Solomon Islands : Supporting Good Governance through Safeguards
The context of the TA stems from ADB' transport sector work since the early 2000s and recognition that the government struggles with understanding and applying safeguards systems. With Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR) assistance, ADB has been supporting the Solomon Islands government to strengthen its environment and social safeguards through TA 8217-SOL, which is an 18-month TA that commenced in April 2013. The core participants are: (i) the Environment and Conservation Department (ECD) within the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management, and Meteorology (MECDM); (ii) the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Survey (MLHS); and (iii) the Ministry of Infrastructure Development (MID).
Project Details
-
Project Officer
Williams, Jean
Pacific Department
Request for information -
Country/Economy
Solomon Islands -
Modality
-
Sector
- Transport
| Project Name | Supporting Good Governance through Safeguards | ||||
| Project Number | 48148-001 | ||||
| Country / Economy | Solomon Islands |
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| Project Status | Closed | ||||
| Project Type / Modality of Assistance | Technical Assistance |
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| Source of Funding / Amount |
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| Strategic Agendas | Environmentally sustainable growth Inclusive economic growth |
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| Drivers of Change | Governance and capacity development Knowledge solutions |
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| Sector / Subsector | Transport / Road transport (non-urban) - Urban roads and traffic management - Water transport (non-urban) |
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| Gender Equity and Mainstreaming | No gender elements | ||||
| Description | The context of the TA stems from ADB' transport sector work since the early 2000s and recognition that the government struggles with understanding and applying safeguards systems. With Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR) assistance, ADB has been supporting the Solomon Islands government to strengthen its environment and social safeguards through TA 8217-SOL, which is an 18-month TA that commenced in April 2013. The core participants are: (i) the Environment and Conservation Department (ECD) within the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management, and Meteorology (MECDM); (ii) the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Survey (MLHS); and (iii) the Ministry of Infrastructure Development (MID). Using diagnostic tools that were developed under the RSES Technical Assistance for Strengthening and Use of Country Safeguard Systems (RETA 7566-REG) which includes legal inventory review and equivalence assessment and institutional capacity assessment, TA 8217 was able to delve in great detail into the legal and institutional framework. The government has requested additional technical assistance based on the findings and recommendations of TA 8127-SOL and has asked for support to implement some of the key priority actions identified during TA 8217-SOL. The new TA focuses on addressing (i) the existing flaws in the land acquisition and development consent (and environmental assessment) processes, and (ii) improving and strengthening the development consent and environmental assessment process. |
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| Project Rationale and Linkage to Country/Regional Strategy | One of the major challenges and implementation of infrastructure projects in the Solomon Islands is to successfully address land and environmental issues, and to be able to effectively implement land acquisition. Projects that require land, most of the time, also require development consent and this requires working with the ministries of Lands and Environment, both of which, suffer from poor governance and a lack of systematic and formalized procedures. The results have identified a number of inconsistencies in the main laws i.e. Lands and Titles Act and Environment Act and also identified a number of constraints and blockages in the institutions. | ||||
| Impact | Smoother and more timely implementation of infrastructure projects | ||||
| Project Outcome | |
|---|---|
| Description of Outcome | Increased government capacity for applying strengthened land acquisition and development consent procedures in the transport sector. |
| Progress Toward Outcome | |
| Implementation Progress | |
| Description of Project Outputs | Strengthened systems and fully constitutional safeguards framework developed Established institutional arrangements for land acquisition/ development consent process |
| Status of Implementation Progress (Outputs, Activities, and Issues) | Draft amendments to Land and Titles Act and Environment Act (and Environment Regulations) and a number of proposed enabling regulations are being discussed with stakeholders. A draft land aqcuisition policy for MID has been prepared and is under review and discussion. The projects to pilot the proposed modified procedures are under way. |
| Geographical Location | |
| Summary of Environmental and Social Aspects | |
|---|---|
| Environmental Aspects | |
| Involuntary Resettlement | |
| Indigenous Peoples | |
| Stakeholder Communication, Participation, and Consultation | |
| During Project Design | MID will be the executing agency and MID, MLHS and MECDM will be the implementing agencies. Coordination is assisted through the Infratsructure Advisor and Development Coordination Officer. Workshops and formal sessions will supplement smaller consultations and discussions. The Pacific Department''s Transport, Energy and Natural Resources Division will manage the TA with support from Pacific Liaison and Coordination Office in Sydney, and the Development Coordination Office and ADB Infrastructure Advisor in Solomon Islands. |
| During Project Implementation | The TA will be implemented over 12 months from April 2015 to April 2016. A team of individual international (three) and national (two) consultants will be recruited for a total of 21 person-months (in accordance with ADB Guidelines on the Use of Consultants (2013, as amended from time to time). Disbursements will conform to ADB Technical Assistance Disbursement Handbook (2010, as amended from time to time). Procurement of equipment, if any, will follow ADB Procurement Guidelines (2010, as amended from time to time). The consultants will hand over any equipment purchased under the TA to the participating government agencies upon completion of the TA. |
| Responsible ADB Officer | Williams, Jean |
| Responsible ADB Department | Pacific Department |
| Responsible ADB Division | Transport, Energy and Natural Resources Division, PARD |
| Executing Agencies |
Ministry of Infrastructure Development PO Box 1213 Honiara, Solomon Islands |
| Timetable | |
|---|---|
| Concept Clearance | 04 Jul 2014 |
| Fact Finding | 24 Feb 2014 to 28 Feb 2014 |
| MRM | - |
| Approval | 08 Oct 2014 |
| Last Review Mission | - |
| Last PDS Update | 31 Mar 2016 |
TA 8737-SOL
| Milestones | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Approval | Signing Date | Effectivity Date | Closing | ||
| Original | Revised | Actual | |||
| 08 Oct 2014 | 26 Nov 2014 | 26 Nov 2014 | 31 Dec 2015 | 30 Apr 2016 | 30 Jul 2016 |
| Financing Plan/TA Utilization | Cumulative Disbursements | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ADB | Cofinancing | Counterpart | Total | Date | Amount | |||
| Gov | Beneficiaries | Project Sponsor | Others | |||||
| 300,000.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 300,000.00 | 17 Jun 2022 | 282,524.05 |
Project Data Sheets (PDS) contain summary information on the project or program. Because the PDS is a work in progress, some information may not be included in its initial version but will be added as it becomes available. Information about proposed projects is tentative and indicative.
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| Title | Document Type | Document Date |
|---|---|---|
| Supporting Good Governance through Safeguards: Technical Assistance Completion Report | TA Completion Reports | May 2017 |
| Supporting Good Governance through Safeguards: Technical Assistance Report | Technical Assistance Reports | Oct 2014 |
Safeguard Documents See also: Safeguards
Safeguard documents provided at the time of project/facility approval may also be found in the list of linked documents provided with the Report and Recommendation of the President.
None currently available.
Evaluation Documents See also: Independent Evaluation
None currently available.
Related Publications
None currently available.
The Access to Information Policy (AIP) establishes the disclosure requirements for documents and information ADB produces or requires to be produced in its operations to facilitate stakeholder participation in ADB's decision-making. For more information, refer to the Safeguard Policy Statement, Operations Manual F1, and Operations Manual L3.
Requests for information may also be directed to the InfoUnit.
Tenders
Contracts Awarded
Procurement Plan
None currently available.