Social analysis sourcebook: incorporating social dimensions into Bank-supported projects

Abstract

This sourcebook presents a conceptual framework for social analysis and describes how task teams can incorporate its principles into project design, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation. It is not a policy statement and does not prescribe any mandatory requirements. Instead, it provides guidance on good practice to improve the quality and impact of social analysis by harnessing it to examine the social opportunities, constraints and likely impacts of Bank-supported operations, based on the lessons learned during the past five years. The sourcebook describes a systematic approach that places social analysis in the service of poverty reduction by focusing directly on equity and social sustainability to improve social development outcomes. The term social analysis has multiple meanings associated with the word social. Some people equate it with the social sectors, others to the West European notion of social policy, and still others to the adverse social impacts of development that require mitigation. None of these is sufficient to capture the social dimensions relevant to the wide range of investment operations supported by the Bank and other multilateral financial institutions. This sourcebook describes an approach that is open-ended in terms of social development outcomes and yet practical. It offers five entry points to understand social complexities. These point out the parts of society most relevant to investment projects and suggest methods for studying them. This allows the task team to draw up a realizable plan of action with the confidence that they have overlooked nothing critical. In addition to this sourcebook, the social development department is preparing supplementary sectoral guidelines for social analysis that will be issued separately.