Environmental, Social and Economic Review Note (ESERN)
I. Project Overview
Identification | 9498 |
Project Title | Leapfrogging Tunisia’s lighting market to high efficiency technologies |
Managing Division | Economy Division |
Type/Location | National |
Region | Africa |
List Countries | Tunisia |
Project Description | The project’s objective is to promote the rapid transformation of the Tunisian market to energy efficient lighting technologies, thereby reducing electrical demand and consumption and related greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions. This will be achieved through the 4 following components:
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Estimated duration of project: | 36 months |
Estimated cost of the project : | GEF Grant: 2,399,541 Co-finance: 15,738,000 |
| Funding Source: | GEF |
II. Environmental Social and Economic Screening Determination
Summary of the Safeguard Risks Triggered
Safeguard Standard Triggered by the Project | Impact of Risk (1-5) | Probability of Risk (1-5) | Significance of Risk (L, M, H)* |
SS 1: Biodiversity, natural habitat and Sustainable Management of Living Resources | 1 | 1 | L |
SS 2: Resource Efficiency, Pollution Prevention and Management of Chemicals and Wastes | 3 | 2 | M |
SS 3: Safety of Dams | 1 | 1 | L |
SS 4: Involuntary resettlement | 1 | 1 | L |
SS 5: Indigenous peoples | 1 | 1 | L |
SS 6: Labor and working conditions | 1 | 1 | L |
SS 7: Cultural Heritage | 1 | 1 | L |
SS 8: Gender equity | 2 | 2 | L |
SS 9: Economic Sustainability | 3 | 3 | M |
Additional Safeguard questions for projects seeking GCF-funding (Section IV) | NA | NA | NA |
*Refer to the UNEP ESES Framework (Chapter 2) and the UNEP’s ESES Guidelines
ESE Screening Decision
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Development of ESE Review Note and Screening Decision
| ESERN Prepared by: | Name: Paul Kellett | Date: 15/12/2017 |
| Conforms to ESES Framework | Name: Yunae Yi | Date: 18/12/2017 |
| Accepted by Project Manager: | Name: Ruth Coutto | Date: 19/12/2017 |
Recommended further action from the Safeguard Advisor
This project is likely to be in the moderate safeguard risk category. The project document already identified some key risks. Compliance with what is described in the project document will avoid/minimize such risks.
Please consult various stakeholders and get feedback on what may be the challenges at the individual (including cultural, financial and information gaps, fitting/replacing the existing layouts), private sector (including the production capacity, distribution network and profitability), and policy levels technical (including production, recycling, regulations, policy inconsistencies across laws, strategies, fiscal and economic approaches).
SS 2: GHG emissions in the country will increase with the projected economic growth. Energy sources and policy advice in the broad national energy and climate change policy framework can provide “do good” opportunity beyond the lighting project.
A functioning and efficient waste management system is often expensive and requires adequate capacity building. Resource efficiency through manufacturing, distribution and consumption, management of waste from the old light bulbs, including mercury, as well as the LED bulbs and lamps require careful management, monitoring and reporting. Training and support should be provided to those who are in charge of disposing the harmful materials or those who change the lamps.
SS 9: The project plans to introduce consumption tax on incandescent lamps sales and ban the sale of incandescent light bulbs. The project stated that the local manufacturers need technological and other capacity to meet the demand. To meet the demand, LED supply may come from abroad if local manufacturers may not meet the quality standards. Financial mechanisms for end users need practical and effective system through pilot testing, feedback and cautious roll out. Rolling out of fiscal and technology support should be based on understanding of the needs, responsibilities and constraints of diverse international private sector and government ministries and consumers, especially the poor, local SMEs and certain population groups (based on region, types of industries involved, urban vs. rural groups and so on).
E: Responses from the Task Manager
- On stakeholder consultations: as part of the design of the MEPS, it is a standard approach to conduct consultations by the government with manufacturers, distributers, retailers, customs and laboratories, and the implications of different policy options. This will be done as part of Component 1 of the project.
- On waste: An important part of these policy discussions will be the implications related to collection and disposal of used lamps. Component 4 is precisely designed to address this issue in a comprehensive way, through legislation and capacity building with government officials and other relevant stakeholders.
- On financing mechanisms: the financial mechanisms have been designed and calibrated by the government to respond to different stakeholder groups. Low income households will receive bulbs free, the hotel sector will have a subsidy, and middle-income groups with be targeted through the financial scheme. The conceptualization of these ideas have started prior to the project as part of a broader policy implementation by the government and will continue after the end of the project. The project will support the roll out and implementation of this phase and the lessons will be used by the government in the future. Component 2 is precisely about this.