The World Bank Integration of Social Accountability into National and Sub-national Systems (P172632) Concept Environmental and Social Review Summary Concept Stage (ESRS Concept Stage) Public Disclosure Date Prepared/Updated: 10/14/2019 | Report No: ESRSC00873 Oct 14, 2019 Page 1 of 8 The World Bank Integration of Social Accountability into National and Sub-national Systems (P172632) BASIC INFORMATION A. Basic Project Data Country Region Project ID Parent Project ID (if any) Cambodia EAST ASIA AND PACIFIC P172632 Project Name Integration of Social Accountability into National and Sub-national Systems Practice Area (Lead) Financing Instrument Estimated Appraisal Date Estimated Board Date «PRACTICEAREA» Investment Project 10/21/2019 11/14/2019 Financing Borrower(s) Implementing Agency(ies) Ministry of Economy and National Committee for Sub- Finance National Democratic Development Secretariat (NCDDS) Public Disclosure Proposed Development Objective(s) To improve the performance of public service providers through the development and institutionalization of national and sub-national government systems with improved transparency, strengthened citizen engagement and responsive action. Financing (in USD Million) Amount Total Project Cost 1.72 B. Is the project being prepared in a Situation of Urgent Need of Assistance or Capacity Constraints, as per Bank IPF Policy, para. 12? No C. Summary Description of Proposed Project [including overview of Country, Sectoral & Institutional Contexts and Relationship to CPF] The proposed project would support government delivery of the Implementation Plan for the Social Accountability Framework (ISAF), Phase II, from 2019 - 2023. As with ISAF Phase I, an annual cycle of social accountability activities will be clustered into five program components: (1) Transparency and access to information, (2) Citizen monitoring (3) Implementation of Joint Accountability Action Plans (JAAPs) (4) Training and capacity development, and (5) National and Subnational Coordination and Support. As the main coordinator and supporter of supply-side ISAF activities, the Oct 14, 2019 Page 2 of 8 The World Bank Integration of Social Accountability into National and Sub-national Systems (P172632) NCDDS will be the main implementing agency for the proposed project, providing support at a national level and downward through the levels of subnational government. D. Environmental and Social Overview D.1. Project location(s) and salient characteristics relevant to the ES assessment [geographic, environmental, social] The Project is nationwide in scope and builds on the lessons learnt from the successful implementation of the 3-year, first phase of the Implementation Plan for the Social Accountability Framework (ISAF I), 2015-2018. The proposed project will support implementation of a the next 5-year phase of ISAF activity (ISAF II) which aims to scale up from covering more than 60% of the rural districts in the country to cover all rural districts and to additionally cover all urban municipalities. Initial financing for the proposed project will cover activities in the four southeastern provinces of Prey Veng, Svay Riang, Kandal and Kep. Under ISAF I, activities were supported in Prey Veng while the project would begin implementing ISAF activities in the other provinces for the first time. Within these provinces, the project would cover 27 rural districts and 5 urban municipalities. Additional financing to allow the project to cover all provinces in the country is planned as contributions to the main financing source, the Social Accountability and Service Delivery Trust Fund (SASD-TF) are secured over the next year or so. The project aims to empower all citizens, but especially those who tend to be excluded from government decision-making processes such as indigenous groups, poor households, youth and women, to participate in activities that would hold public service providers accountable for the quality of their services. The four main service providers are District Administrations, Commune Councils, health centers and primary schools. As such, the project is a large-scale, national platform for multi-stakeholder engagement which will have various design elements intended to ensure the participation of a wide diversity of stakeholders in all project activities. Implementation of the project will differ somewhat between rural and urban Public Disclosure areas as the social structure of rural areas allows more for the use of village institutions to gather people to participate in social accountability activities, the population density and economic activity of people living in urban areas will require more intensive neighborhood-based activity as well as the use of electronic tools to cover larger numbers of people. D. 2. Borrower’s Institutional Capacity National Committee for Sub-National Democratic Development Secretariat (NCDDS) has past and present experience as an implementing agency for World Bank-financed projects such as the Land Allocation and Social Economic Development (LASED) project and recently approved Cambodia Nutrition Project. As such they have developed and effectively implemented World Bank-approved social and environment safeguard instruments. NCDDS has individuals who have been trained in World Bank safeguard policies and instruments as well as the Environment and Social Framework (ESF). As part of support experience of supporting the World Bank financed project NCDDS have been involved in development and implementation of the a Citizen Engagement Framework and grievance mechanisms which meets the meaningful engagement aspects of stakeholder engagement standard of the ESF. II. SCREENING OF POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL (ES) RISKS AND IMPACTS A. Environmental and Social Risk Classification (ESRC) Low Environmental Risk Rating Low The project risk is low. There are no activities planned that have a physical footprint and / or environmental dimensions and implications resulting from TA or policy development. The project will focus on improving public Oct 14, 2019 Page 3 of 8 The World Bank Integration of Social