Phnom Penh, 03rd November 2022, Open Development Cambodia (ODC) hosted a Technical Workshop on Environmental Data and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). This workshop was supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through Family Health International (FHI 360) under Cluster Anchor Grant from the Civil Society Support (CSS) Project and Heinrich Böll Stiftung (HBS) under Promoting Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for a more Transparent and Responsive Environmental Governance in Cambodia Project. The workshop aims to:
- Raise awareness of the SEA among CSOs, citizen journalists, indigenous people, and researchers.
- Discuss and share the current statue of the SEA in Cambodia
- Identify the potential of integrating SEA and its implication in environmental and natural resource management.
The event brought together 32 participants (11 females) from the Ministry of Planning (MoP), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Family Health International (FHI 360), other international and local non-governmental organizations (NGOs), community-based organizations (CBOs), journalists, researchers, and indigenous peoples (IPs).
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA)
Mr. THY Try, Executive Director/Editor-in-Chief of Open Development Cambodia, and Mr. MATHEW Baird, Director of the Asian Research Institute for Environmental Law, have highlighted the differences between EIA and SEA as well as some procedures of SEA. Development projects typically promote economic development, but they should not neglect or ignore the impact on the environment and society. SEA incorporates environmental considerations into policies, plans, and programs (PPP). SEA is used to estimate and evaluate the consequences of specific development PPP. It means that the project is not there yet. The government will decide whether the project could be implemented or invested in that area. It usually happens before doing the EIA. In contrast to the commonly used EIA, which occurs after the decision-making process, SEA occurs before all important decisions, which offers significant advantages. It was initially promoted to fill gaps in project-based EIA due to the limitation of EIA to address the environmental policy integration at the strategic levels, particularly during policy and plan-making. The capacity of EIA to account for the strategic consequences of subsequent projects in a single area is limited. As a multi-stage process focusing on overall sustainability, SEA takes a proactive approach to all development activities, identifying key obstacles before final approval. Public participation is the key point, and it must be included in both SEA and EIA processes. EIA and SEA complement each other. It does not mean that we can ignore one of them.
Mr. THY Try also demonstrated a video about the UNECE SEA Protocol, which was created by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) as part of the EU-funded program “Greening the Economies in the European Neighborhood.” The protocol establishes clear and transparent procedures for incorporating environmental and health concerns into national development plans, programs, and legislation.
Spatial Plan and its Integrated Landscape Approach
Mr. SENG Teak, Country Director of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), presented one of the significant implementations called the “Mondulkiri Provincial Spatial Plan.” He highlighted the 2040 scenario-based analysis for the province divided into three scenarios: conservation, green economy, and business-as-usual. The first scenario, “conservation,” could keep the forest cover in Mondulkiri up to 85% by mainly protecting all forests inside and outside the protected areas (PA) and using non-forest areas for agricultural and development areas. The second scenario, “green economy,” only protects the forest in the PA, whereas the forest outside the PA and non-forest areas are used for agricultural development areas. By doing so, the forest cover in the provide will remind 53% by 2040. In the last scenario, “business-as-usual” will not enforce forest protection, and the forest cover will remain at only 34%. In brief, the second scenario is used for the spatial plan for Mondulkiri and will be adopted shortly.
The spatial plan is critical because it has the potential to provide effective development principles and tools for informed decision-making and spatial development processes to promote balanced territorial development. The planning could be done by following significant steps, including establishing a multi-stakeholder platform, building a shared understanding, collaborative planning, implementing, monitoring for adaptive management and accountability, and shaping the context.
The potential of SEA Integration and its Implication on Natural Resource Management
H.E. NOR Vanndy, Director of the Economic Statistics Department, National Institute of Statistics, Ministry of Planning (MoP), and Mr. TEP Sakmakara, Deputy Chief of Office of the Department of Economic Statistics, MoP, highlighted how the ministry addresses the environmental data and issues in the development plan.
Integration of environmental issues in the development plan is the initial stage, and the country should do it. Environmental issues are considered to include in long-term and medium-term development plans such as National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP) and Sector Development Plan. It was observed that the integration of the environmental issues in the previous NSDP (2014-2018) is less and not paid much attention. Therefore, the government has considered and added more environmental issues to the new NSDP (2019-2023). Chapter 4 (4.42) of the NSDP (2019-2023) “Promote the inclusion of strategic environmental assessments in the decision-making process, policies, plans, and legal documents to ensure the sustainability of the environment and natural resources.”
