that promotes a collaborative relationship between citizens, “self-governingâ€? communities, and subnational administrations to support local development. The legal framework includes the 1994 Law on “Self- Government in Towns and Townshipsâ€? and two subsequent amendments in 2009 and 2017. The 1994 law assigns to jamoats a broad range of competencies and the mandate to support community efforts to address local socioeconomic needs. The 2009 amendment aims to strengthen local self-governance and accountability by delegating budget authority to jamoat councils, and introducing a system of direct election for jamoat councilors. The 2009 amendment has only been partially implemented and resulted in little change on the ground. The 2017 amendment allows jamoat councils to retain non-tax revenues earned through the provision of administrative services and a percentage of local property taxes. The 2017 amendment suggests a seriousness on the part of national government to enact policies that empower jamoat councils with authorities and resources needed to support local development and problem-solving. 9. Community institutions have proven to be an important source of resilience in the face of shortcomings in public infrastructure and service provision. One such institution of significance in Tajikistan is the mahalla. One contemporary scholar defines the mahalla as “a self-governing small community regulated by rules based on traditional practices and customs deeply rooted in the Central Asian Islamic traditionâ€? that continue to be observed by local communities to this day8. While historically informal in nature, recent legislation (the 2008 “Law on Public Self-Initiative Bodiesâ€?) allows mahallas to register as social institutions, open bank accounts, organize community events, and stamp or issue certificates of temporary or permanent residency. Mahalla Committees are also sanctioned to work directly with both non-governmental and government bodies, as well as international organizations. Evidence suggests that mahallas continue to play an important role in contemporary socio-economic life. In a survey of nearly 6 Project Appraisal Document, Central Asia South Asia Electricity Transmission and Trade Project (CASA-1000), March 7, 2014, p. 48. 7 “Improving Service Delivery through Governance Reforms: Is Decentralization the Answer for Tajikistan?â€? Internal draft dated March 2013. 8 Cieslewska, A. (2015:1) “Community, the State, and Development Assistance: Transforming the Mahalla in Tajikistan,â€? Jagiellon ian University in Krakow. Sep 08, 2017 Page 5 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) 1,400 households from four regions of the country carried out by the USAID Tajikistan Local Governance Project (LGP) in 20139, the clear majority of respondents (86 percent) indicated the existence of a mahalla committee in the locality in which they reside. Individuals were asked for whom they believe mahalla officials work—the state or the community. Three fourths of respondents said that mahalla officials work for the community, 17 percent said they work for both the community and the state, while 5 percent said they work for the state exclusively. Mahalla leaders had the highest level of citizen accountability of any public organization. Jamoat councils and mahalla committees together constitute a local institutional basis through which to support transparent, inclusive local development investments and initiatives. 10. Participation in Mahalla Committees tend to be dominated by older men, with limited avenues for youth and women participation in local decision-making. Ensuring young men and women benefit from community initiatives is particularly important given Tajikistan’s youth bulge and high levels of youth unemployment and inactivity. Relationship to CPF 11. The CSP’s inclusive, participatory, and community-driven approach is aligned with the emphasis of the WBG’s FY15- 18 Country Partnership Strategy on expanding economic and social opportunities for the private sector and excluded groups. The Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) has three pillars: private sector led growth, social inclusion, and regional connectivity. The Tajikistan CSP is closely linked to the pillar on social inclusion through its inclusive, participatory and community-driven approach, and its focus on improving access to services among the rural poor. The Project will also contribute towards the Bank’s twin goals of eradicating extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity. 12. The CSP’s bottom-up, participatory approach will also contribute towards addressing some of the fragility risks identified by the Risk and Resilience Assessment conducted for Tajikistan. The WBG’s Country Partnership Framework (CPF) for FY19-23 is currently under preparation. It will draw upon findings of the 2017 Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD), which was informed by a Risk and Resilience Assessment (RRA) conducted for Tajikistan. Fragility risks identified by the RRA include: cross-cutting political and governance challenges; economic risks; social and economic exclusion of youth and women; and regional and cross-border challenges. The proposed CSP, which is designed in a modular fashion and which could be scaled up based on availability of funds, will address these risks by: (i) mitigating against community-level conflicts caused by discontent over electricity exports amidst energy shortages; (ii) providing avenues for citizen participation, voice, and accountability in local decision-making and resource utilization; (iii) building trust between the citizen and state by increasing local government responsiveness and capacity