The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) Project Information Document (PID) Concept Stage | Date Prepared/Updated: 19-Nov-2020 | Report No: PIDC30560 Oct 21, 2020 Page 1 of 10 The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) BASIC INFORMATION A. Basic Project Data OPS TABLE Country Project ID Parent Project ID (if any) Project Name OECS Countries P174986 OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) Region Estimated Appraisal Date Estimated Board Date Practice Area (Lead) LATIN AMERICA AND Mar 22, 2021 Jul 09, 2021 Poverty and Equity CARIBBEAN Financing Instrument Borrower(s) Implementing Agency Investment Project Financing St Lucia,St Vincent and the St Lucia Central Statistics Grenadines,Grenada,Organis Office, St Vincent and the ation of Eastern Caribbean Grenadines Central Statistics States (OECS) Office, Grenada Central Statistics Office, Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Proposed Development Objective(s) To improve the capacity of select Eastern Caribbean countries to produce and publicly disseminate statistical data in a timely manner for evidence-based policy making at both the country and regional levels. PROJECT FINANCING DATA (US$, Millions) SUMMARY-NewFin1 Total Project Cost 29.00 Total Financing 29.00 of which IBRD/IDA 29.00 Financing Gap 0.00 DETAILS -NewFinEnh1 World Bank Group Financing International Development Association (IDA) 29.00 IDA Credit 24.00 IDA Grant 5.00 Oct 21, 2020 Page 2 of 10 The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) Environmental and Social Risk Classification Concept Review Decision Moderate Track II-The review did authorize the preparation to continue Other Decision (as needed) B. Introduction and Context Regional / Country Context The Organisation of the Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) is an inter-governmental international organization dedicated to fostering regional integration in the Eastern Caribbean and comprised of eleven member states – seven full member states1 and four associate members. To enhance economic growth, social inclusion and environmental protection in all member states, the OECS is guided by the following five strategic objectives: (1) advance, support and accelerate regional trade, economic and social integration; (2) mainstream climate, economic, environmental and social resilience; (3) promote and support equity and social inclusion; and leverage the cultural and linguistic diversity of the OECS; (4) support alignment of foreign policy of Member States with the development needs of the OECS; and (5) align and strengthen the institutional systems of the Commission to effectively deliver its mandate. The OECS strategic objectives require comparable data to monitor progress across member states and to inform the formulation of regional policies. To inform regional policy making and to measure development and integration progress of the OECS Economic Union – nationally and regionally, the OECS created a Regional Statistical System (RSS). The OECS Regional Strategy for the Development of Statistics (RSDS) (2017-2030) was adopted to support the OECS Economic Union's development and integration agenda by formalizing, empowering, consolidating and promoting the RSS, so that it can respond to the demand for relevant, high quality and Treaty-enabled data and official statistics. The RSDS aims to determine and schedule the statistical requirements for economic, social, human and environmental development. Three IDA-eligible OECS member countries (Grenada, Saint Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines), which are the focus of the country level components of this project, are among the world's smallest countries and face a high degree of economic volatility. These countries have populations ranging from around 110,000 people in Grenada and in St. Vincent and the Grenadines to 180,000 in St. Lucia. By leveraging external demand, they have overcome their challenge of small internal markets and labor forces, which, however, has exposed them to greater economic volatility. Their narrowly based economies are highly dependent on services, in particular, tourism. In addition, these countries are heavily exposed to natural disasters, namely hurricanes. With limited resources, narrowly-based economies, and vulnerability to natural disasters, they face a high degree of exposure to economic volatility which in turn has the 1 The full member states are Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines; while the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Martinique, and Guadeloupe are associate members. Oct 21, 2020 Page 3 of 10 The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) potential to impact livelihoods and well-being. Although the limited available data suggest these countries rank comparatively well in poverty and human development, unemployment has been high, with unemployment rates in 2019 reaching 18.9 and 20.7 percent in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and St. Lucia, respectively, well above the 8.6 percent average for all small states globally.2 Sectoral and Institutional Context Data deprivation among OECS member states limits data-driven decision making. The IDA-eligible OECS members are considered data deprived3 as household surveys to monitor poverty are conducted once every ten years or less frequently. Moreover, although three of the four countries have conducted a Household Budget and Living Conditions Survey (HBS-SLC) recently, only St. Lucia has published a report of the survey results, meaning the latest data and analyses available for the other countries are from the mid-2000s (see Table 1. Recommended and actual frequency of key surveys in IDA-eligible OECS countries). Outdated