Accountability into National and Sub-national Systems (P172632) service delivery to citizens, through the training and coordination of volunteer community facilitators, public posting of service provider budgets and service delivery information, community scorecard meetings and meetings to agree on actions to improve the quality of service delivery. The project will not invest in any actions to improve service delivery quality, including physical infrastructure facilities or developing policies/regulations that may cause, from its implementation, adverse impacts to environment and/or ecosystems. Social Risk Rating Low The social risk is classified as low. The overall design and objectives of the project are to empower all citizens to participate in holding public service providers accountable for the quality of service delivery. Core indicators for the project will therefore include measures as to its ability to include stakeholders that are typically excluded from decision-making on the use of public resources such as indigenous peoples, poor households, handicapped people, women and youth. As such, insufficient inclusion of disadvantaged groups in the project is not so much a risk, but would rather be a failure of the project to achieve its objectives. As evidence by the first 3-year ISAF I implementation period, the project will have no adverse impacts on people. Rather, findings from ongoing monitoring and evaluation of ISAF I indicate several cumulative, positive social impacts such as increased citizen awareness of their rights and service standards, strengthened citizen voice in their interactions with service providers, improved relations and trust between citizens, public officials and service providers, and concrete improvements in local public service delivery as a result of citizen engagement. B. Environment and Social Standards (ESSs) that Apply to the Activities Being Considered B.1. General Assessment Public Disclosure ESS1 Assessment and Management of Environmental and Social Risks and Impacts Overview of the relevance of the Standard for the Project: The project’s aim is to build a sustainable mechanism for feedback on the quality of government services. The project will refine and improve ISAF tools and methodologies, achieve full national coverage of communes, establish sustainable support networks for active citizenship, integrate social accountability practices into existing government systems, and expand ISAF into new service delivery and urban areas. It will support the establishment of permanent systems, within government to ensure that supply-side of social accountability activities can be sustained in the long term. After five years, by 2023, it is expected the project will conclude with both evidence of significant service delivery improvements and a sustainable implementation approach. It is informed by the ISAF Phase II Implementation Plan which was prepared in late 2018 in consultation with a range of government and civil society stakeholders, outlining the key dimensions of a new five-year phase of ISAF, from 2019 to 2023. The plan was produced based on an assessment of Phase I strengths, weaknesses, achievements, challenges, and lessons learned. The methodology for preparing the plan included: a desk review (of ISAF Phase I project documents, progress reports and assessments) as well as interviews, consultations and focus groups discussions with key informants and stakeholders. No adverse social and environmental risks and impacts are anticipated as a result of the project, and as the project is one of engagement for social accountability a number of benefits are expected. These benefits relate to improved performance of public service providers through improved transparency, strengthened citizen engagement and responsive action. Hence no specific environmental and social instruments are required / will be produced for this project. Oct 14, 2019 Page 4 of 8 The World Bank Integration of Social Accountability into National and Sub-national Systems (P172632) Areas where “Use of Borrower Framework” is being considered: There are no areas where the Borrower’s E&S Framework will be considered. ESS10 Stakeholder Engagement and Information Disclosure The nature of the project is to ensure meaningful engagement of all groups, in particular participation from any marginalised and vulnerable groups, towards greater accountability of public service providers. The project aims to explicitly institutionalize an annual public feedback mechanism for four of the most pervasive public service providers, and possibly more, that will go beyond a basic grievance mechanism, but rather become a dynamic means of citizen engagement in the delivery of public services that will allow for citizens to provide feedback directly to service providers as well as to their local commune councils and district administrations. At the core of the project design, and the ISAF as a whole, is a network of Community Accountability Facilitators (CAFs) whose role it is to inform citizens of their rights and to support and organize citizens to express their views on public services. Lessons from the use of an Indigenous Peoples Protocol and associated engagement tools (i.e. indigenous group CAFs and indigenous language audio and video) will be integral to project design as well the lessons regarding the inclusion of men (who participated less than women in ISAF I) and people from more remote villages. As the design of the project is explicitly one of stakeholder engagement and social inclusion, and its aim is to build a sustainable mechanism for citizen feedback on the quality of government services, a standalone stakeholder engagement plan with grievance procedure will not be needed. Any engagement requirements, to ensure that participation is inclusive and adopts approaches to address physical distance, language and other possible barriers, will be captured in the Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP). Public Disclosure B.2. Specific Risks and Impacts A brief description of the potential environmental and social risks and impacts relevant to the Project. ESS2 