to provide basic services in partnership with local communities; (iv) prioritizing vulnerable populations including youth and women; (v) stimulating local economic activity through modest local development investments; and (vi) reinforcing community institutions as local sources of resilience. C. Proposed Development Objective(s) Increase access to energy, social and economic infrastructure services, and strengthen local governance capacity in communities in the project area. Key Results (From PCN) 9 USAID, “Tajikistan Local Governance Project Impact Evaluation Baseline Report,â€? September 2013. Sep 08, 2017 Page 6 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) The PDO level results indicators are as follows, to be further refined during project appraisal: • Percentage of target communities in the CASA-1000 corridor of impact (CoI) with improved access to energy. • Percentage of target communities in the project jamoats with increased access to social and/or economic infrastructure (including electricity and energy efficiency in schools, hospitals, kindergartens, etc). • Percentage of beneficiaries in target communities who report that: (a) their engagement in decision making over project investments was effective; and (b) investments met their needs. (engagement – gender disaggregated/whole of community). • Number of jamoats with Local Development Plans that reflect the needs of youth and women. • Percentage of young (women and men) beneficiaries who report that their role/voice in local decision-making has been enhanced as a result of project support (empowerment/inclusion - gender disaggregated/youth). D. Concept Description 13. The Project will employ a community-driven development (CDD) approach, where communities select sub-projects to be implemented, and directly implement or oversee sub-project implementation. Project implementation is expected to start in calendar year 2018 (Year 1), which will focus on village-level energy investments in communities within the transmission line’s corridor of impact. This will address the importance of a direct, sector-specific link between the CSP and CASA-1000 by supporting energy and energy efficiency investments in target villages. During the first year, the project will also undertake capacity building for participatory, community-driven planning in targeted jamoats. Once the development planning process is completed, targeted jamoats will receive investment grants for implementation of sub-projects in sectors such as education, water and sanitation, transport and so on in parallel with continuation of energy and energy efficiency investments. Below is a summary of the proposed Project components and subcomponents: Subcomponent 1a: Community Energy Investments 14. This sub-component will support investments to improve the quality, reliability, and efficiency of electricity in villages in the 3-km CoI. Efforts to improve energy services will include two streams of activities: (a) power supply improvements, and (b) energy efficiency measures, if relevant, for off-grid communities. Priorities for power supply improvements will include improving the quality and reliability of power supply to affected villages by upgrading existing supply-level substations that are overloaded, or building new supply-level transformers, lines and poles in parallel with upgrading existing supply-level facilities by concentrating on aging and overloaded transformers and replacing wooden poles and wires. Such measures to improve power supply will help to reduce technical losses and improve voltage conditions in the main load areas of the affected villages. Priorities for energy efficiency measures will include procurement (implementation) of clean efficient heating stoves and/or solar powered cookers, street lighting (including solar-powered systems), small renewable energy elements (solar powered PVs, or solar powered water heaters/collectors, heat pumps), insulated doors, windows for public and private buildings (public sector buildings such as schools, kindergartens and medical centers will be given precedence), energy efficient water pumps, and so on. As part of the CDD approach, communities will submit proposals for activities related to energy efficiency, that will be based on criteria detailed in the project operations manual. To ensure transparency, jamoat councils and affected mahalla committees will certify the proposed scope of works both prior to implementation and after completion. Subcomponent 1b: Community Socio-Economic Infrastructure Investments Sep 08, 2017 Page 7 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) 15. This component will finance small-scale social and economic infrastructure subprojects identified through community- driven participatory planning processes. To build local administrative capacity and ensure sustainability of infrastructure investments, an investment grant of approximately $100,000 will be allocated to each jamoat. The formula for the jamoat-level grant allocation will be agreed upon during appraisal. Communities or groups of communities within the jamoat will prepare sub-project proposals to apply for financing from grant funds that have been allocated to their respective jamoats. Eligible sub-projects may include, but are not limited to: access to water supply for drinking, irrigation, and agricultural production, energy efficiency measures sanitation services, access to food and nutrition security, health centers, rehabilitation of kindergartens and schools, roads, footpaths and bridges, sports/social facilities, rural electrification, and energy efficiency measures. Sub project proposals will be reviewed against selection criteria that will be agreed and defined in the project operations manual. The final list of criteria will take into account factors such as the level of local contribution/co-financing, plans for operation and maintenance of investments, and the number of beneficiaries. The utilization of local labor—carefully controlled for relevant skills and quality—will be encouraged to the extent possible, including opportunities for youth employment or apprenticeships. Activities for sub project applications that are selected for funding will be coordinated with other Bank and donor projects where relevant. 