data and analysis of poverty prevalence, root causes of poverty, or distributional aspects prohibit identifying the poor and vulnerable population and adequate targeting policies to reduce poverty. Other key socioeconomic information, such as labor market data, is also not collected systematically and made available in all countries, although this information is critical for policymaking. Although St. Lucia and Grenada conduct quarterly labor force surveys (LFS), St. Vincent and the Grenadines only conducts an LFS every other year, and in Dominica, the last LFS was conducted in 2013. Data from specialized health surveys, such as the Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) or the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), do not exist, apart from St. Lucia, where the MICS was conducted in 2012. Given the centrality of household survey data to sectoral analyses, such as education, health services, labor markets, and skills, the lack of up-to-date statistics limits the provision of important inputs for decision making. This has been particularly evident this year when the COVID-19 pandemic hit the region, and social protection and emergency assistance responses needed to be designed quickly. Table 1. Recommended and actual frequency of key surveys in IDA-eligible OECS countries Household Budget and Labor Force Survey Health survey Agricultural Living Conditions Survey (DHS, MICS) Census Recommended every 3-5 years Quarterly every 3-5 years every ten years frequency Dominica 1995, 2005 2013 none 1995, 2015 Grenada 1998, 2008, 2018* Quarterly none 1995, 2012 St. Lucia 1995, 2005, 2016 Quarterly 2012 1996, 2007 St. Vincent and 1996, 2008, 2018* Every two years none 1986, 2000 Grenadines (2015, 2017, 2019) * data/report not yet available/published 2 These are modeled ILO estimates and might differ from national estimates. 3 Serajuddin, Umar; Uematsu, Hiroki; Wieser, Christina; Yoshida, Nobuo; Dabalen, Andrew L.. 2015. Data deprivation: another deprivation to end. Policy Research working paper; no. WPS 7252. Washington, D.C. : World Bank Group. A country is considered to be data deprived if one or fewer poverty estimates are available within any ten year period. Oct 21, 2020 Page 4 of 10 The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) Figure 1. Statistical Capacity Indicator (2019) 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 St. Vincent and the… St. Vincent and the… St. Vincent and the… St. Vincent and the… Grenada Grenada Grenada IDA Grenada IDA IDA IDA Dominica Dominica Dominica Dominica St. Lucia St. Lucia St. Lucia St. Lucia Latin America & Caribbean Latin America & Caribbean Latin America & Caribbean Latin America & Caribbean Overall Indicator Methodology Periodicity and Timeliness Source data Source: World Bank Statistical Capacity Indicator. https://databank.worldbank.org/source/statistical-capacity- indicators. Statistical capacity is relatively low, although there is variation across countries. In 2019, the World Bank Statistical Capacity Indicator (SCI)4 ranged between 50 in Dominica to 60 in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, similar to or below the average for IDA countries, despite being upper-middle-income countries. They all scored 10 or more points below the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) regional average. For the SCI, countries are assessed on three dimensions of statistical capacity: (i) methodology – capacity to meet internationally recommended standards, methods and data reporting practices in economic and social statistics, (ii) periodicity and timeliness – availability and periodicity of key socioeconomic indicators, including the extent to which data are made accessible to users through the transformation of source data into timely statistical outputs, (iii) source data – the extent to which a country meets international recommendations for collecting five key data sources (agricultural Census, health survey, population census, poverty survey, and vital registration system coverage). While the four OECS IDA-eligible countries overall performed comparatively well on methodology, with respect to the average among all IDA countries, they scored much lower than IDA or LAC countries on periodicity and timeliness. The results for the source data category were mixed, with St. Lucia exceeding the IDA and LAC averages, and Dominica scoring much lower than the average scores. Relationship to CPF Closing data and knowledge gaps for policymaking are priorities for the World Bank and IDA-eligible OECS member countries. Strengthening statistical capacity to inform policymaking was one of the areas outlined in the World Bank 4 The World Bank’s Statistical Capacity Indicator is a composite score assessing the capacity of a country’s statistical system. It is based on a diagnostic framework assessing the following areas: methodology; data sources; and periodicity and timeliness. Countries are scored against 25 criteria in these areas, using publicly available information and/or country input. The overall Statistical Capacity score is then calculated as a simple average of all three area scores on a scale of 0-100. Oct 21, 2020 Page 5 of 10 The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) Group Regional Partnership Strategy for the OECS (FY15-20). The 2018 Systematic Regional Diagnostic (SRD) for the OECS highlighted substantial data gaps in the region. The included data and analytics on poverty, the labor market, migration, remittances, and tourism. The SRD further suggested that data and knowledge challenges may be best tackled at a regional level rather than individual countries alone. C. Proposed Development Objective(s) To improve the capacity of select Eastern Caribbean countries