Involuntary Displacement and Resettlement — Policy and ... - CEPA

livelihoods of the affected people beyond compensation. These guidelinesand measures were built with the idea that at the end of the planned activity,the lives of the affected people will be better off, both in terms of economicand socio cultural, living standard terms.It is in that context, that Cernea (1997) 5 views that “the primary objective ofany induced involuntary resettlement process should be to preventimpoverishment and to reconstruct and improve the livelihood of resettlers”. Inhis Impoverishment Risks and Reconstruction (IRR) Model, among the eightrisks of resettlement, Cernea identifies“joblessness” as a risk of resettlement.It occurs both in rural and urban displacements, due to loss of land andservices. Usually the period of unemployment does not end with physicalrelocation. In essence the IRR model emphasises the management of theserisks before the project starts, during the project implementation and after thecompletion of the project to encourage faster recovery.The risk of joblessness after resettlement arises from the fact that establishingemployment and livelihoods take time and investment. Here, there is a greaterneed to view the resettlement process beyond the point of compensation andto make it a process that helps the actual recovery of the affected people. TheIRR model provides input at two levels. At policy level, these risks can bemitigated when making resettlement policies, and at the strategy level, greaterthought can be given to the resettlement plans of specific projects, to bedeveloped in consultation with all stakeholders in the resettlement. Providingland for land loss, shelter for shelter loss and re-establishment of communitynetworks and resources are ways in which risks of unemployment can beaddressed.The IRR model further specifically recommends that provisions on employmentpromotion/creation should be a part of the resettlement plan, so that it canincrease the awareness of the risk and stimulate methods to increase employmentoptions.Along with this, the IRR model also proposes four activities that can increaselivelihood restoration of affected people in instances of DIDR: a) Createemployment opportunities for the affected people and people in the adjacent5Michael Cernea, “The Risks and Reconstruction Model for Resettling Displaced Populations,”World Development, Vol. 25(10), 1997.46