European Investment Bank Financed Eco-Economic Shelter Forest Construction for Comprehensive Desertification Control of Horqin Sandy Land in Tongliao City Social Assessment Tongliao Forestry&Grassland Bureau Shanghai Yiji Construction Consultants Co., Ltd. August, 2019 1 CONTENTS 1 OBJECTIVES, PROCEDURE, AND METHODS OF SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT ........................................................................ 1 1.1 OBJECTIVES .................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT STEPS AND TASKS ............................................................................. 1 1.3 METHODS AND TOOLS FOR STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION AND SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT....... 2 2 PROJECT OVERVIEW .................................................................. 9 3 THE BASIC SITUATION OF THE PROJECT AREA ................ 13 3.1 NATURAL CONDITIONS AND ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS ............................................................. 13 3.2 POPULATION OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................... 13 3.3 SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONDITION ...................................................................................................... 14 3.4 FORESTRY OVERVIEW IN PROJECT AREA ....................................................................................... 15 4 SOCIO-ECONOMIC SURVEY IN PROJECT AREA ................... 18 4.1 BENEFICIARY POPULATION IN THE PROJECT AREA ........................................................................ 18 4.1.1 Basic situation of the sample county ............................................................................. 18 4.1.2 Project benefit population............................................................................................. 20 4.2 HOUSEHOLDS IN THE PROJECT AREA ........................................................................................... 21 4.2.1 Basic situation of family households ............................................................................. 21 4.2.2 Family members’ education level ................................................................................. 22 4.2.3 Labor employment situation ......................................................................................... 23 4.2.4 Income and expenditure ................................................................................................ 24 4.2.5 Farmers' forestry situation ........................................................................................... 25 4.3 STATE-OWNED FOREST FARM ....................................................................................................... 25 4.4 FARMERS' ASSOCIATIONS AND LARGE-SCALE AFFORESTATION ..................................................... 29 4.5 PROCESS AND CONCLUSION OF THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC SURVEY ................................................... 34 4.5.1 Farmers' cognition survey results of the project ........................................................... 34 4.5.2 Agricultural technology training survey results ........................................................... 36 4.5.3 Project Environmental Impact Survey Results .............................................................. 38 4.5.4 Socio-economic survey results ...................................................................................... 39 5 PROJECT IMPACT AND MANAGEMENT.................................... 42 5.1 INVOLUNTARY RESETTLEMENT .................................................................................................... 42 2 5.2 PROJECT IMPACT ........................................................................................................................... 42 5.3 PROJECT IMPACT ANALYSIS .......................................................................................................... 43 5.4 INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT ............................................................... 45 5.4.1 Administration in Municipal Level ............................................................................... 45 5.4.2 Administration Agency in County-Level ....................................................................... 47 5.4.3 Administration Agency in the Township Level .............................................................. 47 5.4.4 Project management ..................................................................................................... 48 5.4.5 Project training ............................................................................................................. 50 6 KEY FINDINGS OF STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATIONS......... 56 6.1 IDENTIFICATION OF KEY STAKEHOLDERS ...................................................................................... 56 6.1.1 Stakeholders .................................................................................................................. 56 6.1.2 Key stakeholders ........................................................................................................... 57 6.2 POSITIVE IMPACT OF THE PROJECT ................................................................................................ 58 6.2.1 Impact of the project area group .................................................................................. 58 6.2.2 Impact of special groups ............................................................................................... 59 6.2.3 Impact of the company .................................................................................................. 59 6.2.4 Impact of design, supervision and construction units ................................................... 59 6.2.5 Impact of community village committees in the project area ........................................ 59 6.2.6 Impact of Subproject Offices and Leading Groups ....................................................... 60 6.2.7 Impact of the sub-project flag county government ........................................................ 60 6.2.8 Impact of other government agencies ........................................................................... 61 6.3 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...................................................................................... 76 6.3.1 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 76 6.3.2 Recommendation: ......................................................................................................... 76 7 POVERTY IMPACT ANALYSIS ...................................................... 77 7.1 POVERTY SITUATION .................................................................................................................... 77 7.2 CAUSES OF POVERTY .................................................................................................................... 78 7.3 POVERTY ALLEVIATION MEASURES .............................................................................................. 80 7.4 PROJECTS AND THE POOR .............................................................................................................. 83 7.5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...................................................................................... 84 8 GENDER .............................................................................................. 86 8.1 OVERVIEW OF THE WOMEN'S POPULATION IN THE PROJECT AREA ................................................. 86 8.2 WOMEN'S RIGHTS AND STATUS IN THE PROJECT AREA ................................................................ 87 8.3 WOMEN'S SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC SITUATION IN THE PROJECT AREA ............................................ 87 8.3.1 Education status ............................................................................................................ 87 8.3.2 Employment and housework division of labor .............................................................. 88 8.3.3 Income status ................................................................................................................ 89 8.3.4 Participation in public affairs ....................................................................................... 89 8.4 WOMEN'S SATISFACTION WITH THE STATUS QUO OF FORESTRY .................................................... 89 3 8.5 PROJECTS AND WOMEN ................................................................................................................ 93 8.5.1 Impact of the project on women .................................................................................... 93 8.5.2 Women's Participation in Project Management ........................................................... 94 8.5.3 Women's attitudes and needs for the project ................................................................. 95 8.6 GENDER ACTION PLAN ................................................................................................................. 96 9 ETHNIC MINORITIES ........................................................................ 97 9.1 MINORITY AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN OBJECTIVES AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK ................. 98 9.1.1 Minority and social development plan objectives ......................................................... 98 9.1.2 Legal framework ........................................................................................................... 98 9.2 SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC