The Netherlands Red Cross Home Repair Project Sint Maarten Hurricane Irma Recovery Stakeholder Engagement Plan (SEP) December 6th , 2019 Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx i Contents 1. INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................. 1 2. PREVIOUS STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT ................................................................. 1 3. STAKEHOLDER ANALYSIS .............................................................................................. 2 a. Affected Parties ...................................................................................................................... 2 b. Interested Parties .................................................................................................................... 3 c. Stakeholder needs................................................................................................................... 3 4. STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT PROGRAM ................................................................. 4 a. Community Engagement and Accountability Plan ................................................................ 4 b. Information disclosure and consultation strategy................................................................... 5 5. RESOURCES AND RESPONSIBILITIES FOR STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT ....... 7 a. Resources ............................................................................................................................... 7 b. Management and responsibilities ........................................................................................... 8 6. GRIEVANCE MECHANISM ............................................................................................... 8 7. MONITORING AND REPORTING ..................................................................................... 9 Annex 1. Beneficiary Selection Criteria .......................................................................................... 10 Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx ii 1. INTRODUCTION 1. The Home Repair project is part of the Netherlands Red Cross (NLRC) recovery programme on Sint Maarten. The project is fully funded by the Sint Maarten Trust Fund which is financed by the Government of the Netherlands and administrated through a tripartite partnership of the Sint Maarten and Netherlands governments and the World Bank. From a successful fundraising campaign following hurricane Irma in September 2017, NLRC has been active in the relief phase, early recovery phase, and is currently engaged in long term activities. This extensive recovery programme already includes a substantial home repair component, where over 1000 households have received assistance. Recognising further needs in this field, NLRC has submitted a proposal to the Steering Committee of the Trust Fund in order to secure additional funding to assist 200 further households with home repair activities, proposing a grant of over USD3.5mln. These mainly focus on roof repairs. As such, the project proposed to the World Bank (phase 2) is a follow up of a project (phase 1) already carried out by NLRC. From internal lessons learned out of phase 1, and in discussions with the World Bank, the approach of phase 2 will be adapted slightly from a more owner driven approach in phase 1, to a more direct assistance approach in phase 2, aiming to ensure quality and speed of recovery. NLRC is currently preparing for start-up activities of phase 2. 2. The project aims to ensure 200 households affected by hurricane Irma live in safe housing at the end of the project, and households have increased knowledge on hurricane resistant housing. 3. Phase 1 targeted 9 specific communities on the island. Phase 2 aims to focus on new communities that have not yet been targeted. As there are many pockets of vulnerable communities still on the island, it was proposed that the beneficiary selection will not be strictly limited to a set number of communities as in phase 1, but to ensure some more flexibility in site selection. The project however practically focusses on certain communities or parts of communities to ensure a coherent project implementation plan that in which selection criteria are easily understood by communities. Individuals will be assessed for eligibility using the Beneficiary Selection Criteria which is attached as Annex 1. 4. Home repairs themselves will be carried out by construction crews hired directly by NLRC. NLRC already uses these crews for repairs in phase 1. The repairs vary from part of roofs to repairs of entire roofs from the ring beam up. Between 4 and 8 people may work on the roofs depending on the size. In any case, these works are considered minor works and impact on the surrounding area is limited; there will only be a one-time delivery of materials by small truck and the work site is restricted to the premises of one household. With work only taking place during the daytime, impact for neighbours is limited. 2. PREVIOUS STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT 5. As the project follows on from an existing project, a number of stakeholders have already been engaged. Different departments/parties within government are aware of our proposal for phase 2. During phase 1 of the project, multiple stakeholders were informed and consulted; including NGOs involved in home repair in 2017 and 2018, regular contact and consultation with governmental departments, mainly VSA and VROMI. 