Environmental & Social Impact

The Need for Thorough Environmental and Social Impact Assessment:

A Country proposal must undergo a thorough environment and social impact assessment. The assessment is usually done in accordance with host country laws, regulations and standards,as well as requirements by which the country is bound under international agreements. The assessment is done by both the host country and the MCC transaction Team and there is a guideline that has been developed for this execise.

The guideline categorizes different activities and provides measures to be taken in relation to levels of environment and social impact assessment.These are:-

Prohibited Activities: These are activites that are likely to cause a significant environmental health or safety hazard. Existance of such activities in a compact makes the whole compact unacceptable.
Category A:- These are activities with a potential for significant adverse impacts. These kinds of activities require a full environment impact assessment (EIA), including environmental management plan.
Category B:- These are activities whose potential impact is site specific, note erreversible but with readily available mitigation measures. These activities require specific environmental and social impact analysis including environmental management plan and resettlement action plans.
Category C:-These are activities which are unlikely to have advice impacts. Potential requirements for these kinds of activities could include specific studies, reporting, and/or trainning.
Category D: intermediate funding facility with subprojects
o Depending on nature of activities, may require EIAs
o Consultation and disclosure
o Monitoring, reporting, and auditing
o Institutional capacity.

The Millennium Challenge Corporation ("MCC") recognizes that the pursuit of sustainable economic growth and a healthy environment are necessarily related. The purpose of these guidelines is to establish a process for the review of environmental and social impacts1 to ensure that the projects undertaken as part of programs funded under Millennium Challenge Compacts with eligible countries ("Compacts") are environmentally sound, are designed to operate in compliance with applicable regulatory requirements, and, as required by the legislation establishing MCC, are not likely to cause a significant environmental, health, or safety hazard. MCC is committed to program design that reflects the results of public participation in host countries during all phases of the program, integrating governmental interests with those of private business and civil society. In this spirit, MCC will work to ensure that the preparation of Environmental Impact Assessments will include consultation with affected parties and public disclosure of the associated documents.

Finally, MCC is committed to the principle of host-country ownership of a Compact, including host-country responsibility for measures to mitigate adverse environmental and social impacts.
A Compact project is expected to comply with host-country laws, regulations and standards, as well as requirements by which the host country is bound under international agreements.

MCC ENVIRONMENTAL GUIDELINES