Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1698836135175.pdf (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines)
GRIEVANCE REDRESS MECHANISM FOR GOVERNMENT OF SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES AND WORLD BANK DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS CARIBBEAN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION PROJECT (CARDTP) (P171528) Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning, and Information Technology st 1 Floor, Administrative Centre, Bay Street, Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Tel.
: 784-457-1746 ● Fax: 784-456-2430 ● E-mail: cenplan@svgcpd.com JULY 2021 CONTENTS Acronyms ....................................................................................................................................................................... 5 1.

Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................... 7 2.
Project Description ................................................................................................................................................ 9 3.

Definition of Grievance Redress Mechanism....................................................................................................... 11 Types of Grievances ............................................................................................................................................. 12 4.
Procedures for Redressing Grievance .................................................................................................................. 13 5.
Processing of Grievance ....................................................................................................................................... 15 Levels of Grievances ............................................................................................................................................ 18 Actions to be taken when processing a grievance............................................................................................... 19 World Bank Grievance Redressal Service (GRS) .................................................................................................. 20 Addressing gender-based violence ...................................................................................................................... 20 addressing Workers grievance............................................................................................................................. 22 addressing CONTRACTOR MANAGEMENT .......................................................................................................... 22 NOTIFICATION about grm .................................................................................................................................... 23 6.
GoverNance ......................................................................................................................................................... 24 THE GRIEVANCES REDRESS committee ....................................................................................................................... 24 7.
Roles OF MEMBERS OF GRC ................................................................................................................................ 25 8. Review and monitoring of Grievance Redress Mechanism ................................................................................. 26 Best practices: ............................................................................................................................................................. 26 Resources for grievance mechanism ........................................................................................................................... 27 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................................... 27 Annex 1 ........................................................................................................................................................................ 28 ANNEX 2 ....................................................................................................................................................................... 29 Contractual arrangement ............................................................................................................................................ 29 Annex 3 ....................................................................................................................................................................... 30 Reference..................................................................................................................................................................... 31 3 4 ACRONYMS DOM - Dominica ESS- Environmental and Social Standard GoSVG- Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines GRC- Grievance Redress Committee GRE- Grenada GRM- Grievance Redress Mechanism PAI – Project Area of Influence PAP – Project Affected Persons PIU – Project Implementation Unit PSC – Project Steering Committee PSIPMU- Public Sector Investment Programme Monitoring Unit SLU- Saint Lucia SST- Social Safeguards Team SVG – Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 5 6 1.
INTRODUCTION The Government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), with funding from the World Bank, is implementing the Caribbean Digital Transformation Project(CARDTP), jointly with Grenada(GRE), St. Lucia(SLU), and Dominica(DOM).

The main objective of the project is to increase access to digital services, technologies and skills by governments, businesses and individuals in the participating Eastern Caribbean countries.
The World Bank’s Environmental and Social Standards (ESS) requires that persons affected by the project (PAP) to be meaningfully consulted and to have opportunities to participate in planning and implementing the program.

ESS 2 [Labour and Working Conditions], ESS 10 [Stakeholder Engagement and Information disclosure] recommends that a Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) be created to address all concerns of the PAP.
The GRM is an effective tool for early identification, assessment and resolution of complaints.

The Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines recognizes a GRM as an integral tool in the development process.

In the country’s National Economic and Social Development Plan (2013-2025), Goal three (3) promotes good governance and increases the effectiveness of public administration: outcome 3.3 solicits avenues to educate the public about their legal rights and avenues for redress.
The GRM provides the residents of Saint Vincent the Grenadines, an opportunity to voice complaints or concerns, and clarify and resolve misconceptions about the project activities.

It provides a simple, transparent and timely manner to express their opinion or grievance related to project activities execution.

Objectives of the GRM The ideal redress mechanism for grievances would be the avoidance of situations which can give rise to them in the first place.
However, given the nature of implementing 7 projects in a dynamic environment, the GRM aims at the next best option.

