The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) Concept Environmental and Social Review Summary Concept Stage (ESRS Concept Stage) Public Disclosure Date Prepared/Updated: 07/15/2021 | Report No: ESRSC02170 Jul 15, 2021 Page 1 of 10 The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) BASIC INFORMATION A. Basic Project Data Country Region Project ID Parent Project ID (if any) Argentina LATIN AMERICA AND P176781 CARIBBEAN Project Name Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina Practice Area (Lead) Financing Instrument Estimated Appraisal Date Estimated Board Date Social Protection & Jobs Investment Project 9/16/2021 12/15/2021 Financing Borrower(s) Implementing Agency(ies) Argentine Republic Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security Public Disclosure Proposed Development Objective Improve employment opportunities for disadvantaged adults and strengthen training and employment services in Argentina Financing (in USD Million) Amount Total Project Cost 300.00 B. Is the project being prepared in a Situation of Urgent Need of Assistance or Capacity Constraints, as per Bank IPF Policy, para. 12? No C. Summary Description of Proposed Project [including overview of Country, Sectoral & Institutional Contexts and Relationship to CPF] The COVID-19 outbreak hit Argentina at a time when its economy faced significant macroeconomic imbalances and a highly uncertain outlook. The unprecedented economic contraction has had a severe impact on poverty and employment. Labor market statistics point to a sharp fall in total employment (from 42.2 to 33.4 percent) between the first and the second quarters of 2020. Over the last decade, the Ministry of Labor, Employment, and Social Security (MTESS, in its Spanish acronym), has made efforts to provide qualifications to specific groups of workers in skills recognized by the labor market. The proposed project would improve the quality of training and intermediation Jul 15, 2021 Page 2 of 10 The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) services and increase their coverage, linked to the objective of improving employment outcomes for disadvantaged adults and youth, including indigenous peoples, afro-descendants, people with disabilities, persons within the LGBTI community, and migrants, among others. While many of the activities under the project will benefit the wider population, the target population groups for the Project include youth (between 18-24 years old), women, and men over 45 years of age. Within these groups those with specific labor market vulnerability including not having completed secondary school and being currently unemployed will be further prioritized. In order to achieve this, the Project would support the following: i) expansion and strengthening of a labor competency-based training and orientation system; ii) promotion of labor market insertion through participation in active labor market activities; iii) strengthening the training and intermediation services (Employment Offices network and its coordination with the Employment Portal) with special focus on small and medium enterprises; and, (iv) Strengthening evaluation and Information systems, including a new qualification database to systematize the skills demanded by the labor market. The proposed Project is aligned with the Argentina Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) and the Country Partnership Framework (CPF) for the period FY19-FY22 (Report No. 131971), which was discussed by the Executive Directors on April 25, 2019 and with the Government’s priorities. D. Environmental and Social Overview D.1. Detailed project location(s) and salient physical characteristics relevant to the E&S assessment [geographic, environmental, social] The Proposed Project will be implemented at the national level, over a diversity of jurisdictions with different environmental, social and institutional settings. The Project will finance: the expansion and Strengthening of a Labor Competency-based Training and Certification System to new sectors of the economy including the most dynamic and Public Disclosure those with identified skill gaps (e.g. technology, care services and activities to support the green economy); (ii) the promotion of labor market insertion through participation in selected active labor market programs (e.g. competence- based training and on-the-job training), the deployment of a new Employment Portal as the digital platform to facilitate access to new digital services for the target population and cash transfers to eligible participants enrolled in the Program; (iii) the strengthening of the network of Municipal Employment Offices (Oficinas de Empleo Municipal, or OEM, by their Spanish acronym) by incorporating new methodologies and management practices, training for OEM staff, technical assistance to improve efficiency and monitor results, and IT resources, as necessary; and (iv) the strengthening of evaluation and information systems through, inter alia, the launching of a Labor Market Observatory. The Government is seeking to increase the scope and scale of these programs. Two important components of this approach have been the OEMs and the program Youth with More and Better Work (Jóvenes con Más y Mejor Trabajo, or JMyMT by its Spanish acronym) for the 18 to 24-year-old population. The JMyMT has represented a particularly promising approach by delivering integrated programming covering the range of barriers youth face to effective labor market integration. JMyMT is implemented by MTESS as part of a larger training and intermediation program that targets all age groups, with the goal of promoting social inclusion of the most vulnerable population and improving the quantity and