SPOTL IGHT
Environmental and Social safeguards: A practical approach
The workshop focused on real-world issues and solutions rather than abstract policy
Sometimes we have finance managers doing E&S reporting even though they’re not trained or certified. We need a national certification system – affordable, professional and accountable – just like for doctors or engineers.
Resettlement Edith Kahubire (AfDB) highlighted risks of impoverishment when displacement is not properly managed.
Vulnerable Groups AfDB’s Integrated Safeguards System, the bank’s approach to sustainable development, now recognizes broader categories including female-headed households,
Compensate at replacement cost
Avoid/minimize displacement
disabled persons and rural minorities.
Rofikat Odetoro, Federal Ministry of Environment, Nigeria
Protect cultural/social identity
Restore livelihoods
Biodiversity Mike Maunder, Kew REACH, a
GBVH/SEAH Florentine Tchoffo, AfDB, reminded participants that violence against women costs US$1.5 trillion annually (2 percent of global GDP).
consultancy, emphasized that 20 percent of Africa’s land is degraded and US$20 billion lost annually to siltation.
Economic loss, trauma, mistrust
Avoid
Harassment, exploitation, violence
Minimize
NIGERIA
Inequality, power imbalance
Restore
Certification for the Future • Strong legal base (EIA Act, AfDB, sectoral guidelines). • Persistent bottlenecks: delays, overlaps, weak monitoring. • Insufficient stakeholder engagement undermines projects. • Proposal: a national certification system for E&S professionals, modeled on chartered professions. • Would strengthen accountability and raise professional standards.
Poverty, discrimination, harmful norms
Offset
Community & Occupational Health Gaurav Joshi, World Bank, covered risks from communicable diseases to dam safety.
Cultural Heritage Issa Maman-Sani, AfDB, stressed heritage as both tangible and intangible.
Traffic safety
Communicable disease prevention
“Nigeria’s framework is strong, but reforms in certification and enforcement are urgently needed.”
Tangible: Monuments, sites, artifacts
Intangible: Languages, rituals, traditions
Hazardous materials management
Dam safety & emergency preparedness
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