That is, the GRM aims to quickly address all relevant grievances to minimize and/or eliminate negative impacts of the project on affected Ideally, the best way to deal with a grievance is to prevent its occurrence in the first place persons.
In satisfying its aim, the GRM will ensure that grievances are identified early and that the redress mechanisms are appropriate and expeditious, ultimately preventing escalation or un-manageable circumstances.

The GRM can also help to minimize or eliminate conflicts with the potential to compromise the project development objective The GRM will enable the Project Authorities to address grievances against the Project.
It must be noted that this GRM covers grievances that relate to the impacts that the project will have on its stakeholders, as listed in the Stakeholder Engagement Plan and the Labour Management Procedures .

Summarily, the objectives of the Grievance Redress Mechanism are as follows: 1.

Ensuring that the Government of Saint Vincent and Grenadines’ regulations and the World Bank’s Environmental and Social Standards are adhered to in all project activities; 2.
Addressing any negative environmental and social impacts affecting workers of all project activities; 3.

Resolving all grievances emanating from the project activities in a timely manner; 4.

5.

Establishing relationships of trust between project staff and Grievance Officer; Creating transparency between grievance parties.

8 2.
8 2.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION The Caribbean Digital Transformation Project consists of three components as follows: Component 1: Digital Enabling Environment This component will support the development of a positive enabling environment for the region’s digital economy that drives competition, investment, and innovation while promoting trust and security of online transactions.
It will focus on legal, regulatory and institutional reforms to support modernization of the telecommunications and digital financial services sectors while mitigating growing risks of a digital economy, including cybersecurity and data protection and privacy.

Activities include; (a) Telecommunications: Legal and Regulatory Environment, Institutions, and Capacity.

(b) Digital Financial Services: Legal and Regulatory Environment, Institutions, and Capacity.
(c) Cybersecurity, Data Protection and Privacy: Legal and Regulatory Environment, Institutions and Capacity.

Component 2: Digital Government Infrastructure, Platforms, and Services This component will support public sector modernization, resilience and delivery of digital public services to individuals and businesses.
It will aim to ensure that all participating countries have put in place the core infrastructure, platforms, institutions and human capacity needed to efficiently and effectively manage internal government operation and to build on these core enablers to make public services widely accessible online from anywhere within the country, region or across the globe.
It will also prepare the region’s governments for deeper interconnectivity and interoperability of data and information systems across borders to smooth administration of regional trade, immigration and other services between countries.
Finally, it will aim to ensure continuity of government operations and services, enable real-time data-driven decision making and facilitate remote working for civil servants and the ability to rapidly target and deliver payments and social services to citizens and businesses in the event of natural disasters and external shocks.
Activities include; 9 (a) Cross-cutting Enablers of Digital Government Operations and Services (b) Government productivity platforms and citizen-centric digital services Component 3: Digital Skills and Technology Adoption This component aims to better equip individuals and businesses across the region for the jobs and economy of the future and to spur innovation and productivity growth.
It adopts a regional approach, aiming to capture economies of scale in specialized digital skills development programs and to create a pool of advanced digital talent to better position the region to attract investment by digital firms.
It also aims to tackle both supply and demand side constraints, supporting greater technology adoption and utilization of digitally enabled business models to drive demand for newly skilled employees as well as making connections with global employment opportunities through online working platforms.
Specific efforts and targets are included to encourage maximum participation of women and girls in the support programs in order to promote greater opportunities and representation in digitally enabled professions and businesses.
Activities include; (a) Workforce-Ready Digital Skills (b) Technology adoption Component 4: Project Implementation Support This component will support national and regional level Project Implementation Units (PIUs) with management and implementation of the project and associated activities.
The project will support capacity building initiatives, as well as PIU staffing through the hiring of expert consultants for key areas such as project management, technical advisory and financial management, environment and social safeguards, monitoring and evaluation, and strategic communications.

It will also support capacity development of participating regional institutions and regional knowledge sharing events and forums.
The funds will also be available to facilitate the recruitment of technical advisory and implementation support firms as relevant (regional, DOM, GRE, SLU, SVG).

support, procurement, implementation 10 3.