6. In early June 2019, phase 2 was discussed with the Prime Minister. The approach, building guidelines, the role of landlords and their approval for any repairs, and construction crews were discussed. Due to government aspirations for potential future changes in urban Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 1 planning agendas (currently unknown), some buildings repaired under phase 1 and phase 2 of the home repair activities might be in areas that might be selected for redevelopment. Due to the long term nature of these redevelopment agendas, and the immediate need existing for people affected by the hurricane, it was agreed that the current need outweighs the risk of duplication or redevelopment. NLRC also aims to have monthly meetings with VSA to update the Ministry regarding our recovery programme. Within these meetings, phase 2 was also discussed. With VSA, the beneficiary selection criteria for phase 1 were shared. Red Cross and VSA share almost the same beneficiary selection criteria. Based on the Red Cross Movement’s fundamental principles and the legal status of some of our beneficiaries, it was discussed that Red Cross would not share our beneficiary list. Meetings were held with the National Recovery Program Bureau in May and June. NRPB informed us on the safeguards of the World Bank and emphasized the importance that governmental projects and IO/NGO projects made use of the same safeguards. In addition, the issue of sharing of information was discussed. 7. Our current suppliers are aware that there might be a phase 2 for home repair. Exploratory discussions were held with the suppliers on materials, costs and method of delivery. However, pending grant agreement no specific agreements were reached regarding phase 2. 3. STAKEHOLDER ANALYSIS a. Affected Parties 8. The most important stakeholders for NLRC in the success of the project are our direct beneficiaries and wider public of Sint Maarten. In order to ensure understanding of the project aims, implementation strategy, and choices made in the project, but also to ensure access and safe working conditions for NLRC staff including construction crews, communities and wider public will be informed and consulted throughout the process. Community Engagement and Accountability (CEA) was identified as a main learning point from phase 1. Already in phase 1, CEA efforts were increased to ensure proper information flow between NLRC and communities and vice-versa. A CEA strategy has also been developed at programmatic level for all of the recovery programme activities implemented by NLRC. This is elaborated in section 4 of this Stakeholder Engagement Plan. More specific stakeholder needs for identified beneficiaries are included in this section (3.c). Wider understanding of the project also among non-beneficiaries (wider public) is imperative for the success of the project. Wider public information dissemination is also part of the programme CEA strategy. In any case, there will be regular communication between NLRC and the affected communities and wider public through a variety of media, including a feedback mechanism for information to flow from communities back to the NLRC and a clear and accessible grievance mechanism (section 6). 9. Key to the success of the project are also the suppliers of construction materials. In phase 1 NLRC already maintained a good working relationship with various suppliers on the island. Even though the differences in project approach in phase 2 will also mean a slightly different way of working with suppliers, suppliers have been consulted in an exploratory manner and will be closely consulted in this process. Other affected parties include waste management companies, a tender for the waste management will be done according to agreed procurement procedures in an open process. Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 2 Waste management is currently done by different actors, fragmented by geographical areas. Waste management actors may also be contacted in the NLRC Community-Based Disaster Risk Reduction project, which has planned activities for a wider community clear up in certain areas. These may or may not overlap with the areas of the home repair activities, but linkages will be explored where relevant. b. Interested Parties 10. Parties not directly affected, but closely linked to the implementation and communities are the various different community-based organisations, local NGOs and Community Councils of the affected areas. These parties will also be closely involved and consulted throughout the process. Based on our experience from phase 1, the invited parties might differ per area. Several community meetings will be organised where local organisations are also invited to attend. Their local knowledge of the selected areas is also key in providing information on in which areas it is most likely to identify potential beneficiaries, advice on communication (for example phase 1 proved that a lot of information was shared via word-to-mouth), identifying risks specific to the area or any problems in land ownership or criminal activity. 11. After the approval is given upon our project approach, Red Cross aims that NRPB will play a coordinating role with regards to informing and consulting governmental parties. Consultation of different parties should never hinder the timeline of the project. In addition, the specific selection of beneficiaries should be excluded from that conversation. As mentioned above, Red Cross has regular meetings with different governmental parties regarding the recovery and enhancing community resilience of Sint Maarten. Red Cross aims for this to continue with the new government. 12. The World Bank Trust Fund, the Steering Group, and government departments of the Sint Maarten and Netherlands governments will be informed regularly on project progress through regular meetings and formal narrative and financial reports in the case of the donor. c. Stakeholder needs 13. NLRC recognises that the potential beneficiary group is both wide and diverse. In phase 1 of the project this has also become apparent. The potential target group includes people with specific vulnerabilities, such as female-headed households, elderly or disabled members of households, and a variety of migrant groups from different backgrounds that reside either as legal residents, or as undocumented migrant workers. A summary of characteristics and specific needs is included below (taking into account households can form a combination of the characteristics below): Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 3 Characteristics Accessibility to the Language Preferred means of project communication Elderly Workshops will be held • News paper in the community and • Elderly organizations proxies or family • Word to mouth members are encouraged to • Through other participate projects • Flyers on community boards People with Workshops will be held Depending on disability, • News paper disabilities in the community with a family member or • Radio disability access, for friend might be asked to • Disabilities example wider doors or translate in sign organizations ramps. Proxies or family language. members are • Social media encouraged to • Flyers participate Female headed Workshops will be • News paper households available at different • Word to mouth times to accommodate • Through other schedules. projects • Flyers on community boards at child care and school facilities (Undocumented) Good communication on Languages other than • Radio migrant groups the approach that lists English (mainly Spanish • Word to mouth are not shared with and Haitian Creole) • Churches government or other needed for organizations. communication, hand- • Flyers outs, community meetings etc. Relevant languages are spoken in the group of current staff. 