Other Stories
Indigenous women seek direct help and support from all stakeholders on the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples 2022
The United Nations marks 2022 as this year’s International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples under the theme “The Role of Indigenous Women in the Preservation and Transmission of Traditional Knowledge.” This theme recognizes how important and central women are in the longevity and survival of indigenous communities. Indigenous people living in Cambodia are 250,000 to 400,000 (51% of women), accounting for 2-3% of the Cambodian population. More than 155 indigenous communities have received official recognition from the Ministry of Rural Development (MRD). On 09 August 2022, Cambodia Indigenous Peoples Alliance (CIPA), Cambodia Indigenous Women Association (CIWA), Cambodia Indigenous Youth Association (CIYA), Cambodia Indigenous Peoples Organization (CIPO), Highlanders Association Ratanakiri, Converse Indigenous Peoples Languages Organization (CIPL), Organization for the Promotion of Kui Culture (OPKC), Indigenous People for Agriculture Development in Cambodia (IADC), Indigenous Rights Active Members (IRAM), and MIPN, in collaborating with Klahaan, Women Peace Makers, Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP), and Open Development Cambodia (ODC) with the supports from United Nations Human Rights, VOICE, Diakonia, USAID, and FHI 360 celebrated the 18th International Day of the World’s Indigenous People in Cambodia. A total of 138 participants (approximately 90 females) joined the event. The indigenous groups opened the celebration with the indigenous traditional prayer as well as displayed their traditional materials, clothing, and vegetables. The celebration also included a traditional Kui dance and singing. This event was not only commemorating the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples but also exhibiting indigenous peoples\' culture and beliefs. Role of indigenous women in the preservation and transmission of traditional knowledge In terms of culture and tradition, indigenous people have a strong relationship with natural resources, and women have knowledge of the land and natural resource conservation. The community offers their prayers to the woodland, forest, and mountain spirits. Women in the field must pass on the knowledge to the next generation to continue recognizing and protecting the forest. There must be a forest in the village, and it should be maintained to ensure food security as well as spiritual beliefs. Indigenous people teach the next generation about how the importance of forests. Currently, the livelihood of the indigenous people is not the same as before. If young indigenous people don’t involve with the elders, their land, forest, culture, livelihood, and language will be in a greater lost from generation to generation. The indigenous people’s agriculture is not destroying the forest as some say indigenous people cut the forest for agriculture. The forest loss is not the indigenous people’s fault; it is because of the development project that cleared the land. The community has been doing agriculture for many years before, but there is not any great forest loss. Challenges of indigenous women on the land and forest protection The indigenous people show their enthusiasm for protecting their land and forestry. They think that this is their obligation to protect the forest for their lives and their generation, who they love from the bottom of their heart. It is not only for the indigenous people but also for all Cambodian people. The front line of land and forest protectors are mostly women because most of the men only do their specific work. Although there are NGOs, CBOs, indigenous communities, etc., that support them, indigenous women still face several difficulties and problems. The family somehow does not encourage or support them to involve in those activities due to unexpected encounters with the company and government, which could harm them or the whole family. When there is a land dispute with the company, the communities might be hurt and get involved in the trial. The indigenous people claim that they receive injustice solutions or decisions from the court. For example, they could get into prison because they do the farming on their own land, where the land has been given to the company without their agreement. The local authorities do not act or find solutions for them, and they just keep silent. Therefore, the community has no choice. They could only pray to the spirits. Joints statement of the Cambodia Indigenous Peoples Alliance (CIPA) Women have an important role in indigenous societies, leading, managing, and protecting collective cultural identities, traditions, land, and natural resources for indigenous groups and communities. Indigenous women who take the lead in land and natural resource protection are frequently subjected to social threats, discrimination, and unfair legal application, which can result in lawsuits, imprisonment, family separation, poverty, a lack of personal security, and legal restrictions or prohibitions on land rights. CIPA, as the representative of all indigenous communities, calls on all indigenous women to continue their efforts to strengthen their capacity, network, and voice in all trends and mechanisms to ensure their full participation, leading, preserving, transferring traditional knowledge, and sustaining indigenous peoples\' development in accordance with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. CIPA also seeks direct help and support from national and international organizations, governments, and courts for indigenous women. Simultaneously, indigenous peoples press the Ministry of Justice and judges to strengthen law enforcement and acknowledge legal rights that protect indigenous peoples\' rights to ensure that they, as victims, receive a fair trial.
