54 STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT IN POLICY AND SECTOR REFORM
It is not possible to make substantial claims about impact attribution. To say that applying SEA in policy and sector reform has exerted an influence in a particular case is only to say that it is one of several influences. As Carden (2009, 19) aptly puts it: “The thread between cause and effect in a policy decision invariably gets tangled in the coalitions and contradictions of policy processes in any country. This is transparently true of democratic governments, and less transparently, but no less true, of dictatorships and oligarchies.” This report suggests the use of the revised conceptual model of policy SEA when policy makers and practitioners contemplate undertaking SEA in policy and sector reform. The aim of the next chapter is to provide specific step-by-step guidance to practitioners by focusing on “preparatory policy SEA work,” “steps of policy SEA,” and “continuous environmental and social mainstreaming after completion of SEA,” as outlined in the left-hand box of figure 2.3.
Notes 1 At the time this report was being prepared, the government of Malawi asked the World Bank to help prepare a mining technical assistance project to reform the mining sector. This project will include a full policy SEA (SESA). 2 The techniques used to prioritize issues are discussed in chapter 3. 3 See World Bank 2009. 4 See in particular World Bank (2005, 47–49). 5 The impact of institutional and cultural constraints on SEA will be examined later in the chapter. 6 The evaluation framework argues that social accountability initiatives tend to be most effective if they are combined with accountability mechanisms internal to the state, that is, they are institutionalized and systematically implemented by a civil society, state, or hybrid institution (appendix B). 7 This point is explained more fully later in this chapter. 8 The typology of expanded policy capacities, broadened policy horizons, and affected decision regimes is based on a five-year study (2001–05) by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) examining how IDRC’s support for research influences public policy in developing countries. The results of this study have affected how IDRC research projects are designed and evaluated. See Carden (2009).
References Ahmed, K., and E. Sanchez-Triana, eds. 2008. Strategic Environmental Assessment for Policies: An Instrument for Good Governance. Washington, DC: World Bank. Albarracin-Jordan, J. 2009. “Evaluation of the World Bank’s Pilot Program in InstitutionCentered SEA: The Sierra Leone Mining Sector Reform Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment (SESA).” Unpublished report, World Bank, Washington, DC. Annandale, D. 2010. “Evaluation of the World Bank’s Pilot Program on InstitutionCentered SEA: The West Africa Minerals Sector Strategic Assessment (WAMSSA).” Unpublished report, World Bank, Washington, DC.