to produce and publicly disseminate statistical data in a timely manner for evidence-based policy making at both the country and regional levels. Key Results (From PCN) The expected outcomes of this regional project include the following: (i) the use of modern methods for data collection, archiving, and dissemination; (ii) the increased public availability of regionally harmonized poverty and labor statistics and anonymized microdata, and (iii) increased capacity of national authorities to conduct welfare surveys beyond the duration of this project. D. Concept Description The project seeks to achieve the PDO by strengthening national and regional level capacities to collect, analyze, and disseminate data quickly and regularly. This project will address the short-term financial constraints created by the Covid-19 pandemic and technical capacity constraints. This way it will strengthen the statistical capacity of participating countries to increase data availability, which in turn will strengthen governance by enabling evidence-based decision- making and results-based management. The development of the regional and national statistical systems to produce new and improved data will open new avenues of work, such as developing a national monitoring and evaluation system, the efficient allocation of expenditures, performance-based public sector management, and improved accountability. Thus, the project will lay a solid foundation for planning, design, monitoring, and evaluating public programs and policies, both nationally and regionally. The approach for this proposed project is based on other successful country-level and regional statistics projects5. The methodology's core is to strengthen the National Statistical Office (NSO) in activities for which there is substantial demand at the country level and invest in building skills transferrable to other NSO work plan projects. This capacity- building extends to the packaging and dissemination of data, promoting a virtuous demand and implementation cycle. At the national level, Component 1 and Component 2 of the project will strengthen NSOs through (1) Statistical modernization and capacity building and (2) Data production and dissemination. The country projects will provide IDA credit financing between an estimated US$6 million (in St Vincent and the Grenadines) to a maximum of approximately US$9 million (in the case of the St. Lucia and Grenada), for a projected total of US$24 million for the country level operations. At the regional level, the project will strengthen the regional capacities by supporting the OECS Commission’s Statistical Unit. Component 3 of the project will support the OECS’s mandate for regional integration and strengthening of the regional statistical system. This will include the transitioning of the OECS SSU from its current facilitation role to the direct provision of technical assistance to member states, namely the development of highly specialized skills that 5 The Statistical Innovation and Capacity Building in Pacific Islands regional project (P168122) was examined closely due to its similarities involving several small island states. Oct 21, 2020 Page 6 of 10 The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) are only required periodically in the member states, such as sampling, developing consumption aggregates and poverty lines, while at the same time supporting the development of a forum to incorporate new innovations and technological advancements into the future. The regional financing will be up to US$5 million IDA grant for the OECS Commission’s Statistical Services Unit. Legal Operational Policies Triggered? Projects on International Waterways OP 7.50 No Projects in Disputed Areas OP 7.60 No Summary of Screening of Environmental and Social Risks and Impacts . The overall environmental and social risk classification of the project is moderate. The Environmental Risk classification of the project is low. The project will largely focus on statistical modernization, institutional capacity, and capacity building activities for data collection, analysis and dissemination for statistical systems. Project activities will include the procurement and installation of software and electronic equipment -mostly servers and computers. Potential environmental risks are related (i) minor retrofitting activities (re-wiring, drilling holes in walls, moving furniture, and others) that may be needed for the installation of electronic equipment; (ii) management and disposal of non-hazardous and hazardous waste, including electronic waste (e-waste) in case of the replacement of old electronics; and, (iii) occupational health and safety hazards for the workforce. Possible negative impacts are expected to be minor, site-specific, temporary and fully reversible. The project is not expected to finance any type of construction activities. The Social risk of the project is expected to be moderate, because the project will be implemented in a context where social exclusion patterns exist, invisibility of vulnerable groups is usually a problem, and where processes of community consultation and grassroots participation seems to be weak. In addition, the capacity for the management of the World Bank’s Environmental and Social Framework is observed to be low. In a statistical capacity building project that focuses on data production and dissemination, vulnerable groups are especially at risk of being unaccounted for. This could put vulnerable populations at a further disadvantage. Vulnerable groups are individuals or groups who, by virtue of, for example, their age, gender, ethnicity, religion, physical, mental or other disability, social, civic or health status, sexual orientation, gender identity, economic disadvantages or