DEFINITION OF GRIEVANCE REDRESS MECHANISM A Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) refers to methods and processes by which a redressal to a grievance is sought and provided.
The GRM can be designed specifically and separately for a project or it can be built on existing institutions and processes, whether they are formal or informal.

GRMs are designed to benefit both the project and the project affected persons (PAPs).

A grievance refers to an issue, concern, problem or claim, whether actual or perceived, that affects the physical, social and economic conditions of individuals and or communities in the project area of influence.
They can occur at different stages of the project cycle.

The project activity often determines the nature of the grievance.

Grievances can occur at various stages in the project cycle:  Inception – these are complaints about the perceived macro impact (social, economic, environmental) of the project  Implementation – these are complaints about the micro context of the project emerging from its specific activities.
For example, complaints related to construction noise or dust, displacement or land acquisition, compensation etc.

 Close – these are complaints on the non-fulfillment of project activities.

11 TYPES OF GRIEVANCES Aggrieved persons can file different types of complaints depending on the specific issue or concern.

Grievances can be related to a number of issues including labour; provision of service, environmental impact, social impact, health and safety or project execution.
The figure that follows provides an outline of some of the grievances for this project.
These may include but are not limited to the following categories: Labour Service Environmental •Wages/payment period •Rest period /hours of work •Vacation leave/sick/maternity/family leave/special leave/termination •staff performance ( harrassment; discrimination, bullyiing, exploitation •injury •Disruption of Services •functional errors •feature requests •crashes •network problems •Noise •Disposal •Dust or chemical pollution, waste management issues ( e –waste management Social Health and Safety •Covid 19 procedures •PPE requirements •violence ( Physical or sexual ) from workers Project Execution •Stakeholder enagement •Project description/ bids/failure to implment scope •procurement • staff performance •general information/lack of information •Access ( temporary/lack) •privacy •violence ( Physical or sexual) from workers •participation •resettlement •]land acquisition All grievance will be classified to ascertain the level of impact to determine intervention.
The complaints will be classified on a 4 level grading; level one (low), level 2 (moderate) level 3 (substantial) and level 4 (high) see Processing of Grievance .

12 4.

PROCEDURES FOR REDRESSING GRIEVANCE Grievances can be lodged orally or in written form by the project affected persons.
In establishing the GRM, the public, especially persons living in the project area, must be informed about the project activities, as well as, where they can lodge their concerns, who will be responsible for the relevant redress and the timeframe of the responses.

The following are the main actors for the GRM: a.

The Director General, Finance and Planning (DGFP): The DGFP head of public service and the Grievance Redress Committee b.
Public Sector Investment Programme Management Unit (PSIPMU): The PSIPMU is the governing agency tasked with the responsibility of project execution, including the fiduciary and safeguard aspects of the project.

c. Project Coordinator (PC): The PC is responsible for managing the project’s implementation.

The PC will receive all complaints and provide the aggrieved with a registration number and the timeframe within which he/she will be contacted by the Safeguard Team.
d. Safeguards Team: This is a team comprising of officers of the social, environment and technical officers (SET Team) to provide communication and consultation to all beneficiaries.

I: Social safeguard, the social safeguard officer is responsible to monitor, process and evaluate all grievances II.
Environmental safeguards, the environmental safeguard officer is responsible for addressing concerns related to environmental impacts of the project 13 e. Project Steering Committee (PSC): The PSC comprises various stakeholders that provide guidance and direction of the project activities, as designated in the project’s operations manual.
More specifically, the members of the PSC are:  Director General (Chairman)  Director of Economic Planning  Deputy Director of Economic Planning  Director of Information Technology  Representative - Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Information Technology  The Project Coordinator Note: The Chair may invite other technical personnel to advice the Committee from time to time.

f. Grievance Redress Committee: To facilitate all appeals.
The committee comprises of the  Director General (Chairman)  Deputy Director of Economic Planning;  Senior Project Officer  Project Coordinator;  Government Legal Officer,  SET Team 14 5.

