Land Administration Project (First Request) | Accountability Console
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Land Administration Project (First Request)

Issues

Consultation and disclosure

Description: Complaint raises concerns regarding inadequate or absent consultation about or disclosure of project information, including project impacts and/or mitigation plans.

Complaints with this Issue: 551

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Due diligence

Description: Complaint raises concerns about inadequate or absent prior investigation of project impacts.

Complaints with this Issue: 489

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Human rights

Description: Complaint frames concerns using the language of human rights violations.

Complaints with this Issue: 71

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Indigenous peoples

Description: Complaint raises concerns about impacts on indigenous or traditional communities.

Complaints with this Issue: 92

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Livelihoods

Description: Complaint raises concerns about impacts on the means by which people make a living, including wage-based income, trade and bartering, agriculture, fishing, foraging, and other natural-resource based means.

Complaints with this Issue: 357

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Sectors

Land reform

Description: Project relates to development of or changes to legal frameworks regarding land tenure.

Complaints in this Sector: 28

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Project

Name: Land Administration Project

Investments: WB P050595

Client:

Support: Loans

Country: Panama

Complaint

IAM: Inspection Panel (Panel)

ID: 53

Date Filed: Feb. 25, 2009

Date Closed: Feb. 4, 2011

Status: Closed With Outputs

Description

The Requesters claim that, in violation of its own policy on Indigenous Peoples, during implementation of the Project the Bank did not take into account the rights and interests of the Pueblo Naso communities, inter alia, because Project officials are trying to impose a “Carta Orgánica” in their territory that is detrimental to their rights, has not been consulted with the indigenous people and lacks legal basis. What follows is a summary description of the situation as depicted in the Request. The Requesters state that the PRONAT is expected to demarcate the territory of the “original people” of the Bocas del Toro Province and that, since its initial implementation, “the Project has been carrying out activities in their Naso Tjër Di territory with the support of the Dobbo Yala Foundation and the then King Tito Santana [of the Naso people] and his team” (emphasis added). The Requesters state that, in this context, Bank financing made possible to agree on a Bill of Law, supported by the Naso People, which would create the Province of Naso Tjër Di. This Bill of Law was submitted to the National Assembly of Panama but was never approved. The Requesters claim that the situation has now changed and PRONAT officials are no longer consulting with the legitimate representatives of the Naso Peoples, and that this has created tensions between the members of the Naso and the Foundation carrying out the consultations. They state that the Bank-financed Project supported a new Bill of Law establishing collective land property in indigenous territories, which was approved by the National Assembly on December 3, 2008 as Law No. 72. According to the Requesters this new Law created “an uncertain regime of regional rezoning”. The Requesters believe that, the Project-supported new law “constitutes a flagrant and very serious violation of the sole and true aspiration of the Naso People—the creation of a juridical framework that would respect the cultural and all forms of politico-traditional life of our Naso people, as well as the natural, archeological and genetic resources in general that we now have and that we have inherited from our ancestors and that we are entitled to: that is the region of Naso Tjër Di.” The Requesters state that they asked PRONAT officials to comply with the World Bank’s Operational Policy on Indigenous Peoples and that, since no reply was received from them, the “Naso people, jointly with Ngobe leaders affected by the delimitation of the adjacent lands,” sent a note to World Bank staff, in December 2007, “requesting an urgent visit to the area.” They add that World Bank staff carried out a field visit in January 2008 where they were informed about the concerns of the Naso Peoples in relation to PRONAT. The Request claims that on a follow-up visit to evaluate PRONAT in March 2008, Bank staff did not meet with the Naso people, who were left waiting for them at the community of Bonyik. The Naso people’s concerns were again expressed, at a meeting held later on in Panama City but so far, the Requesters claim, World Bank staff have not responded to their concerns. In view of the foregoing, the Requesters state that “we are also disappointed with the World Bank, who has not enforced its operational policies on indigenous peoples,” adding that for this reason they are “requesting the Inspection Panel to carry out an indepth and detailed investigation of all that has happened since the arrival of PRONAT in our territory.” The above claims may constitute non-compliance by the Bank with various provisions of the following operational Policies and Procedures: OD 4. 20 Indigenous Peoples OP/BP 13.05 Project Supervision

Complaint Stages

Filing

Feb. 25, 2009

Filing

Status:

Start Date: Feb. 25, 2009

Registration

Feb. 25, 2009 -

March 11, 2009

Registration

Status: Closed With Output

Start Date: Feb. 25, 2009

End Date: March 11, 2009

Eligibility

March 11, 2009 -

June 19, 2009

Eligibility

Status: Closed With Output

Start Date: March 11, 2009

End Date: June 19, 2009

Dispute Resolution

Not Undertaken

Dispute Resolution

Status: Not Undertaken

Explanation: Not offered by mechanism, Dispute resolution was not an option in this case; Not offered by mechanism, Stage is not practiced by mechanism

Compliance Review

June 19, 2009 -

Sept. 16, 2010

Compliance Review

Status: Closed With Output

Start Date: June 19, 2009

End Date: Sept. 16, 2010

Has Compliance Report: Yes

Non-Compliance Found: Yes

Monitoring

Closed With Output

Monitoring

Status: Closed With Output

Start Date: None

Closed

Feb. 4, 2011

Timeline

Documents