indigenous status, and/or dependence on unique natural resources, may be more likely to be adversely affected. These groups include the poor, migrants, people living in high- crime and slum areas, women, young girls, youth at risks, people with disabilities, among others. There could also be social risks related to technical data protection and cybersecurity, as well as data privacy concerns. There may be other potential avenues of exclusion such as the lack of access to technology or understanding regarding participation in the survey implementation. While improving the IT infrastructure of countries and building new software (if any), these concerns will be taken into account by the project, including measures to ensure that no one is left behind. Oct 21, 2020 Page 7 of 10 The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) Looking at it from a different angle, this project could also represent an important entry point for incorporating an inclusive approach for collecting disaggregated data on vulnerable groups to reflect their interests in policy making. This project may also represent an opportunity to incorporate environmental quality data as part of the collecting and publishing process, that could be useful for monitoring, developing strategies for action and policy making. The Borrower will prepare, consult, and disclose: Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) proportionate to the Environmental and Social risks and impacts of the project and in line with the Bank’s Environmental and Social Standards and the World Bank Group Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) Guidelines. The ESMF will include: (i) a Screening Tool to assess the risks and impacts related to the electronic installation activities; (ii) a project-level Waste Management Plan (WMP) that will include specific measures for managing non-hazardous and hazardous waste, including e-waste and hazardous construction materials. These instruments will be in line with the Bank's Environmental and Social Standards and World Bank Group (WBG) Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) Guidelines will be part of the Labor Management Procedure. The social assessment will analyze social issues and solicit stakeholder views for the design of the Project and will help make the project responsive to social development concerns, including seeking to enhance benefits for poor and vulnerable. The Borrower will prepare and disclose Labor Management Procedures (LMP) before Board Approval to identify the different types of project workers that are likely to be involved in the project and set out the way in which they will be managed, in accordance with the requirements of national law and ESS2. To ensure health and safety of workers during the construction phase of the project, the LMP will include an Occupational Health and Safety Plan (OHSP) that will also consider COVID-19 prevention measures and will be in line with the WBG EHS Guidelines for all project activities. A labor specific Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) will be prepared by the Borrower, that addresses GBV. In addition, prior to appraisal, the Borrower will prepare and disclose Stakeholder Engagement Plan mapping stakeholders, describing the timing and methods of engagement with them throughout the life cycle of the project, and describing the project's GRM. The Stakeholder Engagement Plan will detail for each country the vulnerable groups and how they can be counted within the data collection, production and dissemination. The project will adopt citizen Engagement Approach during its cycle. As the project aims to improve data collection and dissemination for decision making; putting emphasis on the social inclusion perspective is especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic, where the vulnerable groups are hit the hardest. The Environmental and Social Commitment Plan, which will be prepared and disclosed by the Borrower prior to appraisal, will include the necessary measures that the project needs to address during preparation and implementation to ensure compliance with the ESSs and the project's social and environmental instruments. . CONTACT POINT World Bank Roy Shuji Katayama Senior Economist Borrower/Client/Recipient Oct 21, 2020 Page 8 of 10 The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) St Lucia Esther Rigobert Permanent Secretary/Director of Finance esther.rigobert@govt.lc Allen M. Chastanet Prime Minister pm.sec@govt.lc St Vincent and the Grenadines Grenada Keith Mitchell Prime Minister PrimeMinister@gov.gd Merina Jessamy Permanent Secretary, Infrastructure, Development and Impleme ps@moiid.gov.gd Patricia Clarke Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance psfinancegrenada@gmail.com Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Gale Archibald Head gale.archibald@oecs.int Implementing Agencies St Lucia Central Statistics Office Sean Mathurin Director of Statistics sean.mathurin@govt.lc St Vincent and the Grenadines Central Statistics Office Lavorne Williams Chief Statistician Oct 21, 2020 Page 9 of 10 The World Bank OECS Data for Decision Making (P174986) lwilliams@svgcpd.com Grenada Central Statistics Office Halim Brizan Director of Statistics hmbrizan@gmail.com Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Gale Archibald Head, Statistical Services Unit gale.archibald@oecs.int FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT The World Bank 1818 H Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20433 Telephone: (202) 473-1000 Web: http://www.worldbank.org/projects APPROVAL Task Team Leader(s): Roy Shuji Katayama Approved By APPROVALTBL Practice Manager/Manager: Country Director: Denis Boskovski 25-Nov-2020 Oct 21, 2020 Page 10 of 10