PROCESSING OF GRIEVANCE The structure of the GRM is as follows: Grievance process receive acknowledge receive register /log screen investigate classification resolution 1.

Receive grievance All grievances should be received by the PC .
Through the consultation process in each participating country, stakeholders will be informed of various avenues through which the mechanism can be accessed.

Mode of receiving grievances Complaints can be made in person, writing, verbally over the phone, by fax, emails or any other media.
Sample Notification to the public on mediums through which grievances can be submitted Email: Telephone : 784-457-1746 cenplan@svgcpd.com By letter: The Project Grievance Officer - Caribbean Digital Transformation Project Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Information Technology Bay Street Kingstown The information contained in the sample notification will be placed at strategic points of each project site where employees or beneficiaries of the CARDTP are operating.

15 2.
15 2.

Acknowledge grievance All grievances will be acknowledged by telephone or in writing by the PC using the Grievance Acknowledgment Form (Annex1) within 48 hours of receipt.

The complainant will be informed of the approximate timeline for addressing the complaint, if it can’t be addressed immediately.

The PC will work with the safeguard team to ensure the speedy resolution of the grievance.

If the complaint cannot be resolved at this level, it is taken to the next level.

3.
3.

Register/Log After receiving and recording the grievance on the GIF, it will be registered in the Grievance Redressal Registration.

[Separate registration for labour and other general project grievances ].

All grievances received by the project shall be logged and filed.

(see grievance log in annex 2?)
Registration of grievances word of mouth ( oral) Mail, email, fax, acknowlegde reciept of grievance sent to the agrieved logged in grievance register copy to social specialist team or project coordinator recorded or documented re-read to aggrieved and signed by the aggrieved person in the presence of a witness Logged in the grievance register signed copy of the grievance given to aggreived indicating that the grievance has been logged Table: Contact information Name Title Phone Email Physical Address Winston George Project Roxanne John Coordinator Senior Project Officer 784-45-71746 cenplan@svgcpd.com Nyasha Hamilton Environment Safeguard 784 457 1746 cenplan@svgcpd.com De-Anna Ralph Social Specialist 784-4571746 cenplan@svgcpd.com Financial Complex Baystreet Kingstown Financial Complex Baystreet Kingstown Financial Complex Baystreet Kingstown 16 4.
Screen The SET reviews the complaint and assigns a grievance officer.

The complaint will be forwarded to the Social safeguard officer who will be responsible investigating the claim and liaising with both the aggrieved party and project technical team in order to come to a mutually acceptable resolution.

The complainant will be given a specific timeline for resolving the claim.

Meetings with grievant/complainant will be held, if necessary, in an attempt to resolve the matter.
All meeting must be recorded.

5.

Investigate The grievance officer will investigate the complaint.

This investigation will include, but is not limited to, meetings with the complainant, site visits, meetings and/or interviews with project staff and collection of relevant documentation and other forms of evidence.

For meetings, the deliberations and decision will be recorded on the Meeting Record Form included as Annex 4.
Community representatives or representatives of the complainant will be allowed to sit in on these meetings.

6.
Classification of Grievance (see levels of Grievance) Level 1 When an answer can be provided immediately and/or the safeguards team is already working on a resolution Level 2 One-off event, a member of the SET Team & Project Coordinator can provide a resolution Level 3 if complaint is repeated , or if its High-profile grievances that if not resolved promptly may represent significant risks to the environment or community will be addressed by the Grievance Redress Committee , additionally , any complaint that indicates breach of law or applicable policy/regulation.
Level 4 The Court of Law - Violations of rights, GBV , all grievances that cannot be resolved by the Grievance Redress Committee 17 The table that follows shows the levels of grievance categorization LEVELS OF GRIEVANCES Category Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Description Responsible Personnel When an answer can be provided immediately and/or the safeguards team is already working on a resolution One-off event The complaint is repeated.
Any complaint that indicates a breach of law or applicable policy/regulation High-profile grievances that if not resolved promptly may represent significant risks to the environment or community.

