Safeguard Updates & Recent Developments
Background on the Safeguards
Timeline
Related Documents



ADB warned of Asia’s risks without strong Safeguards

May 6, Madrid – Asia’s vulnerable communities and environment will continue to be at risk if the Asian Development Bank fails to improve its existing Safeguards that are currently being revised. Full story





NGOs Pull Out of ADB's Mekong Safeguards Consultations

5 March 2008, Washington, DC- Groups from Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Burma have refused to attend the Asian Development Bank's safeguard policy update consultations held this week in Hanoi, citing weakness of the draft. As a result, only three (3) NGOs attended the consultation adding another blow to ADB's beleaguered efforts to pass off the consultation process as credible. more

NGOs Cease Talks with ADB on Crucial Environmental and Social Issues

8 February, Manila – Non-governmental organizations from different parts of the world have halted their on-going consultative talks with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) over the latter’s egregiously prepared consultation paper on its environment, involuntary resettlement and Indigenous peoples policies.
more

ADB Responds to Forum's Call

6 November 2007, Manila - The ADB has responded to Forum's call for genuine safeguards consultation. On a letter sent to NGO Forum, the regional bank has said that it is willing to reschedule the following Safeguards consultations: East Asia (Beijing), Civil Society Organizations (Manila), and Mekong and Indonesia (Hanoi). In addition, it has confirmed that it would translate the Safeguards Policy Statement into Bahasa and Vietnamese. Earlier, ADB has already translated the SPS into Russian. read the letter

Ensure Genuine Safeguards Consultation, ADB Told

24 October 2007, Manila - NGO Forum on ADB calls for a genuine Safeguards Consultation. In a letter submitted by the Asian-led network to ADB's Safeguard Policy Update Team, Forum cited the bad experience of the network with the consultation processes of the Energy Strategy and the Long Term Strategy Framework (LTSF) due to initial agreements made that were not respected by the Bank.

Read Forum's letter dated 25 October 2007
Read Forum's letter dated 24 October 2007
Read Consultation Draft on Safeguard Policy Statement, October 2007

ADB to Hold Consultations on Its Ongoing Safeguards Update

8 October 2007, Manila - The ADB recently announced that it will begin its subregional consultation on the ongoing Safeguards Policy Update in November 2007 until the first quarter of 2008.
View updated schedule

In response to the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness in 2005, the ADB decided to review its Safeguard Policies. To date, it has three Safeguard Policies, namely: Environment, Indigenous and Involuntary Resettlement Policies. The ADB Safeguards seek to prevent environmental degradation, social costs and marginalization of vulnerable groups by its development projects.

However, the ongoing review has already been mired in controversy inspite that the Bank has not yet started with its consultations. According to a report of the Financial Times, four members of its Safeguards Team have resigned in protest against the attempts of the Bank's management to weaken the policies. This has caused alarm among civil society groups who have been campaigning for stronger safeguards.
Related story
More on ADB Safeguards

ADB's Safeguard Policy Review

In the begining of 2005, the ADB decided to get involved in a consolidated review of its Safeguard Policies . A team was appointed by the ADB and a discussion note was published in it's website in October 2005.

The bank has three safeguard policies: the Policy on Involuntary Resettlement (1995); the Policy on Indigenous Peoples (1998); and the Environment Policy (2002). The recent dicussion note also mentioned that its policies for the water, energy and forest sectors also provide important safeguards. According to the dicussions note, "Pursuant to ADB’s reform agenda, there is recognition of the need to enhance the effectiveness and outcome orientation of ADB’s safeguard policies, while at the same time streamlining procedures and reducing transactions costs."

The consolidated review is coming in the context of the Middle Income Countries (MIC) and Ordinary Capital Resource (OCR) Country Partnership Framework and the Innovation and Efficiency Initiative, which has highlighted the need to introduce procedural flexibility in the application of the Safeguard Policies while increasing country ownership/ capacity in delivering safeguard outcomes.

The dicussion note also stated, "Ongoing multilateral development bank (MDB) harmonization efforts have placed emphasis on the desirability for development partners to harmonize their practices and procedures around country systems, including country safeguard systems."

From the public point of view, the ADB has a bad track record when it comes to implementation of its own Safeguards. Many of its funded projects have been recently criticized for non-implementation or lack of implementation. There are many violation of the Safeguard Policies either by ADB staff or by the local executing agencies.

Southern Transport Development Project in Sri Lanka, Melamachi Water Project in Nepal, Chasma Right Bank Project in Pakistan, Tonle Sap initiative and Highway 1 Project in Cambodia, and Samut Prakarn Waste Water Project in Thailand are recent examples of projects with Safeguards violations. Such cases were brought to the attention of the inspection panel of the ADB.

The ADB said that they will not open its policy principle to the debate. However, it is facing strong competion with Export Credit Agencies that offer funds with less stringent conditionalities.

In this context, the ADB might end up weakening its Safeguards provisions to keep its reputation as the premiere lending agency in Asia and the Pacific region.

More about ADB Safeguard Policy Update

The Safeguards Team
Nessim Ahmad
Director
Environment and Social Safeguard Division
Email:(njahmad@adb.org)

Xiaoying Ma
SPU Team Leader
Senior Environment Specialist
Email: (maxiaoying@adb.org)

ADB’s Safeguards Website: http://www.adb.org/Safeguards

NGO contacts

NGO FORUM ON ADB secretariat@forum-adb.org
Bank Information Centre info@bicusa.org

You may also visit BIC's website at http://www.bicusa.org/en/Issue.33.aspx