Safeguards (Environmental and Social)

Definition

Environmental and social safeguards are the mandatory policies of development finance institutions requiring that financed projects identify, assess, avoid, minimise, mitigate and compensate for adverse environmental and social impacts. Landmark systems include the World Bank's Environmental and Social Framework (ten standards covering labour, communities, biodiversity, resettlement, Indigenous peoples and cultural heritage) and the IFC Performance Standards, which function as the de facto private-sector benchmark through the Equator Principles.