Regional Climate Resilience Program (RCRP) for Eastern & Southern Africa 

ENTRO & NELSAP-CU Social and Environmental (S&E) Risks Management

Security Management Plan for RCRP project

PROJECT BACKGROUND

The World Bank International Development Association (IDA) has financed the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) centers through the Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO) and the Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Program Coordination Unit (NELSAP-CU), to implement Phase 1 of the Regional Climate Resilience Program (RCRP) for Eastern and Southern Africa, a program envisioned as a regional multi-phase engagement Series of Projects (SOP). The Program Development Objective (PDO) is to improve the management of water-related climate impacts, with the higher-level aim of strengthening the resilience of populations to climate-related shocks. The target countries are Comoros, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, and South Sudan with the assistance of regional organizations, namely the African Union (AU), Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), and NBI.

Activities to be implemented by ENTRO and NELSAP-CU at the regional/basin level include: 1) Development of Flood Risk Mapping for selected areas in the Baro-Akobo-Sobat (BAS) sub-basin (involving Ethiopia and South Sudan); 2) Feasibility study for flood management interventions in the Yabus catchments and associated riverine (involving Ethiopia, South Sudan and Sudan); 3) Integrated Transboundary flood management at the Elegu-Nimule border between South Sudan and Uganda; 4) Enhancing Community Awareness and Preparedness towards climate change adaptation and resilience; and 5) Strengthen capacities of ENTRO, and NELSAP-CU and their member countries. 

The deliverables include 1) prefeasibility & feasibility studies; 2) preparation of Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (ESIAs), Resettlement Action Pans (RAPs), detailed engineering designs, and preparation of tender documents for any identified high priority flood management infrastructure/structures in the involved NBI member states; and 3) promotion of the use of early warning system information from the Nile Cooperation for Climate Resilience (NCCR) Flash Flood Early Warning System (FFEW) for the communities in the target flood prone areas.

The security risk assessment and management plan is prepared with the objective of assessing and identifying the potential security risks that could potentially threaten the safety and security of the project workers and the beneficiary community in the RCRP project intervention sites (BAS, Yabus, and Unyama). Information and data from ENSAPT and TAC leaders’ respective countries where the project was implemented were used for the preparation of the plan. 

SECURITY MANAGEMENT APPROACH

Under guidance of both ENTRO & NELSAP-CU managements, and in close collaboration with the member countries, the RCRP Project Lead Technical Specialist, Project Coordinator for the Unyama-Ame and ENTRO Social Development and Environmental Officer will ensure that security procedures and criteria are fully designed and updated, and the means are fully available to ensure the security for project operations. 

In consultation with ENSAPT Leaders, the Eastern Nile Subsidiary Action Programme (ENSAP) Technical Team Leaders of the three Eastern Nile Countries (Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Sudan); and the Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Programme (NELSAP) Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) leader of Uganda), the Lead Technical Specialist and Social Development and Environmental Officer will also leverage the existing national and local security infrastructure to access and share security and conflict-related information. 

In addition, working with the Grievance Focal Points of the respective project implementation sites, the Lead Technical Specialist, Project Coordinator for the Unyama-Ame and Social Development and Environmental Officer will specifically identify associated risks, including armed conflict that can pose a threat to project staff and communities while implementing activities of the project (including Socio-economic data collection and survey work for staff gauge installation)  at BAS, Yabus, and Unyama implementation sites.