ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL INFORMATION
Applicable Policy and Categorization. AIIB's Environmental and Social Policy (ESP), including the Environmental and Social Standards (ESSs) and the Environmental and Social Exclusion List (ESEL), apply to this Project. The ESS1 (Environmental and Social Assessment and Management) will apply as environmental and social (ES) assessment is required with investments in industrial parks and logistics hubs and other infrastructures. The ESS2 (Land Acquisition and Involuntary Resettlement) will be applicable to the extent that the land acquisition for constructions of integrated and multisectoral urban developments involves economic and physical displacements of affected people. The ESS3 (Indigenous Peoples) will also apply as where Indigenous People communities are present in, or are affected by, specific property sites. For this purpose, properties located in seven out of 10 targeted provinces of BWID (Bac Ninh, Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Hung Yen, Ninh Binh, Nghe An, and Tay Ninh) are assessed based on site-specific screening and assessment. The Project is provisionally assigned as Category B for ES risks and impacts, based on the available information at this stage.
Environmental and Social Instruments. BWID’s Environmental, Social, and Governance Management System (ESGMS) will be the ES Instrument for the Project. The ESGMS is complemented by its suite of corporate codes and policies, including the Code of Conduct and Business Ethics, which together reflect BWID’s overall commitment and approach to sustainability. The ESGMS is applied for ES assessment and management for all assets of BWID. The Project Team (PT) will engage with and support BWID to enhance its ESGMS align with AIIB’s ESP. An Environmental and Social Due Diligence (ESDD) will be conducted in the next stage to assess the adequacy of BWID’s ESGMS against AIIB’s ESP and ESSs, including the ESEL. In addition, an Environmental and Social Action Plan (ESAP) will be prepared to align BWID’s ESGMS with the requirements of AIIB’s ESP and ESSs for any gaps identified by the ESDD.
Environmental and Social Aspects. Key ES risks associated with this investment in the planning phase, there can be potential legacy environmental issues in terms of historical contamination of assets. Resource efficiency depends on asset locations and can be a key issue in water-stressed areas. For construction phase, key potential risks and impacts include management of chemicals and hazardous materials, solid and hazardous waste, emergency preparedness and response, cultural property or values, and chance finds; noise and vibration; emissions to air; spills; quarries and materials sourcing; spoils; stormwater, wastewater; and impacts to priority biodiversity values and ecosystem, among others. For operation and maintenance, these include aspects on pollution prevention involving chemicals and hazardous materials, solid and hazardous waste, wastewater, air emissions, and stormwater, among others. On social risks, the scale and rapid expansion across 10 key provinces may give rise to potential social risks and impacts, as land acquisition required to support a 10-million-sqm landbank may involve risks of economic or physical displacement for local communities, triggering involuntary resettlement concerns, while the rapid expansion may require a large construction workforce, triggering potential labor influx issues that may strain local infrastructure and increase community health and safety risks. Potential adverse impact may also include supply chain risks, unfavorable working conditions, and potential impacts on local Indigenous People communities that may be present in, or affected by, specific sites, including sites located in seven of the 10 targeted provinces. In addition, the expansion of BWID’s platform presents gender-related opportunities, as well as potential risks and impacts. The platform's scale presents an important opportunity to institutionalize inclusive hiring practices and promote safe female employment across the broader logistics and industrial sectors. However, the rapid scale-up may also give rise to potential gender risks and impacts. The deployment of a large construction labor workforce on construction sites may increase the risks of Gender-Based Violence (GBV), as well as Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Harassment (SEA/SH), and therefore require appropriate management measures, including contractor management, worker codes of conduct, grievance mechanisms and monitoring. Any identified gaps will be addressed through an ESAP to be agreed with BWID.
Labor and Working Conditions, and Health and Safety. Ensuring that higher safety and ESG standards are executed uniformly across the portfolio remains an important focus area to prevent lapses in occupational and community health and safety, especially as the Project aims to replace legacy, lower-specification facilities with modern, institutional-grade infrastructure. Other potential risks and impacts to workers include aspects on labor and working conditions, workers’ accommodation, infrastructure and equipment design and safety, life and fire safety, including emergency preparedness and response, among others. Potential risks and impacts to communities include traffic and road safety; life and fire safety; emergency preparedness and response; labor influx; exposure to diseases, including communicable diseases, and the presence of a large workforce that can overload local health service facilities; and risk of security personnel. There is also potential for vulnerability of communities associated with land use changes, loss of natural buffer areas, and exposure to natural hazards such as landslides, fire or flooding, which should be addressed and managed at the site-specific level in connection with BWID and its tenants’ operations. The PT will review BWID’s actual implementation of aspects of labor and working conditions and health and safety, including relevant policies, staff capacity, procedures and documentation, and any identified gaps will be addressed through an ESAP to be agreed with BWID. The potential scale of labor influx associated with BWID’s future developments and related risks to local communities will also be assessed.
Stakeholder Engagement, Consultation and Information Disclosure. BWID’s ESGMS shall provide for engagement with relevant stakeholders, including strategic shareholders and potentially project-affected people, including those who may be subject to displacement, where applicable. A Stakeholder Engagement Framework (SEF) proportionate to the Project’s scale and risks will be prepared as part of the enhanced ESGMS, outlining stakeholder consultation strategies and disclosure plans for engaging stakeholders in a culturally appropriate and meaningful manner. The English version of the ESGMS, the ESAP, the SEF, together with the Executive Summary of ESGMS and ESAP in Vietnamese will be disclosed on BWID’s website and made available within the relevant project areas, as appropriate. The ESGMS and the ESAP, upon agreement with BWID, shall be disclosed on AIIB’s website.
Project Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) and Monitoring Arrangement. BWID has an established external communication channel with postal addresses, hotlines, emails of headquarters (Ho Chi Minh City) and two regional offices in Hanoi City and former Binh Duong Province disclosed on its website. The PT will engage with and support BWID in establishing or enhancing, as applicable, a GRM to provide a formal, accessible, and transparent process for addressing concerns from both workers and affected communities related to Project activities. The GRM shall include multiple channels for submission and will document, monitor, and address grievances within a defined timeframe, with clear communication provided to complainants at each stage of the process. Once established, the information about GRM will be disclosed in a timely manner on BWID’s website and within the relevant project areas, as appropriate. In addition, the PT will agree with BWID on monitoring and reporting arrangements, including the frequency and reporting format to assess the Project’s ES performance. In addition, the PT will also monitor the implementation of BWID’s ESGMS to ensure ongoing compliance with AIIB’s ESP and ESSs.