Cybersecurity Training
On 04th July 2023, Open Development Cambodia (ODC) conducted training on cybersecurity for the CSS-cluster members and their networks. The training course aims to raise awareness of the cluster member on cyber security as well as digital security including password management, safe internet browsing, email security, and mobile security. We also provided participants with the essential skill to cope with issues related to cyberattacks and safeguard personal data and accounts. There are 32 participants (12 females) joining the training from ADHOC, NEP, YEA, Epic Arts, CHRAC, SVC, Bophana Center, CENTRAL, LoveIsDiversity, and other networks. To assess capacity, all trainees are required to complete the pre-test. Mr. NGET Moses, Digital Security Consultant, asked each trainee to introduce themselves, their position, organization, and their expectations of the training at the start of the training in order to understand their background and needs. He started the lesson on “password management” by providing an overview of passwords, creating strong passwords, and password managers. The questions were discussed around the topic with actual examples. He continued to the next lesson “safe internet browsing” which highlighted the threats and how to do safe browsing and virtual private network. Email security and mobile security are also very important for trainees. In this session, the trainer demonstrated how to secure mobile devices and emails. The session concludes with a summary of the lessons and a post-test to assess the trainees’ understanding. The evaluation was also requested in order to improve training. One of our trainees, SENG Sokcheat, a member of LoveIsDiversity express, “I think this training is very important as it helps us protect our privacy from online scammers. Also, everyone who is using social media, internet, or other online services should join this training.” The training was conducted under the Learning Platform (LP) project which was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through Family Health International (FHI 360) as part of the Civil Society Support (CSS) Project.
Strategic environmental assessment in Mekong countries
Open Development Cambodia (ODC) was thrilled to host a panel discussion on “Strategic environmental assessment (SEA) in Mekong countries” at the 42nd Annual Conference of the International Association for Impact Assessment: Resilience through impact assessment and Leadership on 10th May 2023 at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching, Kuching, Malaysia. Representatives from Cambodia’s Ministry of Environment’s EIA department, SEA, and environmental law experts participated in our discussion to share their experiences and insights on SEA progress, development, and best practices in the region. Mr. THY Try, ODC’s Executive Director, started the discussion by explaining what ODC is and what we are working on. The discussion will provide an update on the progress and development of SEA in Cambodia and opportunities to learn from experts in the field. During the session, three important questions were discussed: the current legal framework, key research gaps and priorities for advancing SEA, international cooperation and knowledge sharing, and opportunities and challenges to SEA development and implementation in Mekong countries. Because there are still limitations in environmental impact assessments (EIA) that have been used to evaluate the impact of investment projects on the environment, the establishment and implementation of SEA are required for significant investment. EIA also has varying effects on the projects. Cambodia’s development and economy have benefited greatly from investment inflows. Aside from the contribution to the country’s growth rate, the environmental impacts can be seen at both the micro and macro levels, which should be carefully considered. The micro level focuses on the correlations between the attraction of investment by firms and the cost of the environment, whereas the macro level focuses on the government’s and international community’s concern about whether foreign investment will degrade the ecological environment of host countries or not. The Law on Environmental Protection and Natural Resource Management, the National Environmental Strategy and Action Plan (2016-2023), Sub-decree No. 72 on the EIA Process, and the Environmental and Natural Resources Code are all SEA-related regulations in Cambodia. The code could make SEA a requirement for strategic planning in a variety of industries. The process of preparing a SEA report must take special consideration and provide opportunities for vulnerable people, ethnic minority groups, and indigenous peoples to participate. The monitoring results will be made available to all ministries and institutions, as well as the general public. Although the SEA process was initiated in the late 1980s by high-income countries such as the United States and European states, this tool is receiving increasing attention in the Greater Mekong sub-region. In Cambodia, the SEA initiative was only launched in the mid-2010s, with the publication of some pilot industry-specific reports, such as one on sustainable tourism. The SEA of Cambodia’s strategic planning framework for fisheries 2010-2024 was also published as a result of the development partner’s commitment. The Cambodian SEA path, like that of other countries, began with an emphasis on EIA. Currently, ODC is assisting the Ministry of Environment’s Department of EIA in developing the SEA guideline. The department highlighted the development of the SEA technical guideline and the SEA on sand mining in Cambodia. Based on the discussion during the session, the guidelines will be conducted within the next three years based on the timeframe provided. This is an important step towards ensuring that our natural resources are used sustainably. The experts have concerned with the management plan and responsibilities of the SEA’s lead agency. It would be sustainable if the SEA’s leadership is the line ministry. Because SEA and EIA are not the same things, and each SEA report is unique, stakeholders must be trained and experienced in SEA practice. Cambodia should make an effort to develop this policy because its role is critical and it has many opportunities and value in the ASEAN region. We applaud the ministry’s commitment to promoting environmentally responsible practices and eagerly await the results of this SEA. During the discussion, the participants also shared updates and the progress of the SEA implementation in Mekong countries.