Involuntary Resettlement OPERATIONAL POLICY 0P 4.12 Afshan Khawaja, OPCQC Zagreb, May 2009

Overview Policy Objectives Triggers of the Policy Scope of Application Involuntary Resettlement in Selected Sectors Consultation Resettlement Instruments Case study

Land Acquisition and Involuntary Resettlement Cartoon by Chris Madden

Why a Policy on Involuntary Resettlement? Sustainable economic development relies on the construction of new infrastructure Infrastructure development, in turn, often requires the acquisition of privately owned land and assets Typical development induced impacts: physical relocation, loss of land and assets, disruption of livelihoods and breakdown of communities Impacts not just limited to large infrastructure; many projects require minor land acquisition or relocate people only a few hundred meters Without proper planning and management, involuntary resettlement may result in severe economic, social and environmental impacts on affected populations

Policy Principles and Objectives Avoid or minimize involuntary resettlement and associated disruptions Treat resettlement as sustainable development programs Provide affected people with opportunities to participate in the planning and implementation of resettlement programs Assist displaced people to improve their livelihoods and standards of living or at least to restore them to pre-displacement levels

Impacts that Trigger OP 4.12 Direct economic and social impacts that both result from Bank-assisted projects, and are caused by the involuntary taking of land resulting from: Loss of assets or access to assets Loss of shelter or relocation Loss of income sources or means of livelihood (whether or not the affected persons must move to another location) Restriction of access to legally designated parks and protected areas that result in adverse impacts on the livelihoods of affected persons

Scope of Application OP 4.12 applies to: all components of the project that result in involuntary resettlement, regardless of the source of financing other activities requiring land take that are: directly and significantly related to the Bank-assisted project necessary to achieve its objectives as set forth in the project documents carried out, or planned to be carried out, contemporaneously with the project a project regardless of the total number of people affected or the significance/severity of impacts

When OP 4.12 Does not Apply Community based natural resource management Programs or policies regulating resources on a regional or national scale Disputes between private parties in land titling projects When the following criteria is not met: Involuntary taking of land (resulting in loss of land, assets and livelihoods) Involuntary resettlement Restriction of access associated with a Bank financed project

Non-Safeguard Social Risks Labor retrenchment Political instability Conflict Breakdown of Rule of Law

Key Stakeholders in a Resettlement Program Affected people and their representatives Host populations (population in areas receiving the resettlers) Implementing agency National, provincial, local governments NGOs and CSOs Project developer Private sector firms involved in the project Funding agencies Consultants conducting various studies

Types of Involuntary Resettlement Linear Linear projects – highways, railways, transmission lines, irrigation channels – long but narrow corridor of impact Key impacts Rural areas, may have minimal impact on single land holder (i.e. transmission line) Urban areas, may require the demolition of structures along the project right-of-way (i.e. road upgrading) significantly impacting large numbers of people Mitigation Challenges Compensation – large number of small payments for temporary loss of assets–significant cumulative impacts Resettlement activities need to coordinated across multiple jurisdictions and/or different cultural and linguistic areas

Types of Involuntary Resettlement Site-specific Site-specific projects - discrete, non-linear projects (dams, reservoirs, highway interchanges, landfills) where land acquisition encompasses a fixed area Key Impacts Can disrupt the lives and lifestyles of people displaced and people who are dependent on land acquired Can result in significant economic and physical displacement Mitigation Challenges Complex and difficult resettlement operations, especially in populated Incremental resettlement in phases over a number of years Maintaining consistent approach to compensation and income restoration over the life of the project High-risk, potentially controversial

Types of Involuntary Resettlement Urban Urban projects – urban environment (sanitation, sewerage), urban infrastructure (roads, railways) Key impacts Physical and economic displacement affecting housing, employment and enterprises Little land acquisition, but works in areas where people are living and working can severe and costly impacts Mitigation Challenges Restoration of wage-based or enterprise-based livelihoods often tied to location (i.e. proximity to jobs, customers and markets) Resettlement sites should be selected to maintain the proximity of affected people to established sources of employment and income Maintain neighborhood networks – weakening of social safety nets

There are circumstances when clearance and relocation might be appropriate – for example, when slums are built in environmentally hazardous zones or along public rights of way (like roads or railway lines). But generally speaking this should not be the preferred policy approach.

Consultation A two-way process in which stakeholders provide advice and input on the design of proposed projects that affect their lives and environment Promotes dialogue between governments, communities, NGOs and implementing agencies to discuss all aspect of the proposed project Iterative process from project preparation to completion Mandated by the Environment Assessment, Involuntary Resettlement and Indigenous Peoples Policies and an integral element of the process for preparing relevant safeguard instruments

Mitigation Measures Inform affected persons about their rights/ options pertaining to land acquisition/ resettlement Provide prompt and effective compensation at full replacement cost for losses of assets attributable directly to the project Provide resettlement assistance for vulnerable affected people

Mitigation Measures Link Compensation/ Resettlement implementation to project timetable

Impacts Covered by OP 4.12 Yes or No? Loss of farmland inundated by a reservoir Loss of jobs due to Bank-financed privatization project Loss of dwelling due to construction of a drainage canal Loss of fruit trees planted on a plot of publicly owned land Devaluation of property due to Bank-financed solid waste dump nearby Loss of community access to pastures

Resettlement Instruments Resettlement (Action) Plan* Abbreviated Resettlement (Action) Plan Resettlement Policy Framework Process Framework (more details in later session) */ or Land Acquisition (Action) Plan

Resettlement Instruments to Fit Project Context Resettlement no longer restricted to large infrastructure projects Minor land acquisition or relocation of people a short distance Projects without land acquisition or physical relocation but impose restrictions to people’s access to legally designated parks and protected areas

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project “What worked and why”

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project Major hydropower in northern Pakistan consisting of 4 key components: a barrage to divert water from the Indus river into a power channel 52 km concrete lined power channel to transmit water to a power complex Power complex Transmission lines Installed capacity 1450 MW Total project costs: US $2.250 billion

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project Key Social Impacts: acquisition of 3,500 hectares of privately owned land 20,000 people affected by loss of land (almost 40,00 by the end of the project) 2,500 people mostly landless laborers and tenant farmers affected by loss of livelihoods 1,000 people affected by displacement

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project What worked: meeting OP 4.12 objectives Early attention to adverse social and environmental impacts Social environment impacts incorporated into selection of design alternatives to avoid adverse impacts Changes in project design reduced resettlement from 35,000 to 1,000 Reduced environmental and cultural heritage impacts (graveyards, religious structures)

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project What worked: meeting OP 4.12 objectives Resettlement treated as a development program (thinking beyond the short-term) employment opportunities skills training micro-credit gender specific training on small scale enterprises

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project What worked: meeting OP 4.12 objectives Ongoing consultation throughout project preparation and implementation between different levels of government, affected people, NGOs, and implementing agencies on: Project design Resettlement strategy Compensation rates and eligibility for entitlements/assistance Choice of resettlement site and timing of relocation Development opportunities Procedures for redressing grievances Mechanisms for monitoring and evaluation

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project What worked: meeting OP 4.12 objectives Assisting people to improve their standards of living or at least to restore them to pre-displacement levels

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project

Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project

Key Policy Application Issues Differences with Countries’ Practices Replacement cost – for lost land and assets Practice: undervalued, under-compensated Livelihood restoration Not part of standard practice Eligibility Controversial – assistance to people without legal claims

How to improve development outcomes? The Challenge How to improve development outcomes?

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