35366 - Eaton Uganda II

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Environmental & Social Review Summary

Project Number

35366

Company Name

EATON TOWERS UGANDA LTD

Date ESRS Disclosed

Aug 26, 2014

Country

Uganda

Region

Africa

Last Updated Date

Jun 12, 2021

Environmental Category

B - Limited

Status

Completed

Previous Events

Approved : Jan 23, 2015
Signed : Jun 9, 2015
Invested : Jul 9, 2015

Sector

Mobile Telephony

Industry

Telecommunications and Technology

Department

Gbl Infrastructure & Natural Resources

Project Description

This project involves a proposed new loan by IFC of up to $18 million toward a total project cost of up to $124 million. The project involves restructuring existing debt financing of Eaton Uganda (or “Eaton” or “the company”) increasing the exposure from its Senior Lenders by US$36 million to fund its upcoming acquisition of Airtel Uganda towers. This will help the company to expand its network in Uganda and is expected to increase its profitability. Eaton has agreed to acquire 575 existing tower sites from Airtel Uganda, which will bring the total number of Eaton towers in Uganda to 1,291.

Overview of IFC's Scope of Review

The review of this proposed second investment in Eaton Uganda consisted of a follow-up visit by IFC staff to the company’s facilities in July 2014 to meet with and interview management of Eaton, and to have an updated look at operational activities. IFC staff also appraised environmental and social (“E&S”) and technical information submitted by Eaton Uganda, including an Annual Monitoring Report covering operations in 2013.

IFC’s previous investment in Eaton Uganda (IFC project 32038) was disclosed on April 16, 2012. Based on review of E&S supervision reports for these projects, including the 2013 AMR, the current E&S performance of the company is considered to be Satisfactory.

IFC’s appraisal for the proposed new investment considered Eaton’s E&S management policies and procedures and gaps between them and IFC requirements. Where necessary, corrective measures intended to close those gaps, within a reasonable period of time, are summarized in the paragraphs that follow. Through implementation of those measures, the project is expected to be designed and operated in accordance with Performance Standard objectives.

E & S Project Categorization and Applicable Standard

While all Performance Standards are applicable to this investment, IFCs environmental and social due diligence indicates that the investment will have impacts which must be managed in a manner consistent with the following Performance Standards. If IFCs investment proceeds, IFC will periodically review the the project’s ongoing compliance with the Performance Standards

PS 1 – Assessment and Management of Environmental and Social Risks and Impacts
PS 2 - Labor and working conditions
PS 3 - Resource Efficiency and Pollution Prevention
PS 4 – Community Health, Safety and Security
If IFC’s investment proceeds, IFC will periodically review the the project’s ongoing compliance with the Performance Standards

The key E&S issues associated with the project are in continued implementation of Eaton’s E&S management system, and applying that system to newly acquired towers.

As there are no major adverse environmental or social impacts expected to result from the proposed project, and it is possible to avoid or mitigate any limited adverse impacts that might result, the proposed investment has been classified as a Category B project according to IFC’s Procedure for E&S Review of Projects.

PS5, PS6, PS7 and PS8 are not considered applicable given that no armed security guards are expected to be used; most sites will be leased, and any purchased ones are expected to involve a willing seller; no operations are expected to require biodiversity conservation or any substantial management of living natural resources; no Indigenous Peoples are expected to be affected; and no important cultural heritage is expected to be involved.

Environmental and Social Mitigation Measures

Stakeholder Engagement

Eaton will continue to recognize the importance of community engagement, and to comply with IFC Performance Standards on disclosure and community engagement. The company will continue to implement procedures developed under IFC’s first investment for prior disclosure of any Eaton investment to local communities, through notices in local newspapers, and to address concerns expressed by local community members, consistent with IFC standards.

Broad Community Support

**Information on IFC's Policy and Performance Standards on Environmental and Social Sustainability can be found at www.ifc.org/sustainability

IFC supports its clients in addressing environmental and social issues arising from their business activities by requiring its real sector clients to set up and administer appropriate grievance mechanisms and/or procedures to address complaints from Affected Communities in relation to environmental and social issues arising from IFC's clients' business activities. Since 2012, IFC's Financial Intermediary clients applying the Performance Standards are required to develop External Communications Mechanisms to receive and review inquiries or complaints from any interested party regarding the E&S risks and impacts of their operations.