16. This component will prioritize the engagement of youth in the identification, design, implementation and monitoring of community socio-economic infrastructure investments. This could involve: (i) extensive youth participation in community planning meetings, (ii) youth membership in sub-project implementation committees, (iii) opportunities for youth employment or apprenticeships during sub-project implementation, and (iv) establishment of youth M&E teams to supervise and monitor execution or conduct periodic social audits. Subprojects that demonstrate widespread benefits and engagement of youth and women throughout the subproject cycle will be prioritized for funding. These could include youth centers, skills building activities, sports and cultural facilities, and school repairs. 17. Subproject activities under this component will also be geared towards increasing engagement of and improving socio- economic opportunities for women. These may include activities that provide economic opportunities for women, such as including women in project construction activities and setting targets for women’s employment. Component 2: Community and Local Government Capacity Building, Fragility-Sensitive Facilitation, and Communications and Public Outreach 18. This component will support local capacity building in social mobilization, development planning, subproject implementation, and good governance practices. It will focus on two key groups: members of participating communities and community-based organizations (mahalla committees), and jamoat councils. The services of firms and/or NGOs will be sought to implement this component. 19. Community mobilization, including youth and women-focused facilitation. Training and support will be provided for participating communities and jamoat councils in community mobilization and monitoring, needs assessments, resource assessments, and participatory planning. In addition, tailored training for youth facilitators will be provided on topics such as leadership, negotiation, decision-making and teamwork. Such a “learning-by-doingâ€? approach will help to develop life skills of youth that will enhance their capacity to influence community decisions within the project, while at the same time building skills valued by potential employers. Furthermore, facilitation support will include targeted consultations and communication with women’s groups and female-headed households to ensure that their needs are properly addressed. Sep 08, 2017 Page 8 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) 20. Local development planning and micro-project implementation. Through a participatory and fully transparent process, villages will assess and identify local problems and priorities, establish their own priorities for investment, and identify and prepare subprojects that address their needs. Training in local development planning may include: infrastructure planning and operations, good practices in avoiding and/or mitigating environmental impacts of infrastructure projects, and training in operations and maintenance. 21. Transparency and accountability measures. This subcomponent will support the training of mahalla community leaders and jamoat councils members on key project issues such as: (i) accountability and transparency in conducting public affairs; (ii) awareness of local responsibilities in relations with higher levels of government; (iii) strategic planning for community development; (iv) citizen engagement in local planning and decision making; (v) project management and monitoring; (vi) fundraising and sustainability of community projects; and (vii) tools for good governance. Emphasis will be placed on measures to minimize the room for misuse, fraud, and corruption. 22. Communications and public outreach. The provision of accurate, easy-to-access information on the CASA-1000 program and the CSP itself is critical to smooth implementation. This component will support the delivery of information targeting local stakeholders (district, jamoat, and village) as defined the overall CASA-1000 Communications strategy, which is currently under development, and includes the process for communicating the final list of villages in the 3-km CoI, after which no further changes will be permitted. Component 3: Project Management Support 23. This component will support overall project management by the implementing agencies - Barki Tajik and the Energy Sector PMU (ES PMU) - and provide capacity building support where needed. The Project will provide financing for key agency staff, consultants, essential equipment, operating costs, technical assistance, training, and office refurbishment. Funding will also be provided for information dissemination, beneficiary assessments, periodic surveys, monitoring and evaluation (M&E) activities, a management information system (MIS), project audits and a project grievance redress mechanism that will monitor grievances. SAFEGUARDS A. Project location and salient physical characteristics relevant to the safeguard analysis (if known) The 170-km CASA-1000 transmission line through Tajikistan is projected to traverse 