National systems for environmental and social impact assessment (ESIA) are designed to improve the environmental and social performance of projects and support countries’ sustainable development strategies.
This review identifies trends, findings and gaps in global literature focused on national systems for ESIA. It analyses global ESIA literature to inform the World Bank’s response to Borrower country requests for assistance in strengthening national systems for ESIA, provide input to broader World Bank country strategies and identify priority areas for future World Bank engagement.
It also contains recommendations for how the World Bank Group can support Borrower countries, in partnership with civil society, proponents and the public, in efforts to strengthen national systems for ESIA.