14. The characteristics as listed above are the same as faced by the NLRC project teams in phase 1 of the project. The selected communication and engagement strategy (see section 4) is based on lessons learned in phase 1 and as such the appropriateness of the tools described is already based on experience in relevant field and context. 4. STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT PROGRAM a. Community Engagement and Accountability Plan 15. Before the grant agreement, consultations will be held on the ESMF with NRPB, and other interested departments from GoSM. In addition, the Red Cross will use it’s volunteers for a focus group session regarding the setup of the project. Inputs received will be recorded, proposed scope of work, risks and mitigation measures will be adjusted if necessary, and a revised ESMF will be publicly disclosed via Facebook. The updated version will be shared with Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 4 the World Bank as part of the project appraisal for comments. The ESMF will be a living document, and may be updated as conditions or the project change. Consultation meetings with CBO’s will also be carried out before starting with the beneficiary selection in a community, the details of these broader consultations and engagement with direct beneficiaries are included in the Stakeholder Engagement Plan. 16. After the grant agreement, governmental parties will be consulted on area selection. Then, the community based organizations will be approached to advice and design a plan of action per community. As the beneficiary selection process will take place in the first phase of the project, the group of beneficiaries is currently unknown and as such no direct consultation can take place. However, the project structure and approach has been tested with positive results in phase 1 of the project. 17. Prior to signing the grant agreement the draft SEP will be disseminated and consulted on, indicating to the potential beneficiaries and wider communities the different phases and activities in the project, the ways of interacting with NLRC and the availability of the NLRC grievance mechanism as outlined in section 6. The timeline and different phases of the project will be included in the communication. b. Information disclosure and consultation strategy 18. An overview of the information dissemination and community consultation strategy is included in the table below: Project Information Method Location & Target Reach Responsible stage disclosed frequency stakeholders staff Project This SEP, the Online, and Facebook Potential General Head of Preparation ESCP, the in person Page, beneficiaries, Mission, Sint ESMP, as drafts meetings. locations TBD. wider public Maarten or final documents. Start-up Project aims, Community Within 2 Potential With multiple Community timeline, meetings, weeks of beneficiaries, sources and mobilisers & selection Radio (Laser grant wider public repeat Comms criteria 101), Printed agreement, frequency, officer media (Daily (social) media assumption is Herald), will announce to have a Social media the project reach of 25% (RC SXM and will of Facebook), repeat the communities. flyers and message A lot of posters throughout information (notice beneficiary will be spread boards) selection. by word-of- Community mouth and meetings will direct take place in engagement relevant → see communities beneficiary after they identification have been phase selected Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 5 Project Information Method Location & Target Reach Responsible stage disclosed frequency stakeholders staff Start-up Consultation Direct At least 2 Community Meetings will Community and meetings meetings per Councils, aim to reach mobilisers involvement of community CBOs and 75% of and Project community local NGOs relevant manager based exact CBOs organisations organizations are unknown (depending on final site selection) but will be determined during start- up. Start-up Procurement Tender At Red Cross Suppliers 100% of Project needs for the (method as or suppliers, a potential manager project per meeting with suppliers agreement current with WB and suppliers. in Information accordance on media with NLRC procurement guidelines) Beneficiary Specific Door to door One per Beneficiaries Active and Community identification information on surveys household. recurring mobilisers & selection procedure Attempts will presence of (including be made at NLRC teams temporary different in areas, relocation times and combined during days/evenings with media construction) (including campaigns as plus gathering weekends). described in information of the start-up beneficiaries phase will together reach a near 100% of relevant communities Construction Construction Workshop Several Beneficiaries 95% of direct Construction / repairs techniques and technical options and beneficiaries. coordinator hand-out languages will Although the be made workshop is available on mandatory, different days experience and times. shows that some do not show up. Construction Actual repairs Community Once per Wider 25% of wider Comms / repairs have started. meetings, medium population public, along officer State of Radio (Laser with word- beneficiary 101), Printed of-mouth selection (open media (Daily and work in