For IFC projects that are active or under consideration, individual(s), or their authorized representative(s), who allege they have been or will be adversely affected by E&S risks or impacts arising from IFC's clients' business activities, may submit a complaint to IFC directly for consideration. When receiving an E&S complaint, IFC engages with complainants and works with its clients to find solutions to E&S concerns as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Complaints can be submitted to IFC online at www.ifc.org/escomplaints or by email to EScomplaints@ifc.org.

IFC complaint response is separate from and complementary to IFC’s clients’ project level grievance mechanisms and IFC’s Independent Accountability Mechanism (CAO). Lodging a complaint directly with IFC does not, at any time, restrict access to CAO.

Affected communities have unrestricted access to the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO), the independent accountability mechanism for IFC and MIGA. CAO facilitates the resolution of complaints related to IFC and MIGA projects and sub-projects, undertakes reviews of IFC’s and MIGA’s environmental and social compliance, fosters public accountability for their commitments, and enhances the environmental and social performance of IFC and MIGA.

Independent of IFC and MIGA management and reporting directly to the IFC and MIGA Boards of Executive Directors, CAO helps resolve issues raised about the environmental and social impacts of projects through a neutral, collaborative, problem-solving approach via its Dispute Resolution function. It also reviews IFC’s and MIGA’s compliance with environmental and social policies, assesses related harm, and recommends remedial actions through its Compliance function. Additionally, CAO provides advice to IFC, MIGA, and their Boards to enhance environmental and social sustainability performance and minimize the risk of harm.

Complaints may relate to environmental and social harm regarding any aspect of the planning, implementation, or impact of a project or sub-project, and can be made by any individual, group, community, entity, or other party affected or likely to be affected by the environmental or social impacts of an IFC- or MIGA-financed business activity.

Complaints can be submitted by any of the following methods:

Online form: available at https://www.cao-ombudsman.org/
Mail/Hand Delivery to: 2121 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA
Voice mail: +1 202 458 1973
Email: cao@worldbankgroup.org
SMS, WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal: +1 202 650 2627

CAO receives and addresses complaints in accordance with the CAO Policy, which can be accessed at: https://www.cao-ombudsman.org/policies-guidelines.

This Environmental and Social Review Summary (ESRS) is prepared by IFC to disclose its findings and recommendations related to environmental and social considerations regarding potential investments. Its purpose is to enhance the transparency of IFC's activities. For any project documentation or data included or attached herein, whether prepared by the project sponsor or otherwise, authorization has been given for public release by the project sponsor. IFC considers that this ESRS is of adequate quality for release to the public, but has not necessarily independently verified all of the project information therein.
It is distributed in advance of IFC Board of Directors' consideration and may be periodically updated thereafter. Board dates are estimates only and this document should not be construed as presuming the outcome of the Board Directors’ decision. The following ESRS is disclosed in accordance with IFC's Access to Information Policy (AIP).

The map is for illustrative purposes and does not imply the expression of any opinion on the part of the World Bank, concerning the legal status of any country or territory or concerning the delimitation of frontiers or boundaries. Country borders or names do not necessarily reflect the World Bank Group's official position. In some cases, available project location information is limited to the country of the project's activities. Locations are approximate.

Projects

Environmental & Social Review Summary

Project Description

Overview of IFC's Scope of Review

E & S Project Categorization and Applicable Standard

Identified Applicable Performance Standards

Environmental and Social Categorization and Rationale

Environmental and Social Mitigation Measures

Environmental and Social Mitigation Measures

PS 1: Assessment and Management of Environmental and Social Risks and Impacts

PS 2: Labor and Working Conditions

PS 3: Resource Efficiency and Pollution Prevention

PS 4: Community Health, Safety and Security

Stakeholder Engagement

Stakeholder Engagement

Local Access of Project Documentation

Broad Community Support

IFC's Determination of BCS

Press-Release

Related SII

Similar Projects

Information on E&S Complaints and Grievance Mechanisms

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