24 jamoats (local self-governing bodies) in 14 districts in three regions of the country (Sughd, Districts of Republican Subordination and Khatlon). The corridor of impact for Tajikistan is defined as a 3-km corridor spanning 1.5-km on either side of the transmission line. As of October 2017, 63 villages have been identified as lying within the corridor of impact. The Community Support Project aims to improve electricity access in the 63 villages in the corridor of impact, and increase access to social and economic infrastructure and strengthen local governance capacity in all villages in the 24 jamoats through which the corridor of impact passes. Final project geographic coverage will take into account: the final alignment of the transmission line; the scale and cost of interventions that would have meaningful impact at the local level; and budget limitations. Sep 08, 2017 Page 9 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) B. Borrower’s Institutional Capacity for Safeguard Policies The energy sector (ES) PMU has qualified social and environmental safeguards staff that provide support to Barki Tajik in order to meet the Bank’s environmental and social safeguards requirements, including OP 4.01. However, since the ES PMU’s capacity is currently fully utilized to implement ongoing projects, additional staffing and consulting capacity may be required for it to ES PMU to successfully implement safeguards policies for the CSP. The WB team will provide on the job training for new safeguards staff. Furthermore, the first 5 Category B subprojects will require WB prior review of the EA documents. C. Environmental and Social Safeguards Specialists on the Team Kristine Schwebach, Social Safeguards Specialist Arcadii Capcelea, Environmental Safeguards Specialist D. Policies that might apply Safeguard Policies Triggered? Explanation (Optional) This policy is triggered as the project will support a series of activities which will generate some environmental and social impacts. The proposed project activities under Component 1a includes: upgrading existing supply-level substations that are overloaded, or building new supply-level transformers, lines and poles in parallel with upgrading existing supply-level facilities by concentrating on aging and overloaded transformers and replacing wooden poles and wires, implementation of clean efficient heating stoves or solar powered cookers, street lighting (including solar- powered systems), small renewable energy elements Environmental Assessment OP/BP 4.01 Yes (solar powered PVs, or solar powered water heaters/collectors, heat pumps), insulated doors, windows for public and private buildings (public sector buildings such as schools, kindergartens and medical centers will be given precedence), energy efficient water pumps. Component 1b project activities, which will be determined by communities, may include, but are not limited to: access to water supply for drinking, irrigation, and agricultural production, sanitation services, access to food and nutrition security, health centers, rehabilitation of kindergartens and schools, roads, footpaths and bridges, and sports/social facilities. Project activities under both Components 1a and 1b might generate a series of various Sep 08, 2017 Page 10 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) environmental and social impacts. These impacts would be associated with noise, dust, air and water pollution, solid waste management, biodiversity degradation, health hazards and labor safety issues. All impacts are typical for small scale construction/rehabilitation works or for various energy supply or energy efficiency activities. Impacts tend to be temporary by nature and site specific which can be easily mitigated by applying best practices and establishing relevant mitigation measures. • Voluntary land donations. Voluntary land donations carried out by local communities for subproject activities have the risk of being based on administrative or social coercion and may lead to unanticipated social impacts such as depriving individuals of land and other assets in the guise of voluntary donations and in the name of the "common good"; women users of the land, settlers or migrant users being passed over in decision-making on land donations; and cross-generational conflicts on land ownership issues. To minimize such risks, any subproject that acquires land on a voluntary donation basis will be required to first meet a set of strict criteria before the land donation is accepted. A detailed outline of these criteria will be included in the Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF), the Project Appraisal Document (PAD) and the Project Operation Manual (POM). • Misplaced expectations of benefit-sharing from local communities residing outside of the jamoats through which the CoI passes. Such expectations could lead to resentment when benefit sharing does not materialize. This risk will be mitigated through communications and awareness-raising activities that clearly communicate project eligibility criteria to stakeholders within Project districts, and the operation of a project grievance redress mechanism (GRM) should residents raise concerns after awareness-raising activities take place. In addition, there may be a risk of elite capture or pressure from higher levels of government to select particular investments given the high levels of social and economic infrastructure needs in the project area. This risk will be mitigated by simple, transparent project Sep 08, 2017 Page 11 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) selection criteria defined in the PAD and POM, as well as through the GRM. The project will communicate that