- For the potential investment in three microfinance institutions by a consortium of investors, Environics was commissioned by Lorax Capital Partners (LCP) Egypt to carry out an Environmental and Social Due Diligence (ESDD) Assessment to assess the institutions’ performance related to Environmental and Social (E&S) management as well as the implementation of Client Protection Principles (CPPs).
- ESDD was undertaken in compliance with the applicable Environmental and Social (E&S) standards and Client Protection Principles as follows:
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- Applicable national environmental and social legislation
- IFC Performance Standards on Environmental and Social Sustainability, 2012
- SMART Client Protection Principles, 2009, including the following:
- EBRD Environmental and Social Policy Guidelines and Performance Requirements (PR), 2014,
- European Investment Bank (EIB) Environmental and Social Standards, 2009; and
- Environmental and Social Management System for Lorax Capital Partners, 2019.
- The scope of work comprised the following activities:
- Document Review: included a review of relevant national legal framework, IFI requirements, as well as companies’ documents and information provided after the site visit.
- Site Visit: included companies’ site visits, meetings and interviews with relevant personnel and data collection;
- Assessment: E&S and CPP practices implemented by the three companies were assessed based on interviews and document review. In addition to evaluation of potential gaps/ weaknesses which could have environmental or social liabilities; and
- Reporting: ESDD report was developed including limitations, and finding results addressed separately for each company, as well as an Environmental and Social Action Plan (“ESAP”) describing the actions to be implemented to achieve compliance with the Reference Framework.