Grievances that the Grievance Redress Committee cannot resolve Unfavourable land acquisition Rape SET Team & Project Coordinator SET Team & Project Coordinator Grievance Redress Committee The Hon.

Attorney General and to the executing agencies.

The Court of Law 7.
The Court of Law 7.

Resolution The resolution at the first tier should generally be completed within 15 working days of receipt of the grievance and notified to the concerned party through the Disclosure Form.

If the grievance is not being resolved within this period, it can be referred to the Grievance Redressal System’s next level.

However, once it is determined that progress is being made towards a resolution, the grievance will be retained at this first level.
The complainant will be informed of this decision, and an estimated time for the resolution of the matter will be given either verbally or in writing.

If the issue cannot be resolved 18 accepted, and acceptance will within 25 working days, it will be transferred to the next level.

Once a resolution has the agreed been complainant’s be obtained on the Disclosure Form.

If the proposed resolution is not accepted the grievance will be escalated to level 2.
Summary Handling grievances •Investigates with PAP •evaluates •convene a meeting with PSC •10 days speciialist Social The complainant will be informed in writing of the measures taken to address the grievance by the Project Manager or the Social Specialist if the complaint is against the Project Manager.

If issues cannot be resolved, they will be referred to the Ministry of Labour for their action and pronouncement.
The Ministry of Labour’s ruling would be the final tier of the grievance mechanism for workers grievance.
ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN WHEN PROCESSING A GRIEVANCE Team PSC •discuss and determine resolution method •identify options •10 days •meet with PAPs •propose solution • solution determined •20 days Social specialist TEAM •implement solution •monitor and follow-up PSC &SST (i) If the complainant does not receive a response or is not satisfied with the outcome within the agreed time, he/she can lodge his/her grievance directly to the Grievance Redress Committee (GRC).
(ii) All grievances concerning non-fulfilment of contracts, levels of compensation, or seizure of assets without compensation shall be made in writing, and addressed to the GRC.

Copies of the complaint shall be sent to the Project Coordinator.

The GRC should issue a response within, 30 business days following communication from the aggrieved.

(iii) Grievances that the Grievance Redress Committee cannot resolve by shall be submitted to the Hon.

Attorney General and to the executing agencies.


Should grievances remain unresolved at this level, they can be referred to the Court of Law.

(iv) The Social Specialist should monitor and follow up on these grievances to enable timely attention.

19 If unresolved, either party may seek redress in the courts of the country.

Parties involved will be advised that they can directly contact the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.
WORLD BANK GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL SERVICE (G RS) The complainant has the option of approaching the World Bank, if they find the established GRM cannot resolve the issue.

It must be noted that this GRS should ideally only be accessed once the project’s grievance mechanism has first been utilized without an acceptable resolution.
World Bank Procedures requires the complainant to express their grievances in writing to the Bank’s office in Washington DC by completing the bank’s GRS complaint form which can be found at the following URL link: http://www.worldbank.org/en/projects-operations/products-and- services/grievance-redress-service#5 Completed forms will be accepted by email, fax, letter, and by hand to the GRS at the World Bank Headquarters in Washington or World Bank Country Offices.
Email: Fax: By letter: grievances@worldbank.org +1-202-614-7313 The World Bank Grievance Redress Service (GRS) MSN MC 10-1018 NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA ADDRESSING GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE The SET team will specify the individual who will be responsible for dealing with any GBV issues, should they arise.
The manifestation of GBV include, but not limited to  Physical violence (such as slapping, kicking, hitting, or the use of weapons);  Emotional abuse (such as systematic humiliation, controlling behavior, degrading treatment, insults, and threats);  Sexual violence, which includes any form of non-consensual sexual contact, including rape;  sending inappropriate videos or pictures with co-workers  making sexual or lewd comments 20  inappropriate and unwanted sexual advances or gestures  making comments about body parts, clothing, or appearance in a sexual manner  inappropriately making physical contact with another person  asking a coworker about their sexual orientation/history, etc  making comments about someone’s gender identity or sexual orientation  being offered an employment benefit in exchange for a sexual favor  Economic abuse and the denial of resources, services, and opportunities (such as restricting access to financial, health, educational, or other resources with the purpose of controlling or subjugating a person); The following are a list of GBV service providers; Marion House Gender Affairs Department If any GBV-related incident occurs, it will be reported through the GRM, as appropriate and keeping the survivor information confidential.
The Project Manager and the Social Specialist should assist GBV survivors by referring them to GBV Services Provider(s) for support immediately after receiving a complaint directly from a survivor.
Specifically, the GRM will only record the following information related to the GBV complaint:  The nature of the complaint (what the complainant says in her/his own words without direct questioning); If, to the best of their knowledge, the perpetrator was associated with the project; and, If possible, the age and sex of the survivor.