Component 1a will be available to the 63 communities existing within the established corridor of impact. Component 1b will be available to the 24 jamoats through which the corridor passes. This includes the 63 communities within the corridor. Land in Tajikistan is publically owned. It is thus extremely difficult, and time consuming, to have land ‘allocated’, and thus it would be highly unlikely that a community could establish itself in the corridor of impact during project implementation. Additionally, due to land allocation hurdles, it would be unlikely to have a significant influx of movement into targeted communities. If an influx were to be experienced, this would not impact the project goals of assisting targeted communities. • Use of child labor in agricultural activities. Child and forced labor (CFL) in agriculture is mainly associated with cotton production in general. In Tajikistan, child labor is broadly regarded as helping parents generate income for the family. Usually children work outside of school hours (without disturbing school attendance), and there is no pressure from the local authorities to use child labor in agricultural production. Nonetheless the Project will mitigate risks of child labor by complying with applicable national legislation on child labor. A Project- wide GRM will also be used for monitoring any cases of noncompliance. Finally, as is the practice in other World Bank projects supporting the agricultural sector, investments that support cotton production will be on the negative list. The national legislation on child labor is at par with international standards. The Tajikistan Labor Code sets the minimum age at which a child can be employed as well as the conditions under which children can work (Articles 113, 67, and 174). The minimum employment age is 15 years, however, in certain cases of vocational training, mild work may be allowed for 14 year olds (article 174 of the Labor Code). In addition, there are some labor restrictions on what type of work can be done, and what hours of work are permissible by Sep 08, 2017 Page 12 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) workers under the age of 18. These limitations are consistent with the ILO Convention on Minimum Age. Moreover, Tajikistan has also ratified ILO Conventions to address child labor including: ILO Convention No. 138 on Minimum Age for Admission to Employment (26 November 1993); ILO Convention No.182 on Worst Forms of Child Labor (8 June 2005); and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child CRC (25 November 1993). For component 2, TA/capacity building for the preparation of Local Development Plans will consider Environmental and Social aspects, including the following: • Local development plans will be prepared using participatory development approaches (e.g. participatory rural appraisal), and will, among other things, emphasize participation of youth and women in planning exercises through the use of targets for participation in planning meetings, or through separate planning meetings for youth and women. • Ensuring youth and women benefit from sub- project investments through various means, including: (a) requiring that at least one sub-project proposed by youth and one proposed by women’s groups are funded in each jamoat annually; and/or (b) the use of sub-project selection criteria that place higher weight for sub-projects that demonstrate benefits for youth and women. The borrower will prepare an Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) to address potential environmental and social issues. Per WB requirements the ESMF will be disclosed in the country and the local population and interested parties will be consulted. It will specify the Environmental Assessment (EA) requirements for investments to be supported under Component 1 as follows: (a) rules and procedures for environmental screening; (b) guidance for preparing subproject Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) and/or simple Environmental and Social Management Plans (ESMP) as well as for ESMP Checklists; (c) possible mitigation measures for Sep 08, 2017 Page 13 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) different types of subprojects; and (d) requirements for monitoring and supervision of the implementations of ESIA/ESMPs requirements. It will also specify the screening criteria (negative list) to exclude sub-projects with environmental or social safeguards risks and strict guidelines for voluntary land donations. The negative list will exclude sub- projects with environmental or social safeguards risks (negative list), such as: o Equipment or materials funded by (or included in the budgets of) other organizations, such as government agencies, NGOs, or other donor-funded programs. o Investments detrimental to the environment; o Land purchase or lease, under any conditions; o Any activity on land that has disputed ownership or tenure rights o Any activity using child labor according to national law; o Dams over 3 meters; and o Sub-projects that require any form of land donation that is non- voluntary or requires compensation. The proposed capacity building activities to be provided under Component 2 will include guidance on identifying subprojects' environmental impacts, and rules and procedures for preparing ESIAs and ESMPs. The ESMF will also include guidance on how to integrate environmental and social safeguards requirements into local development planning. It is anticipated that most of the selected subprojects will be Category C or low B. Any subprojects with the potential to cause significant environmental impacts (Category A subprojects) will be not supported under the project. The screening criteria along