quality of employment they access. The program assists beneficiaries in finishing mandatory schooling, accumulating experience, and skills. It should be noted that Argentina is a multicultural country with a notable presence of indigenous and afro- descendants populations, and the majority of these populations live in urban areas. Taking this into account JMyMT Program developed an intercultural approach to include indigenous peoples in it´s benefits in a culturally appropriate manner (see ESS7 paragraph below for more detail). Jul 15, 2021 Page 3 of 10 The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) The Project will neither finance nor supports physical interventions. In this sense, the activities supported by the Project are not expected to have negative environmental impacts. The main social impacts associated to the Project are positive. D. 2. Borrower’s Institutional Capacity The Project will be implemented by the Ministry of Labor, that has a positive track record in executing Bank financed operations. The Ministry is currently implementing the Argentina Youth Employment Support Project (P133129) which has been rated “Satisfactory” in safeguards during all the implementation period of the project. For this new operation, social and environmental standards are expected to continue being managed by qualified and experienced specialists within the Ministry of Labor, that has adequate resources and processes in place, and has demonstrated its capacity to screen, implement, monitor and report on environmental and social commitments as part of Bank-financed activities. The preparation and implementation of this Project will require the Ministry to carry out a participatory approach. The Project will prepare an Environmental and Social Assessment (ESA) that will define the the strengthening of the Ministry’s social communication processes and the way to address citizen engagement and beneficiary feedback mechanisms, to ensure inclusion and active participation of all targeted population, with particular emphasis on beneficiaries from vulnerable groups. In addition, given that this will be the first project of the Ministry of Labor under the Bank's Environmental and Social Framework (ESF), an assessment will be carried out prior to appraisal, to determine any additional actions needed to strengthen the borrower´s capacity to meet the objectives of the ESF. The outcome of the Bank’s capacity assessment will be presented in the Appraisal ESRS. Public Disclosure II. SCREENING OF POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL (ES) RISKS AND IMPACTS A. Environmental and Social Risk Classification (ESRC) Moderate Environmental Risk Rating Low The proposed Project will neither finance nor supports any physical intervention. No rehabilitation or construction of new infrastructure or other actions having an impact on the environment will be financed through the Project. Although in principle it is not expected, the Project may finance a minimal amount of basic computer equipment based on the proposed upgrade of IT resources, which entails the possibility of e-waste generation and its handling/disposal. In this sense, the Project is classified as Low for environmental risks as its environmental risks and potential adverse environmental impacts on the environment are likely to be minimal or negligible. Notwithstanding the preliminary classification as low environmental risk for the Project, as stated above an ESA will be developed and disclosed prior to appraisal. The ESA will take into account any further definition or detail of the activities to be financed, although a change in the Low Environmental Risk Rating is not expected. Social Risk Rating Moderate The Project is expected to have only positive impacts on vulnerable and systematically excluded groups and no negative social effects. Its main objective is to improve employment opportunities for disadvantaged adults and strengthening the training and employment services in Argentina. The main social risks are associated with the potential exclusion of vulnerable groups from participating in the benefits of the Project, and challenges associated with the stakeholder engagement processes, including existing social communication and beneficiaries feedback Jul 15, 2021 Page 4 of 10 The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) mechanisms of the Ministry of Labor, that may require to be strengthened during Project preparation and implementation in order to reach targeted groups in the diverse areas of the country. The ESA will identify any potential barriers that groups like Indigenous Peoples, Afro descendants, people with disabilities, persons within the LGBTI community, and migrants, among others, may face to have access to the activities financed by the Project and look for ways to ensure that: (i) these groups are afforded opportunities to participate in planning and/or implementation of activities that affect them; and (ii) opportunities to provide such groups with culturally appropriate benefits are considered. The ESA will also assess the capacities of the Ministry of Labor’s on social communication in one hand, and on the development of stakeholder engagement and it´s grievance mechanisms on the other, to inform the preparation of the develop and extensive and inclusive engagement strategy. The resulting strategy will be included in the Stakeholder Engagement Plan (SEP) and the National Indigenous Peoples Plan (NIPP), which be developed and disclosed in an advanced draft version by appraisal. The preparation of the ESA will be informed through virtual consultations with the government agencies and civil society organizations that are focused on the vulnerable groups