  Any cases of GBV brought through the GRM will be documented but remain closed/sealed to maintain the confidentiality of the survivor.
Here, the GRM will primarily serve to:  Refer complainants to the GBV Services Provider; and  Record the resolution of the complaint The GRM will also immediately notify both the Implementing Agency and the World Bank of any GBV complaints WITH THE CONSENT OF THE SURVIVOR.

21 ADDRESSING WORKERS GRIEVANCE All workers will be made aware of employment contracts of the grievance mechanisms that are in place and what those consist of.
Workers will have access to the following grievance information:  The option of either verbal or written grievance complaint.

 Contact information for grievance submission.

 Timelines for grievance response: minimum 24 hours, maximum 3 weeks.

 Grievance forms will be simple and readily available: the workers describe the actual grievance, allow the organisation to track the investigation, reconciliation and remediation steps and be available to all workers.
 The possibility to hold an open and constructive meeting about a grievance with their immediate manager/supervisor.

 The right to appeal to another manager/supervisor against a decision made by their manager/supervisor.

 The workers’ right to be accompanied by a fellow worker or support of her/his own choice when attending the meeting to discuss a grievance.
 Workers may also contact the Labour Department  ADDRESSING CONTRACTOR MANAGEMEN T Project consultants will be managed according to the terms and conditions outlined in their signed contract.
The Project Coordinator will be responsible for: ADDRESSING GRIEVANCE An effective GRM can prevent the grievance from occurring Step 1 Notify the public within the project area of influence (PAI) Step 2 Outline the project proposed boundaries Step 3 Identify component affected ( population, businesses) determine land acquisition issues Step 4 Meet with the project affected persons (PAP) Inform on rights Step 5 Registration of grievance,  Providing oversight for the execution of contracts  Ensuring that all consultants or individuals hired for the project are implementing project activities according to their agreed upon Terms of Reference, which will form part of the contract document.
 Providing a point of contact to all workers, a copy of the workers’ GRM and Code of Conduct to all workers hired as part of the project.
 Monitor contractors who subcontract the supply of materials and equipment to ensure that the conditions and specifications on ESHS aspects are included in its subcontracting agreements, to prevent the use of child labour, forced labour and 22 severe safety issues, which may arise concerning primary suppliers, and consistent with ESS2 ( the Labour Management Procedure of this project) NOTIFICATION ABOUT GRM The following stakeholders will be notified of the GRM as specified herein.
(a) Contractors /consultants /Project coordinator At an inception meeting with the consultant, the Social Safeguards Officer will explain the operation of the GRM, as well as, the other Environmental and Social Safeguard Standards of the World Bank, additionally an awareness of the handling and monitoring GBV (b) General public During the project launch, notification about the project development should be given:- I.

On radio via the public service information II.


Flyer distribution in the project area of influence , and, (c) Workers I.