with the screening procedures and responsibilities will be clearly specified in the ESMF document. The ESMF will describe mitigating measures for managing social risks, including the launch of a public information/communication campaign regarding the CSP’s objectives, activities and potential implications for PAPs; stakeholder consultations and disclosure of the ESMF and selected sub project proposals/plans; the establishment of a grievance redress mechanism Sep 08, 2017 Page 14 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) for timely resolution of requests and complaints, and other initiatives to engage with beneficiaries and Project stakeholders throughout the Project cycle. This policy will be not triggered as the project will support investments only in the settlements or on existing agricultural lands. The ESMF will provide Natural Habitats OP/BP 4.04 No guidance and criteria for sub-projects screening on this OP and all those which might trigger the policy will be excluded from the project financing. This policy will be not triggered as all project activities will be implemented in the existing settlements or on Forests OP/BP 4.36 No existing agricultural lands, and there will be no support for any wood harvesting activities. This OP 4.09 is not triggered as the project will not finance purchasing of pesticides and and/or proposed Pest Management OP 4.09 No project activities that could lead to their increased usage. This policy will be not triggered as all project activities Physical Cultural Resources OP/BP 4.11 No will be implemented within the existing settlements or on existing agricultural lands. A screening determined that there are no Indigenous Indigenous Peoples OP/BP 4.10 No Peoples' as per the World Bank's policy in this area. This Project will follow a CDD approach, and as such it is unknown what sub-projects will be proposed by communities during project implementation. Sub- projects that require any form of involuntary land acquisition, causes economic displacement, or requires compensation will not be supported by the Project. Additionally, the project will include a list of activities (a negative list) that will not be eligible for funding. Any new land utilized for community sub projects, such as extending power or water supply, will occur within existing right-of-way or easements. If a Involuntary Resettlement OP/BP 4.12 No community project requires new land, the project will identify unused government land or seek voluntary land donation. Any project that acquires land on a voluntary donation basis will be required to first meet a set of strict criteria before the donation will be accepted. The voluntary land donation criteria will be included in the ESMF, Project Appraisal Document, and Project Operation Manual. If a sub project requires temporary land use, such as might be needed for storage of materials, then contractors/ project implementers will be required to either utilize public land, land occupied by government facilities, or seek a Sep 08, 2017 Page 15 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) lease arrangement under ‘willing buyer- willing seller’ arrangement. This policy will be not triggered as all project activities to be supported will not have any impacts on dam safety. Furthermore, the small-scale on-farm irrigation infrastructure rehabilitation subprojects eligible for Safety of Dams OP/BP 4.37 No funding will not depend on the performance of existing dams as the water sources to be used are small streams flowing from the mountainous project area. OP 7.50 is not triggered as the project will not finance any sub-projects which may affect international waterways (projects involving discharging waste waters directly in the international waterways; abstraction or diversion of international waters; projects related to discharging waste materials in a Projects on International Waterways No location that could impact on international waters; OP/BP 7.50 construction of any dams that might affect international waters hydrological regime). Although it may support irrigation projects, the proposed activities would be of a very small scale and only related to rehabilitation of on-farm irrigation infrastructure. The project will not support any activities in disputed Projects in Disputed Areas OP/BP 7.60 No areas. E. Safeguard Preparation Plan Tentative target date for preparing the Appraisal Stage PID/ISDS Dec 01, 2017 Time frame for launching and completing the safeguard-related studies that may be needed. The specific studies and their timing should be specified in the Appraisal Stage PID/ISDS The Environmental and Social Management Framework is under preparation with a completion date of November 15, 2017. Public consultations on the ESMF will be initiated thereafter. CONTACT POINT World Bank Robert Wrobel, Takhmina Mukhamedova Senior Social Development Specialist Sep 08, 2017 Page 16 of 17 The World Bank CASA-1000 Community Support Project for Tajikistan (P165313) Borrower/Client/Recipient Ministry of Finance Abdusalom Qurboniyon Minister Min_fin@tqjikiston.com Implementing Agencies State Enterprise “Project Management Unit for Energy Sector Projectsâ€? Nazar Nazarzoda Executive Director pmu_tj@mail.ru OJSHC Barqi Tojik Mirzo Ismoilzoda Chairman barki_tojik@tajnеt.Ñ?оm FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT The World Bank 1818 H Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20433 Telephone: (202) 473-1000 Web: http://www.worldbank.org/projects APPROVAL Task Team Leader(s): Robert Wrobel, Takhmina Mukhamedova Approved By APPROVALTBL Practice Manager/Manager: Nina Bhatt 02-Nov-2017 Country Director: Jan-Peter Olters 07-Nov-2017 Sep 08, 2017 Page 17 of 17