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Purpose of this guidance note The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is committed to promoting environmentally sound and sustainable development in the full range of its activities, pursuant to the Agreement Establishing the Bank. The Environmental and Social Policy (ESP) is one of the Bank’s three good governance policies and a key document that guides this commitment to promoting “environmentally sound and sustainable development” in the full range of its investment and technical cooperation activities. The EBRD’s Board of Directors approved the 2019 Environmental and Social Policy and its 10 related Performance Requirements (PRs) on 25 April 2019. They apply to projects started after 1 January 2020. EBRD Performance Requirement 1 (PR1) on the assessment and management of environmental and social risks and impacts sets out the Bank’s overarching requirements for the environmental and social appraisal of projects. It specifies how EBRD clients should assess, manage and monitor their project-related environmental and social risks and impacts in an integrated manner. The EBRD may refrain from financing a project on environmental and social grounds. The Bank’s ESP also includes the types of project that the EBRD will not finance based on an Environmental and Social Exclusion List (Appendix 1 of the ESP). The EBRD views environmental and social management as an adaptable, dynamic and continuous process that should be commensurate with project risks and the stage of project development, and respond to other internal and external factors. The EBRD expects clients to allocate sufficient resources to achieving appropriate governance of environmental and social risks for the full duration of the project. The EBRD also expects the client to establish regular communications with its workers, any local communities affected by the project and, where relevant, other stakeholders. This guidance note provides EBRD clients and others with a practical guide to implementing the requirements of PR1 and expands on the key principles underpinning it. These include: 1. selected key definitions and concepts of PR1, including how they should be interpreted and applied in various cases (for example, depending on project risk level or the stage of project and type of financing structure) 2. the complementary and discrete roles and responsibilities of the client and the EBRD throughout the Bank’s project environmental and social appraisal process 3. selecting a suitable approach to environmental and social assessment and management that meets the EBRD’s requirements. The other PRs and supporting guidance notes provide more detail on the EBRD’s requirements with regard to specific types of risk and impact. Further information is available in various reference documents prepared by the EBRD and others. While this and other guidance notes cross-reference some of these documents, the client should not take this it as a definitive reference list; guidance is constantly evolving and will vary in applicability for different types of project. The EBRD welcomes early engagement from potential or existing clients on topics such as the applicability of other PRs and is able to provide further guidance on particular projects.

Guidance note – EBRD Performance Requirement 1: Assessment and management of environmental and social risks and impacts

Resource Key: ZTB6DPNZ

Document Type: Report

Creator:

Author:

  • EBRD

Creators Name: {mb_resource_zotero_creatorsname}

Place: London

Institution: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

Date: March 2023

Language:

Purpose of this guidance note The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is committed to promoting environmentally sound and sustainable development in the full range of its activities, pursuant to the Agreement Establishing the Bank. The Environmental and Social Policy (ESP) is one of the Bank’s three good governance policies and a key document that guides this commitment to promoting “environmentally sound and sustainable development” in the full range of its investment and technical cooperation activities. The EBRD’s Board of Directors approved the 2019 Environmental and Social Policy and its 10 related Performance Requirements (PRs) on 25 April 2019. They apply to projects started after 1 January 2020. EBRD Performance Requirement 1 (PR1) on the assessment and management of environmental and social risks and impacts sets out the Bank’s overarching requirements for the environmental and social appraisal of projects. It specifies how EBRD clients should assess, manage and monitor their project-related environmental and social risks and impacts in an integrated manner. The EBRD may refrain from financing a project on environmental and social grounds. The Bank’s ESP also includes the types of project that the EBRD will not finance based on an Environmental and Social Exclusion List (Appendix 1 of the ESP). The EBRD views environmental and social management as an adaptable, dynamic and continuous process that should be commensurate with project risks and the stage of project development, and respond to other internal and external factors. The EBRD expects clients to allocate sufficient resources to achieving appropriate governance of environmental and social risks for the full duration of the project. The EBRD also expects the client to establish regular communications with its workers, any local communities affected by the project and, where relevant, other stakeholders. This guidance note provides EBRD clients and others with a practical guide to implementing the requirements of PR1 and expands on the key principles underpinning it. These include: 1. selected key definitions and concepts of PR1, including how they should be interpreted and applied in various cases (for example, depending on project risk level or the stage of project and type of financing structure) 2. the complementary and discrete roles and responsibilities of the client and the EBRD throughout the Bank’s project environmental and social appraisal process 3. selecting a suitable approach to environmental and social assessment and management that meets the EBRD’s requirements. The other PRs and supporting guidance notes provide more detail on the EBRD’s requirements with regard to specific types of risk and impact. Further information is available in various reference documents prepared by the EBRD and others. While this and other guidance notes cross-reference some of these documents, the client should not take this it as a definitive reference list; guidance is constantly evolving and will vary in applicability for different types of project. The EBRD welcomes early engagement from potential or existing clients on topics such as the applicability of other PRs and is able to provide further guidance on particular projects.

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