Labor and Working Conditions The project will involve direct, contracted and volunteer workers. The main activities of these workers will be the provision of information, organization of meetings, travel between communities for meetings and training. These are basic activities common to most development projects. The main safety risk is road safety related to the frequent travel of project staff and volunteers from community to community. This risk would need to be managed through road safety training and monitoring (i.e. the use of helmets). To ensure that the various workers engaged in the project are working under conditions acceptable to ESS2 requirements, the Bank will review and advise on the content of contract templates, as needed. ESS3 Resource Efficiency and Pollution Prevention and Management The project activities will neither involve in using and/or depleting scare natural resources nor generating negative environmental impacts in a short, medium and long run. If the public services are improved, it is likely reducing travel times, thus contribute to reducing traffics in the city/area where the service is provided. ESS4 Community Health and Safety Oct 14, 2019 Page 5 of 8 The World Bank Integration of Social Accountability into National and Sub-national Systems (P172632) No adverse community health and safety impacts are anticipated as a result of project activities. As a result of the project there is potential that health service deliveries will be better targeted, ensuring better health outcomes for all groups. ESS5 Land Acquisition, Restrictions on Land Use and Involuntary Resettlement The activities for this project will not require the acquisition or conversion of any land nor will the activities restrict access to resources. ESS6 Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Management of Living Natural Resources The project aims at improving service delivery of public service providers through citizen engagement. It will not involve any civil works or other activities that might adversely impact biodiversity or living natural resources. ESS7 Indigenous Peoples/Sub-Saharan African Historically Underserved Traditional Local Communities The nature of the project is to ensure meaningful engagement of all groups, including participation from ethnic minorities and indigenous peoples, in providing feedback on the quality of public services. The activities will not adversely impact any communities, but rather provide them with opportunities they would not otherwise have for influencing the quality of the public services they are entitled to as citizens. There is potential for vulnerable groups to benefit in terms of local development activities as their unique needs will be better understood by services Public Disclosure providers and efforts to take action to address these needs will be encouraged through the project as well. The design of the project will incorporate the positive lessons of the Bank’s support to two NGOs under ISAF I, particularly application of Indigenous Peoples Protocol and associated tools to ensure the inclusion of indigenous groups in social accountability activities. Any specific requirements on engagements to ensure accessibility and inclusion, including approaches to address physical distance, language and other possible barriers, will be captured in the ESCP. ESS8 Cultural Heritage The activities from the project are not expected to result in any adverse risks and impacts to tangible or intangible cultural heritage or access to those. ESS9 Financial Intermediaries The project will not make use of a financial intermediary. C. Legal Operational Policies that Apply OP 7.50 Projects on International Waterways No The project is not expected to relate to any known international waterway. OP 7.60 Projects in Disputed Areas No The project will not be located in an area under legal or international dispute nor competing territorial claims. Oct 14, 2019 Page 6 of 8 The World Bank Integration of Social Accountability into National and Sub-national Systems (P172632) III. WORLD BANK ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL DUE DILIGENCE A. Is a common approach being considered? No Financing Partners No other financing partners. B. Proposed Measures, Actions and Timing (Borrower’s commitments) Actions to be completed prior to Bank Board Approval: Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP) Possible issues to be addressed in the Borrower Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP): Road safety training and monitoring of legal compliance (i.e. wearing of helmets for motorbike travel) will be required. Engagement requirements to ensure approaches address the needs of beneficiaries and any barriers to inclusion. Indigenous peoples will be contracted, when possible, as Community Accountability Facilitators to address language and cultural barriers that may inhibit the participation of Indigenous Peoples in project activities. There will be a provision in the ESCP that would require immediate information to, and review by the Bank in case of Public Disclosure any unanticipated environmental and social risks or impacts occurring, and that Bank and Borrower would then jointly determine the required course of actions. C. Timing Tentative target date for preparing the Appraisal Stage ESRS 21-Oct-2019 IV. CONTACT POINTS World Bank Contact: Erik Caldwell Johnson Title: Senior Social Development Specialist Telephone No: 5721+1314 / Email: ejohnson1@worldbank.org Borrower/Client/Recipient Borrower: Ministry of Economy and Finance Implementing Agency(ies) Implementing Agency: National Committee for Sub-National Democratic Development Secretariat (NCDDS) Oct 14, 2019 Page 7 of 8 The World Bank Integration of Social Accountability into National and Sub-national Systems (P172632) V. 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 VI. APPROVAL Task Team Leader(s): Erik Caldwell Johnson Practice Manager (ENR/Social) Christophe Crepin Recommended on 10-Oct-2019 at 08:38:16 EDT Safeguards Advisor ESSA Peter Leonard (SAESSA) Cleared on 14-Oct-2019 at 08:36:35 EDT Public Disclosure Oct 14, 2019 Page 8 of 8