Forests Sourcebook - HCV Resource Network

Box 12.1
OP 4.10 on Social Assessment
OP 4.10 provides the following guidance on the elements
of the social assessment (OP 4.10, Annex A):
1. The breadth, depth, and type of analysis required
for the social assessment are proportional to the
nature and scale of the proposed project’s potential
effects on the Indigenous Peoples.
The social assessment includes the following elements,
as needed:
■ A review, on a scale appropriate to the project, of
the legal and institutional framework applicable
to Indigenous Peoples.
■ Gathering of baseline information on the demographic,
social, cultural, and political characteristics
of the affected Indigenous Peoples’ communities,
the land and territories that they have
traditionally owned or customarily used or occupied,
and the natural resources on which they
depend.
■ Taking the review and baseline information into
account, the identification of key project stakeholders
and the elaboration of a culturally appropriate
process for consulting with the Indigenous
Peoples at each stage of project preparation and
implementation (see paragraph 9 of OP 4.10).
■ An assessment, based on free, prior, and
informed consultation, with the affected Indigenous
Peoples’ communities, of the potential
adverse and positive effects of the project. Critical
to the determination of potential adverse
impacts is an analysis of the relative vulnerability
of, and risks to, the affected Indigenous Peoples’
communities given their distinct circumstances
and close ties to land and natural resources, as
well as their lack of access to opportunities relative
to other social groups in the communities,
regions, or national societies in which they live.
The identification and evaluation, based on free,
prior, and informed consultation with the affected
Indigenous Peoples’ communities, of measures necessary
to avoid adverse effects, or if such measures are
not feasible, the identification of measures to minimize,
mitigate, or compensate for such effects, and to
ensure that the Indigenous Peoples receive culturally
appropriate benefits under the project.
Source: World Bank 2005b.
Key elements of the consultations during the preparation
phase follow:
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information about the proposed project and its intended
benefits and possible adverse impacts
achieving understanding of Indigenous Peoples’ perceptions
of possible project benefits and impacts, and possible
measures to enhance benefits and avoid or mitigate
adverse impacts
incorporation of Indigenous Peoples’ views, preferences,
and indigenous knowledge into project design
and the Indigenous Peoples instrument (Indigenous
Peoples Plan or Indigenous Peoples Planning Framework)
facilitation and determination of affected communities’
broad support for the project
development of a culturally appropriate framework or
strategy for Indigenous Peoples’ participation throughout
project preparation, implementation, and monitoring
and evaluation, which may involve particular methodologies
to ensure participation of marginalized social groups,
to build community consensus, to enhance transparency,
to ensure local ownership of the process, and to assess and
ensure continued support for the project
While most of these elements can be encompassed
within the social assessment process, keeping projectaffected
people informed should also be part of the borrower’s
ongoing communications with people in the proposed
project area. The borrower and the project team
should keep in mind that free, prior, and informed consultations
with Indigenous Peoples will likely require more
time than consultations with other affected communities
and stakeholders. Consultations that may just require a few
hours in an urban setting may take days with Indigenous
Peoples. Moreover, the consultation process for ascertaining
the community’s broad support for project activities will
require more time and may go beyond the time frame of the
social assessment process, particularly for more complex
projects. Many, if not most, projects affecting forests in areas
with Indigenous Peoples would be considered complex (see
note 1.3, Indigenous Peoples and Forests).
350 CHAPTER 12: APPLYING OP 4.10 ON INDIGENOUS PEOPLES