On the sign post at the project site or wherever project activities are being realized a notification will be displayed with information as to where to direct all grievances.
The notification would state: - Notification to the Public as to how to submit grievance All grievances relating to the development of this project are to be directed to: Project Coordinator <Name of the Project> <Ministry of the Project Coordinator> <Ministry address> <Relevant contact info: telephone, fax, email> EXAMPLE Project Coordinator Caribbean Digital Transformation Project Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning, and Information Technology First Floor Administrative Building, Kingstown 23 Telephone: 784-457-1746 Email – cenplan@svgcpd.com 6.
GOVERNANCE This area provides the general information regarding the governance structure of the CARDTP Grievance mechanism.

THE GRIEVANCES REDRESS COMMITTEE The Grievance Redress Committee would be headed by the Director General of Finance.
The other members of the Redress Committee includes: Deputy Director of Planning; the Project Coordinator, Government technical team ( Director of Information National Technology; Department of Labour; Gender Affairs Department) Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (NTRC), Government Legal Counsel, Officers from the Safeguard team.

Other officers may be required if there is land acquisition issues, destruction of property or crops etc.
Incomplete Figure 1: Composition of Grievance Redress Committee Director General Deputy Director of Planning Rep from NTRC Project Coordinator Safeguard Team Government Technical Staff Government Legal Counsel for CARDTP 24 7.
ROLES OF MEMBERS OF GRC The role of the members of the GRC is outlined below: Director General Responsible for the overall decision of the committee Legal Counsel Provide guidance as it relates to the Law of the Country and the Rights of the Citizens Project Coordinator Government Technical Staff Provide information regarding the project activity affecting the PAP Provide assistance regarding the expert opinions in various areas Safeguard Team Liaison for the PAP , represent the Best interest of the PAP , ensure World Bank Guidelines are followed.
provides explanation for compensation to the PAP, monitor NTRC Officer Provides guidance regarding information technology guidance best options to minimize adverse effects from the project.

25 8. REVIEW AND MONITORING OF GRIEVANCE REDRESS MECHANISM Ensure meaningful review of the performance of the grievance redress process of the project.

The Project Coordinator should ensure that all grievances are addressed within one month.
Best practices:  The best redress for a grievance is to eliminate factors which can lead to grievances  When project sites have been identified, a consultation and information session will be scheduled with residents to discuss the nature of the project and to note and address any concerns on the project development.

 Identify areas susceptible to grievance generation and identify possible opportunities or alternatives.
Recommendations should be made and discussed with the Project Coordinator [where necessary discussion with Project Steering Committee], if the grievance cannot be avoided, then compensation or alternate options should be communicated to the potential aggrieved individual.

 On the determination of the project site, screening should be conducted for boundaries, agriculture produce, and other assets subject to be affected by the project.
When identified, a discussion should be undertaken with the Project Coordinator [where necessary discussion with Project Steering Committee], to minimize and/or eliminate potential grievances.

 Deal with every grievance in a fair, objective and just manner.
 Track grievances ( number received, number resolved)  Issue booklets/pamphlets to the public to educate them on the services available for redress to their grievances, and the correct point of contact ( for example the Project Coordinator, the Ministry of Agriculture for crops and the Lands and Surveys Department for land issues).

 During the project implementation, the Project Coordinator should meet with the SST monthly to ensure that all grievances and compensation are resolved.
26 RESOURCES FOR GRIEVANCE MECHANISM Expropriation and compensation costs for loss of properties for resettlement under the CARDTP are further elaborated in the Resettlement Policy Framework of CARDTP.

All amounts to be awarded by way of compensation under the CARDTP, including interest and costs to be facilitated by the safeguard team, and all other costs, charges and expenses which shall be incurred under the CARDTP, inclusive of Land Acquisition issues shall be paid out of the Consolidated Fund.
IDA cannot be used to finance cash payments in resettlement cases nor the purchase of land Conclusion The grievance procedure provides a simple transparent and timely manner in which concerned residents can voice their opinions or grievances about the nature or development of the project activity.
Each stakeholder must follow the grievance procedure this means that each member of the GRC must be familiar with the documentation and the Social Specialist must ensure that procedure is adhered to via advocacy with the PSIPMU, training of the project committee, the designers and contractors as well as all other personnel immediately involved in the development and implementation of the project.
27 ANNEX 1 Please use capitals: Name: Address: National ID No: Name of Project Site: Level of grievance :-------- Grievance No.

