[PDF] Community Development Toolkit - CommDev

Mining and community developmentcontinuedEase approvals processes and help resolvedisputes: Better relations with localgovernments, NGOs and communities thatcan help ease approvals processes forproject development, expansion and closureand help resolve disputes and avoidsituations in which local groups might hinderor even prevent mining from taking place.Reduced closure costs and liabilities:Resulting from better management of socialrisk, better management of communityexpectations and reduced communitydependency on the operations.Efficiency and productivity of local supportservices: Greater efficiency and productivityowing to the availability of improved localsupport services.Local workforce: Improved education andskill levels of the local workforce enablingcompanies to reduce their dependence onexpensive expatriates and increase localknowledge in operations – knowledge thatcan save time, effort, frustration and money.Employees: Improved employee recruitment,retention and engagement.In other words, community developmentis a reciprocal process. By supportingcommunities to develop themselves in asustainable manner, a mining and metalscompany is simultaneously helping its ownbusiness to succeed. Mining operations andtheir community development programsshould be viewed as a mutually beneficialpartnership process to achieve sustainability.Good practice principles forsustainable community developmentThe most effective and sustainablecommunity development activities reflectsome basic principles:Adopt a strategic approach: Developmentactivities at the operational level are linkedto long-term strategic objectives for thecompany and are also aligned with existingand future community and/or regionaldevelopment plans. Recent IFC guidance oncommunity investments advises companiesto move beyond well-meaning actions tostrategic community development programs,and suggests parameters for filteringprograms. 6Ensure consultation and participation:Local communities are actively involved inall stages of project conception, design andimplementation, including closure andpost-closure. Include a diversity ofcommunity members, ensuring that womenand vulnerable and/or marginalized groupsare included. Ensuring that communities areenabled to participate fully in the decisionsmade about the allocation of benefits thatflow from projects will offer the best chancefor community development programsustainability. This will be achieved byconcerted stakeholder engagementactivities that demystify the mining andmetals process, empowering communitymembers to understand the motivations aswell as project plans of the companies sothat they can make informed choices.MINING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT6 IFC, Strategic Community Investment: A Good Practice Handbook for Companies Doing Business in EmergingMarkets, Washington DC, June 2010.Community Development Toolkit17