Environmental and Social Management System Toolkit

completed

The project will develop a toolkit to enable firms in emerging markets to self-assess their environmental and social management capacity and implement an environmental and social management system consistent with IFC Performance Standard 1, Assessment and Management of Environmental and Social Risks and Impacts. The toolkit will be comprised of: a Environmental and Social Management System (ESMS) Self Assessment and Improvement Guide and various sector specific ESMS Implementation Handbooks, which explain what an ESMS is and give guidance on how to develop and implement it. The toolkit is aimed at low capacity firms, i.e. firms with few skills and knowledge relating to E&S management practices and systems, across sectors and the agribusiness sector in particular. Users may include IFC clients and non-client SMEs who would access the toolkit directly or through FIs (to whom the Toolkit will be made broadly available). Besides the toolkit, which will be publicly available. IFC will provide direct support to companies and cluster of companies to ensure they get an understanding of what is an ESMS, rate their management framework, and develop an Improvement Plan.