Herald), communities, Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 6 Project Information Method Location & Target Reach Responsible stage disclosed frequency stakeholders staff or closed for Social media a reach of applications) (RC SXM near 100% in Facebook), selected communities Construction Specific plan of In person Once per Beneficiaries 100% Construction / repairs repair per accompanied household coordinator individual with a (upon beneficiary; brochure demand when including questions planning/timing arise) of work, materials used for repair, waste management and temporary relocation. Monitoring Updates on Community Once every 2 Beneficiaries, 25% Comms & closure progress, meetings, months wider public officer results and Radio (Laser lesson learned 101), Printed media (Daily Herald), Social media (RC SXM Facebook) Monitoring Evaluation of Community Once per Community 5% Community & closure process and meetings, community at Councils, mobilisers & lessons learned focus groups the end CBOs and Comms with project local NGOs officer beneficiary 5. RESOURCES AND RESPONSIBILITIES FOR STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT a. Resources 19. The project proposal includes a budget for visibility and community engagement overall, as well as specific budget lines for printing of technical guidelines, community meetings and technical workshops for beneficiaries. The amounts allocated for these budget lines are based on experiences of phase 1 of the project. A total of over USD 13,000 has been allocated for these budget lines out of the project directly. In addition, a number of CEA activities will be arranged in synergy with the other projects currently implemented by NLRC on Sint Maarten as part of the wider recovery programme and CEA strategy. These are budgeted under the NLRC field office costs – a contribution for 25% of these costs is also included in the submitted budget. 20. The Home Repair project manager is responsible for the implementation of the SEP when the project is agreed. The programme manager is responsible for coordinating the proposal and application and all related documents prior to the signing of the grant agreement. The Head of Mission is responsible for program support staff and for complaints handling. Name: Jesper Jansweijer Position: Programme Manager Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 7 Contact: jjansweijer@redcross.nl Name: Fanny de Swarte Position: Head of Mission NLRC Contact: FdeSwarte@redcross.nl b. Management and responsibilities 21. The Home Repair project manager is responsible for the implementation of the project and therefore also for implementation of the SEP. The NLRC field office has a wider responsibility of overall stakeholder management for the whole recovery programme. Per category, a point of contact is appointed so that stakeholders have a familiar face. The different projects, also phase 2, will work with the point of contact to engage. 22. . A communications officer is part of the NLRC field office and will play a role in the wider public information dissemination, namely through media and social media. 23. The project manager will frequently be directly involved in a number of stakeholder engagement activities, especially in the start-up and closing phase. In addition, the project manager will be often in the community or at household level so persons can approach her directly. The project manager is in almost daily contact with other aspects of the team, with exception of the construction crews themselves. 24. For the stakeholder management, the NLRC field office’s stakeholder database for the wider recovery programme will be used. For beneficiaries, the number of contact moments will be monitored through the help of KOBO. All data will be collected in databases and reported on via the indicator tracking table which will be available every 3 months. 6. GRIEVANCE MECHANISM 25. A feedback and complaint system has been put in place for the entire recovery programme. Beneficiaries, but also the wider public can register their feedback or complaint in person, via email, via facebook or phone. The feedback and grievance system has been communicated via facebook and will be included on relevant flyers, brochures and posters. The following contact details will be provided on each construction site for receiving complaints: Email: Stmaartenredcross@gmail.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/RedCrossSXM/ Telephone: 545 2333 Address: Airport Road 34, Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten The grievance mechanism will not replace any local judicial pathways available, and will not give the impression that those pathways are not available to the complainant. The Head of Mission is tasked with ensuring that grievances and collected and responded to. 26. Complaints regarding allegations of fraud or gender based violence will be handled by head of mission (female) with the branch manager (male – local Sint Maarten Red Cross branch manager) as fall back option. If the complaint is about branch manager or head of mission, Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 8 the Sint Maarten Portfolio Coordinator at Headquarters in The Hague will be informed directly by the staff member in charge of collecting and analyzing feedback and complaints. Feedback and complaints will be given to the project manager and the appropriate staff as introduced in the previous paragraph by the desk assistant in Sint Maarten (responsible for checking the general email and telephone accounts) in order to ascertain if information needs to be shared, the project has to be adapted, or the approach for a particular beneficiary should be changed. Via (social) media, the wider public will be informed on the received feedback when relevant for the wider audience (i.e. not in case of personal grievances). The feedback giver can indicate if they want a one on one answer regarding their feedback (which will be given within 4 weeks). Complaints will always receive a one on one answer if requested. 27. Complaints will be looked at by the project manager and Head of Mission within 2 work days of its receipt. The aim is to inform complaint giver within 2 weeks about further process. All complaints and feedback will be logged in the NLRC field office database. 