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Inclusion of health in impact assessment : A review of current practice in sub-Saharan Africa

Dietler, Dominik LU orcid ; Lewinski, Ruth ; Azevedo, Sophie ; Engebretsen, Rebecca ; Brugger, Fritz ; Utzinger, Jürg and Winkler, Mirko S. (2020) In International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 17(11). p.1-21
Abstract

Natural resource extraction projects, including those in the mining sector, have various effects on human health and wellbeing, with communities in resource-rich areas in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) being particularly vulnerable. While impact assessments (IA) can predict and mitigate negative effects, it is unclear whether and to what extent health aspects are included in current IA practice in SSA. For collecting IA reports, we contacted 569 mining projects and 35 ministries regulating the mining sector. The reports obtained were complemented by reports identified in prior research. The examination of the final sample of 44 IA reports revealed a heavy focus on environmental health determinants and included health outcomes were often... (More)

Natural resource extraction projects, including those in the mining sector, have various effects on human health and wellbeing, with communities in resource-rich areas in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) being particularly vulnerable. While impact assessments (IA) can predict and mitigate negative effects, it is unclear whether and to what extent health aspects are included in current IA practice in SSA. For collecting IA reports, we contacted 569 mining projects and 35 ministries regulating the mining sector. The reports obtained were complemented by reports identified in prior research. The examination of the final sample of 44 IA reports revealed a heavy focus on environmental health determinants and included health outcomes were often limited to a few aspects, such as HIV, malaria and injuries. The miniscule yield of reports (1.6% of contacted projects) and the low response rate by the contacted mining companies (18%) might indicate a lack of transparency in the IA process of the mining sector in SSA. To address the shortcomings identified, policies regulating IA practice should strengthen the requirements for public disclosure of IA reports and promote a more comprehensive inclusion of health in IA, be it through stand-alone health impact assessment or more rigorous integration of health in other forms of IA.

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author
; ; ; ; ; and
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
keywords
Environmental impact assessment, Extractive industry, Health impact assessment, Low-and middle-income countries, Mining sector, Sub-Saharan Africa
in
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
volume
17
issue
11
article number
4155
pages
1 - 21
publisher
MDPI AG
external identifiers
  • scopus:85086365579
  • pmid:32532108
ISSN
1661-7827
DOI
10.3390/ijerph17114155
language
English
LU publication?
no
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
id
a098a1e0-c7ea-4509-9fbf-c1cf0eb49dae
date added to LUP
2023-10-12 12:12:00
date last changed
2024-05-18 04:42:05
@article{a098a1e0-c7ea-4509-9fbf-c1cf0eb49dae,
  abstract     = {{<p>Natural resource extraction projects, including those in the mining sector, have various effects on human health and wellbeing, with communities in resource-rich areas in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) being particularly vulnerable. While impact assessments (IA) can predict and mitigate negative effects, it is unclear whether and to what extent health aspects are included in current IA practice in SSA. For collecting IA reports, we contacted 569 mining projects and 35 ministries regulating the mining sector. The reports obtained were complemented by reports identified in prior research. The examination of the final sample of 44 IA reports revealed a heavy focus on environmental health determinants and included health outcomes were often limited to a few aspects, such as HIV, malaria and injuries. The miniscule yield of reports (1.6% of contacted projects) and the low response rate by the contacted mining companies (18%) might indicate a lack of transparency in the IA process of the mining sector in SSA. To address the shortcomings identified, policies regulating IA practice should strengthen the requirements for public disclosure of IA reports and promote a more comprehensive inclusion of health in IA, be it through stand-alone health impact assessment or more rigorous integration of health in other forms of IA.</p>}},
  author       = {{Dietler, Dominik and Lewinski, Ruth and Azevedo, Sophie and Engebretsen, Rebecca and Brugger, Fritz and Utzinger, Jürg and Winkler, Mirko S.}},
  issn         = {{1661-7827}},
  keywords     = {{Environmental impact assessment; Extractive industry; Health impact assessment; Low-and middle-income countries; Mining sector; Sub-Saharan Africa}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{06}},
  number       = {{11}},
  pages        = {{1--21}},
  publisher    = {{MDPI AG}},
  series       = {{International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health}},
  title        = {{Inclusion of health in impact assessment : A review of current practice in sub-Saharan Africa}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17114155}},
  doi          = {{10.3390/ijerph17114155}},
  volume       = {{17}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}