| Session Title: Is the Footprint Rightly Measured?: Challenges to Evaluate Environmental and Social Performance in Private Sector Projects |
| Expert Lecture Session 633 to be held in Manhattan on Friday, Nov 4, 10:45 AM to 11:30 AM |
| Sponsored by the Environmental Program Evaluation TIG |
| Chair(s): |
| Cherian Samuel, International Finance Corporation, csamuel@ifc.org |
| Presenter(s): |
| Jouni Eerikainen, The World Bank, jouni.eerikainen@verizon.net |
| Abstract: Environmental and social (E&S) sustainability is an explicit strategic pillar of many multilateral development banks (MDBs) investing in private sector. The projects encompass a wide range of E&S risks and opportunities; pollution control and waste management, occupational health and safety, protection of biodiversity, global aspects -especially climate change-, and social aspects including community engagement, land acquisition, involuntary resettlement, indigenous people and cultural heritage, which clients should manage with their social and environmental management systems. Since measuring and evaluation of multiple and complex aspects of sustainability is constrained by various institutional, resource and methodological barriers, unique for each MDB, harmonization of evaluation approach is essential to compare results of MDBs' project level evaluations. This paper analyzes the challenges encountered in evaluating sustainability of International Finance Corporation's projects and methodology to identify and benchmark performance indicators in various industry sectors, as well as specific sustainability aspects in investments to financial intermediaries. |