28. NLRC teams will never approach beneficiaries one on one during the project, but will always work in teams. Decisions on including or excluding beneficiaries, or the scope of the work, is never decided by one staff person, but rather by a systematic approach, limiting individual leverage (power dynamics) of staff over beneficiaries. 7. MONITORING AND REPORTING 29. Monitoring and reporting responsibilities lie with the project manager, who will also be supported by a Monitoring and Evaluation officer, part of the NLRC field office team. Construction coordinators, technical staff and community mobilisers will be part of the monitoring as well. The project has three main forms of monitoring: 1) monitoring of repair progress and quality for individual beneficiaries, 2) gathering beneficiary satisfaction and feedback through post-construction satisfaction survey 3) monitoring of progress and expenditure on project level overall for project management and donor reporting. Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 9 Annex 1. Beneficiary Selection Criteria This process describes the selection criteria used in order to determine eligibility of beneficiaries. The steps described below will take place after the final area selection has taken place. NLRC will start with a comprehensive mapping exercise, where all houses in selected neighbourhoods with visible hurricane damage are mapped and logged in an NLRC database. This will provide an initial scope for potential beneficiaries. These potential beneficiaries who are identified during the area mapping exercise will be approached by NLRC field teams / community mobilisers to complete a vulnerability assessment. This assessment includes both social and technical aspects and the result of the survey will determine eligibility of beneficiaries into the Home Repair Project. The NLRC field teams will use mobile data collection survey software ‘KOBO’ – ensuring data will be uploaded in the NLRC beneficiary database maintained by the NLRC Information Manager on Sint Maarten. Social survey: The survey will focus mainly on the personal and financial situation of potential beneficiaries, looking at the household as a whole – taking into account the following aspects: Personal / Household composition: identifying vulnerable groups such as elderly, female-headed single parent households, households with pregnant or lactating women, families with young children households with disabled inhabitants or those suffering from long-term illnesses (preventing work). In some cases people may still be providing shelter to people who have lost their houses as a result of the hurricane. This may also be taken into account. Financial: access to financial means through steady income, daily work income, benefits/pension, remittances or savings. Technical survey: The technical aspect of the assessment includes a visual assessment of damage, ensuring that the required works are within the scope of the project – i.e. only repairs on roofs, windows and doors will qualify. The technical assessment will also group the houses into one of four categories. These categories are listed in the beneficiary agreement (Annex Beneficiary Agreement). Finally measurements are taken in order to develop BoQs should beneficiaries be eligible. Part of the technical survey will also be the assessment to determine if relocation is relevant. Elements that will be taken into consideration will be (non-exhaustive list): Repair of partial or full roof/Repair of partial or whole house (i.e. is there a minimum of one safe liveable room in the house where occupants can safely stay overnight); Scope of the works: Risk of repair affecting the whole structure (stability); Presence of mould or other vectors; Presence of asbestos; Mobility of occupants (i.e. will it be feasible for people to move in and out on a daily basis, even if the house itself is structurally safe to stay overnight). If the assessment shows the need for relocation during repairs, this will be discussed with beneficiaries and included as an eligibility criteria – relocation and agreed fee are also part of the beneficiary agreement. Construction Survey After beneficiary is selected, one of the construction coordinators and/or supervisor will conduct a house visit to determine the final approach for home repair including time line. During this visit, the checklist for relocation will be revisited and arrangements will be made. Other key criteria Legal status on the island is not a requirement for eligibility and identified households are not asked to disclose this information during the survey. Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 10 In order to ensure approval of the works by the home owner, approval from landlords is required for beneficiaries who are not full owners. The potential beneficiary is asked to contact landlord to get permission for repair. In special circumstances (for example accessibility or legal issues), Red Cross will support this process. This information is collected in the survey and agreement is included in the beneficiary agreement to be signed before the start of any repairs. In other words: landlord approval is an eligibility criteria for repairs. NLRC will pilot a trial where landlords will be consulted if they are willing to sign an agreement as well stipulating tenure security aspects – however if most are unwilling to sign, this will not be pursued and is therefore not included as an eligibility criteria. Whilst NLRC prefers to include these aspects in the agreement, inclusion of most vulnerable households will be prioritised. A scoring system based on points assigned to the vulnerability criteria listed above will determine the overall eligibility of beneficiaries to the project. This scoring framework was also used during the 1st phase of the project and at the beginning of phase 1 discussed with different stakeholders. By using this system of database and automatic scoring based on pre-identified criteria, no single person determines eligibility of individual cases. Beneficiaries can appeal against any decisions in the process using the grievance mechanisms. Stakeholder0En0r0Project000P172619.docx 11