: REGISTRATION OF GRIEVANCE Contact No: E-mail Address: NIS Number: As per the Resettlement Policy Framework of the CARDTP Project , Grievance Redressal, I register my grievance as detailed: “Details of Grievance” (a) Outline reasons why and how you are affected by the project.
(overleaf if necessary) ______________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________ (b) If land or other properties are being affected e.g.
(agriculture) , include copies of relevant documentations you have to support your claim.

List documents: attach copies (a) (b) ( c) (d) Undertaking: I hereby certify that statements made in my Grievance and documentation enclosed are true and complete to the best of my knowledge.

If at any time any part of the Grievance or the documentation is found to be false, I will be liable for any legal action that the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines may deem necessary.
Date: Name of recording Officer: ___________________ (Signature)_____________________ (Signature of aggrieved person) _____________________ (Please print) 28 ANNEX 2 Contractual arrangement MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING FOR THE TEMPORARY USE OF LAND OR OTHER FACILITIES DURING PROJECT CONSTRUCTION M following The between...............................................resident _______________________________.

(the Recipient).
(the Recipient).

agreement been made has of on............................ day ............................................(the of...................……….

and Owner) 1.

That the Owner holds the transferable right of ........................……………………… acres/square feet of land/structure/asset in.........………………………………………………………… 2.

That the Owner testifies that the land/structure is free of squatters or encroachers and not subject to other claims.

3.
3.

That the Owner hereby grants to the Recipient this asset for the construction and development of ................................for the benefit of the villagers and the public at large.

(Either, in case of donation:) 4.

That the Owner will not claim any compensation against the grant of this asset.

(Or, in case of compensation:) 5.

That the Owner will receive compensation against the grant of this asset as per the attached Schedule.

6.
6.

That the Recipient agrees to accept this grant of asset for the purposes mentioned.

7.

That the Recipient shall construct and develop the……………………and take all possible precautions to avoid damage to adjacent land/structure/other assets.

8.

That both the parties agree that the………………………so constructed/developed shall be public premises.

9.

That the provisions of this agreement will come into force from the date of signing of this agreement.
___________________ Signature of the Owner _____________________ Signature of the Recipient Witnesses: 1.

_____________________________ 2.

______________________________ (Signature, name and address) 29 ANNEX 3 Notes: 1 Complainants should be provided with acknowledgement of grievance within 7 days from the date of receipt (the social specialist should insert the number of days that the project has allocated for acknowledgement of grievance, which should vary from 2-7 days.
For simple issues, complaints /queries should be responded to within this allocated number of days).

2 Expected time of redress should be entered in this register.

3 Records of Grievances should always be entered in the GR Register and updated as needed, until the grievance is settled.

4 Grievances should normally be settled within 4 weeks of initial receipt.

If not, reasons for delay should be communicated to the complainant and entered in the Register.
(The social specialist should insert the number of weeks allocated for settling grievances under the project, which should vary from 2 weeks to one month.

The same approach as detailed above in Note 1 should be followed).
Grievance Details Name of sub project Site Date Complaint Received Claim Number Name & Contact Information of Person Making Complaint Date of Acknowledgement of Receipt of Complaint (Issue involve) (informing complainant of response time) / Response to Complaint for Simple Issues Actions Taken to Resolve Complaint How Complaint Resolved Date Complaint Resolved If Not Resolved, Date Sent for Appeal Status of Appeal Date Resolved 30 REFERENCE Laws of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Land Acquisition Act (2009).
World Bank (2008).

A Guide to Designing and Implementing Grievance Mechanisms for Development Projects, Washington, D.C. International Finance Corporation (2009) Good Practice Note Addressing Grievances from Project – Affected Communities : Guidance for projects and companies on designing grievance mechanisms.

World Bank Washington DC SVG National development plan 31