identified above and other interested parties. B. Environment and Social Standards (ESSs) that Apply to the Activities Being Considered B.1. General Assessment ESS1 Assessment and Management of Environmental and Social Risks and Impacts Overview of the relevance of the Standard for the Project: This Standard is relevant. The main objective of the Project is to improve employment opportunities for Public Disclosure disadvantaged adults and strengthening the training and employment services in Argentina. The Project will finance the expansion and strengthening of a labor competency-based training and Certification System, the promotion of labor market insertion through participation in selected active labor market programs, the deployment of a new employment portal (digital platform), cash transfers to eligible population, the strengthening of the network of municipal employment offices, and the strengthening of the evaluation and information systems focused on the labor market. The Project will neither finance nor supports physical interventions or other actions having an impact on the environment. Although in principle it is not expected, the Project may finance a minimal amount of basic computer equipment based on the proposed upgrade of IT resources, which entails the possibility of e-waste generation and its handling/disposal. In this sense, potential adverse risks to and impacts on human populations and/or the environment are likely to be minimal or negligible. The main social impacts associated to the Project are positive. The borrower will carry out and disclose an Environmental and Social Assessment (ESA) prior to appraisal to assess the risks associated with the proposed activities under the Project, incorporate mitigation measures and propose actions to improve its design or implementation. The ESA will identify any potential barriers that groups like Indigenous Peoples, Afro-descendant population, people with disabilities, persons within the LGBTI community, and migrants, among others, may face to have access to the activities financed by the Project and look for ways to ensure that: (i) these groups are afforded opportunities to participate in planning and/or implementation of activities that affect them; and (ii) opportunities to provide such groups with culturally appropriate benefits are considered. The ESA will also assess the Ministry of Labor’s existing social communication and stakeholder engagement strategies and grievance mechanisms to inform the preparation of the SEP and the NIPP, which advanced draft version will be Jul 15, 2021 Page 5 of 10 The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) developed and disclosed prior to appraisal. The preparation of the ESA will be informed through virtual consultations with the government agencies and civil society organizations that are focused on the vulnerable groups identified above. The Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP) will include any additional measures that may be necessary to address risks identified in the ESA. A draft ESCP will be prepared and disclosed prior to appraisal and finalized and re-disclosed by negotiations. Finally, any technical assistance, where relevant would need to be consistent with ESS1 – 10. Areas where “Use of Borrower Framework” is being considered: None. ESS10 Stakeholder Engagement and Information Disclosure The Ministry of Labor will prepare a draft SEP that will be disclosed prior to appraisal. The SEP will be informed by the findings of the ESA and will include the the mapping of relevant stakeholders, and a plan for consultations with them, including other government institutions, labor training providers and civil society organizations, that represent the identified vulnerable groups. Based on a preliminary assessment, consultations during preparation should include, inter alia, the National Institute of Indigenous Peoples Affairs, the Secretariat of Human Rights, the Ministry of Women, Genders and Diversity and the National Disability Agency. Based on this consultations, the SEP will include measures to address any gaps or challenges faced by the vulnerable groups or other people belonging to the target population to access to the project benefits. The SEP, together with the National Indigenous Peoples Plan (NIPP) will be consulted with indigenous peoples in a manner consistent with the ESS7, including meaningful consultations with Public Disclosure indigenous peoples representative bodies and organizations. During Project implementation, the SEP will develop a culturally appropriate engagement processes, providing sufficient time for IPs decision-making processes and allowing their effective participation in the design of project activities or mitigation measures to adress specific access barriers to Project benefits. The SEP will also include a stakeholder engagement strategy to be conducted throughout the project preparation and implementation. This strategy will consider relevant channels and mechanismos to ensure an effective disclosure of information, and other actions to promote beneficiary feedback as surveys, periodic regional and local participatory workshops, the promotion of virtual spaces to stimulate information exchange on job searching and targeted communication actions using social, local and mass media The Project will include a beneficiary feedback indicator to montitor the implementation of key actions identified in the SEP. The SEP will also ensure that a Grievance Mechanism (GM) is in place for addressing project-related concerns and grievances during the project preparation and implementation. The GM will establish the mechanisms to submit grievances and receive responses, the number of days it can