Côte d’Ivoire: Inclusive Connectivity and Rural Infrastructure Project

OBJECTIVE

To provide inclusive and climate resilient rural road connectivity in selected underserved regions of Côte d’Ivoire.

DESCRIPTION

The Project will involve upgrading and climate proofing of strategic and non-strategic roads in eleven regions of northern Côte d’Ivoire. It will provide climate resilient transport connectivity and improve access to schools, health services, and centers of economic activity in northern Côte d’Ivoire. The Project will also support the development of climate resilient rural socio-economic infrastructure including key infrastructure in the agricultural logistics chain which, together with the enhanced connectivity, will facilitate trade notably with Asia. Finally, the Project will build institutional capacity to foster the sustainability of the road sector, in areas such as road safety, road asset management, and road maintenance planning and execution. The Project will be co-financed with the World Bank (WB), through the International Development Association (IDA). The Project will comprise 5 components:

1. Inclusive and resilient rural connectivity infrastructure. This is the largest component of the Project. It will involve the construction and rehabilitation of climate resilient strategic roads, periodic and routine climate-resilient maintenance, and climate-resilience improvement of the non-strategic network.
2. Rural socio-economic infrastructure, which will include consolidation of the agricultural logistics chain.
3. Capacity building and support to the institutional framework and sector strategies, to enhance institutional and sector frameworks for sustainability of the development objectives.
4. Support to project management.
5. Contingency emergency response component.

AIIB will jointly co-finance the Project with the World Bank (IDA). The AIIB financing will be allocated to component 1, component 2.1, and component 3.

ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL INFORMATION

The Project is co-financed with the World Bank (WB) as the lead co-financier, and its environmental and social (ES) risks and impacts have been assessed in accordance with WB’s ESF. To ensure a harmonized approach to addressing ES risks and impacts of the Project, and as permitted under AIIB’s ESP, AIIB agrees that the WB’s ESF and ES standards (ESSs) will apply to the Project in lieu of AIIB’s ESP. AIIB has reviewed WB’s ESF and is satisfied that: (i) it is consistent with AIIB’s Articles of Agreement and materially consistent with the provisions of AIIB’s ESP and the relevant ES Standards; and (ii) the monitoring procedures that are in place are appropriate for the Project.

Environment. Project related activities are likely to be associated with potential environmental risks and adverse impacts. These include: occupational and community health and safety issues related to the civil works of roads, markets, school and health facilities, transhumance corridors; nuisances related to air and noise emissions; water and soil pollution due to sediment from roads’ construction/rehabilitation and oil spreads from machineries; nonhazardous and hazardous waste management and pollution; road traffic safety; and potential disruption or degradation of natural habitats, and the ecological consequences of conversion and changes in ecosystem functions. However, the risks are expected to be localized in nature and reversible through good operational practices.

The client has prepared an Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) and it describes the procedures and processes that will be followed in preparing and disclosing site-specific safeguard instruments such as Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (ESIAs), and Environmental and Social Management Plans (ESMPs).

Social. The Project is not expected to involve any large-scale land acquisition, and Project related rehabilitation works will broadly take place within the existing footprints and the right of way. Nevertheless, there may be cases where the construction or rehabilitation of public infrastructure may lead to a limited amount of physical displacement and economic displacement to both title and non-title holders. A Resettlement Plan Framework (RPF) has been prepared by the Borrower, it outlines principles and provides guidance regarding identifying and managing resettlement impacts during Project implementation. Furthermore, no indigenous peoples have been identified in the potential Project areas. Should the presence of indigenous communities be confirmed through further screening, instruments will be developed as per the provisions of the WB’s ESSs on Indigenous Peoples/Sub-Saharan African Historically Underserved Traditional Local Communities.

The Sexual Exploitation and Abuse and Sexual Harassment (SEA/SH) assessment of the Project carried out by the WB has classified the SEA/SH risk as “Moderate”. In line with the recommendations of the WB’s Good Practice Note on addressing SEA/SH in Investment Projects Financing involving major civil works, these risks will be mitigated through measures outlined in the SEA/SH response and mitigation action plan. The Project is also not expected to impact cultural heritage, such as sacred places or where rituals are performed. Nonetheless the ESMF incorporates the “chance finds” procedure and the ESIAs, and the ESMPs to be prepared once the Project sites are selected, will screen for the existence of any tangible or intangible cultural heritage. 

A stand-alone Labor Management Procedure (LMP) has been prepared to provide guidance on screening for labor issues and identifying OHS measures applicable to the various categories of Project workers.

A Stakeholders Engagement Plan (SEP), including a grievance mechanism sensitive to SEA/SH complaints, has been prepared to provide a framework for citizen engagement, meaningful consultation and participation and feedback mechanisms. The SEP includes a framework for a multi-stakeholder consultation mechanism where authorities, the private sector, communities, project-affected peoples (PAPs) in particular vulnerable groups and their representatives can be consulted, engaged, and provided feedback in an iterative manner.

A citizen engagement plan will be developed by the Project Coordination Unit (PCU) so that: (i) the citizen consultation and participation process is inclusive, transparent, and responsive to the needs of the targeted communities; and (ii) the established grievance redress mechanism (GRM) is effective and accessible to all stakeholders, particularly, vulnerable groups.

The GRM has been established at the local, village and sub-prefectural level, and a workers GRM will has also been established by the project. Information regarding the GRMs will be disseminated in a timely manner via consultation sessions and disclosure of ES documents.

The ES documentation was disclosed in French (the local language) via the WB and AIIB website. World Bank’s website for disclosure Development Projects: Development Projects : Côte d'Ivoire Inclusive Connectivity and Rural Infrastructure Project - P178362 (worldbank.org). Executive Summaries of the ESMF and RPF in English will be disclosed on the AIIB website.

During project implementation, the PCU will be responsible for monitoring of project activities and will be required to submit ES performance monitoring reports in an agreed format and timeline. Together with the WB, AIIB will conduct post-reviews of project implementation as part of its regular supervision, through potential site visits and detailed review of the ES documentation.