take to receive a response and will identify different levels of conflict resolution. The GM will be developed by assessing and consolidating different existing mechanisms of the different Employment Programs of the Ministry of Labor, to define common protocols of reception, registration, processing, resolution and reporting of grievances in line with ESS 10. This assessment and consolidation work will also seek to ensure that grievances from vulnerable groups will be received and processed in a culturally appropriate manner. In line with ESS7, the GM will seek to be culturally appropriate and accessible for IPs, taking into account their customary dispute settlement mechanisms. Finally, the project GM will include relevant SEA/SH considerations. Jul 15, 2021 Page 6 of 10 The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) Taking into account the COVID-19 pandemic, all social communication and consultation processes associated with the Project will follow the guidelines stated in the Bank’s Technical Note on “Public Consultations and Stakeholder Engagement in WB-supported operations when there are constraints on conducting public meetings, March 20, 2020.”. B.2. Specific Risks and Impacts A brief description of the potential environmental and social risks and impacts relevant to the Project. ESS2 Labor and Working Conditions This Standard is relevant to the Project. The Project will be implemented by staff from the Ministry of Labor (Government Civil Servants). In addition, some local consultants could be hired to perform specific tasks (Direct Workers). Other type(s) of Project´s workers, such as trainers contracted by labor training providers contracted by the Ministry of Labor, may be identified based on definitions and clarifications on Project´s activities. All types of Project's workers will be described in Labor-Management Procedures (LMP). Project activities are administrative- related tasks in an indoor environment and appropriate occupational health and safety (OHS) measures will be applied and will be reflected in the Project's LMP. OHS measures for workers will include all COVID-19 related mandatory protocols as per applicable regulations and the latest guidance on the matter issued by relevant organizations; in particular, training will be held according with Government restrictions on COVID-19, and, depending on the context of the pandemic situation, probably with preference for virtual activities. The LMP will also describe policies and procedures applicable to consultants’ contracts in line with the national legal framework and Public Disclosure the requirements of ESS2. Although Government Civil Servants will remain subject to the terms and conditions of their existing public sector employment agreement, they will be also subject to the ESS2 provisions on Protecting the Work Force and Occupational Health and Safety. The LMP will describe a specific Grievance Mechanism (GM) to receive and manage workers complaints. A code of conduct for project workers will be also developed and included in the LMP. This code of conduct as well as the GM will take into consideration SEA/SH issues and actions to mitigate associated risks under all activities financed by the Project. The LMP will also describe applicable legislation and include policies to ensure non-discrimination and equal opportunity in the recruitment of Project Workers. The LMP will be finalized in a satisfactory manner to the Bank at an appropriate milestone still to be defined, but , in principle, it is foreseen that the LMP will be ready no later than one month after the Effective Date, or before the hiring of any Project worker, whichever comes first. The ESCP will establish the timeframe for preparing the LMP; it will also stablish whether the LMP will be disclosed based on the agreement with the MTESS. ESS3 Resource Efficiency and Pollution Prevention and Management This Standard is relevant. Although in principle it is not expected, the Project may finance a minimal amount of basic computer equipment based on the proposed upgrade of IT resources, which entails the possibility of e-waste generation and its handling/disposal . The ESA will analyze this possibility and stablish the corresponding measures as Jul 15, 2021 Page 7 of 10 The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) applicable. Relevance of this ESS will be further assessed as part of the Bank’s due diligence as more information becomes available. ESS4 Community Health and Safety This Standard is not currently relevant to the Project. The outcome of E&S screening did not identify any potential risks and/or impacts relevant to ESS4. ESS5 Land Acquisition, Restrictions on Land Use and Involuntary Resettlement This Standard is not currently relevant to the Project. The outcome of E&S screening did not identify any potential risks and/or impacts relevant to ESS5. There will be no physical interventions under the Project; activities to be financed will neither require land acquisition, nor restrictions on land or involuntary resettlement as defined under this Standard. ESS6 Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Management of Living Natural Resources This Standard is not currently relevant to the Project. The outcome of E&S screening did not identify any potential risks and/or impacts relevant to ESS6. ESS7 Indigenous Peoples/Sub-Saharan African Historically Underserved Traditional Local Communities Public Disclosure This Standard is relevant. Argentina is a multicultural country with a notable presence of indigenous and afro- descendants populations, and the majority of these populations live in urban areas. Indigenous people (2.54 percent of the population) traditionally lived in rural communities in the provinces of Salta, Jujuy, Chubut, Neuquén, Tierra del Fuego, Chaco, Formosa, Santa Fe, Tucuman, and Mendoza. However, but today more than 80 percent of the indigenous population in Argentina lives in urban areas, with the largest concentration living in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area. This is due to numerous factors, including new and improved access to basic services as well as improved market opportunities in the cities, and lack of job and income opportunities in the rural sector. The main challenge related to these groups is linked to the lack of reliable data and to unidentified drivers of exclusion. For that reason, these groups will be part of the stakeholder engagement process, and relevant recommendations that may result from their participation will be taken into consideration for the final design of the activities and Project implementation. In the case of Indigenous Peoples, the Project will prepare a National Indigenous Peoples Plan (NIPP) to make sure that all Project-supported programs and activities are implemented in a culturally appropriate manner to include indigenous peoples as project beneficiaries and avoid barriers that could exclude them from project benefits. During preparation, the ESA will also explore the risks of exclusion brought by intersectionality, for example IP women, and explore how any risk can be mitigated. The NIPP will build on the experience of the Youth Employment Support Project (133129), where a NIPP had good results in engaging and providing labor training to IP youths in remote areas of the country and creating and sustaining bonds between local IP leaders, Civil Society Organizations and government areas, including OEMs. A draft version of the NIPP will be disclosed before appraisal. The NIPP will inform the Project’s GM to ensure it will: (i) be accessible for IPs and will have culturally appropriate mechanisms. Jul 15, 2021 Page 8 of 10 The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) ESS8 Cultural Heritage This Standard is not currently relevant to the Project. The outcome of E&S screening did not identify any potential risks and/or impacts relevant to ESS8. ESS9 Financial Intermediaries This Standard is not relevant to the Project. The Project will not involve the use of Financial Intermediaries. C. Legal Operational Policies that Apply OP 7.50 Projects on International Waterways No OP 7.60 Projects in Disputed Areas No III. WORLD BANK ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL DUE DILIGENCE A. Is a common approach being considered? No Public Disclosure Financing Partners There will not be financing partners related to this project. B. Proposed Measures, Actions and Timing (Borrower’s commitments) Actions to be completed prior to Bank Board Approval: The borrower will carry out and disclose an Environmental and Social Assessment (ESA) prior to appraisal to assess the risks associated with the proposed activities under the Project, incorporate mitigation measures and propose actions to improve its design and/or implementation. The Borrower will also develop and disclose a draft Stakeholder Engagement Plan (SEP) prior to appraisal which will establish the consultations to be made during project preparation and implementation. In addition, the borrower will also prepare and disclose a draft National Indigenous Peoples Plan (NPPI) prior to appraisal to make sure that all Project-supported programs and activities are implemented in a culturally appropriate manner. Possible issues to be addressed in the Borrower Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP): The draft SEP and the draft NPPI will be updated based on the feedback from consultations and re-disclosed accordingly. In addition, the borrower will identify all types of Project workers and develop the corresponding Labor Management Procedures (LMP); these procedures will be finalized in a satisfactory manner to the Bank at an appropriate milestone still to be defined, but , in principle, it is foreseen that the LMP will be ready no later than one month after the Effective Date, or before the hiring of any Project worker, whichever comes first. The timeframe for preparing the LMP will be reflected in the ESCP; it will also stablish whether the LMP will be disclosed based on the agreement with the MTESS. The ESCP is also expected to include, inter alia, specific actions related to (i) ensuring an Jul 15, 2021 Page 9 of 10 The World Bank Promoting Better Jobs through Integrated Labor and Skills Programs in Argentina (P176781) organizational structure adequate to manage the environment and social risks associated with the Project, (ii) ensuring adequate monitoring and reporting procedures, including specific guidance to report Incidents; (iii) the operationalization of the project GM. C. Timing Tentative target date for preparing the Appraisal Stage ESRS 30-Jul-2021 IV. CONTACT POINTS World Bank Contact: Marcela Ines Salvador Title: Senior Social Protection Specialist Telephone No: 5260+3735 / 54-11-4316-9735 Email: msalvador@worldbank.org Contact: William David Wiseman Title: Lead Economist Telephone No: +1-202-473-0474 Email: wwiseman@worldbank.org Borrower/Client/Recipient Borrower: Argentine Republic Public Disclosure Implementing Agency(ies) Implementing Agency: Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security V. 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 VI. APPROVAL Task Team Leader(s): Marcela Ines Salvador, William David Wiseman Practice Manager (ENR/Social) Tatiana Tassoni Recommended on 30-Jun-2021 at 10:10:55 GMT-04:00 Safeguards Advisor ESSA Angela Nyawira Khaminwa (SAESSA) Cleared on 15-Jul-2021 at 17:02:29 GMT-04:00 Jul 15, 2021 Page 10 of 10