Profit over SDGs?

With the Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development (APFSD) happening this March 27 to 30, development actors will discuss important matters on the progress towards Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the region. As the world copes with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic recessions, debt distress, conflict, human rights violations, and the climate crisis, achieving the SDGs seems very elusive to countries in Asia-Pacific. 

The  SDG Progress Report  reveals how the overall regional progress towards the Agenda 2030 stands at 14.4 percent and will only be achieved in 42 years. While there have been inroads in achieving some goals, there has been stagnation and regression in most. While development projects aim to contribute in achieving these goals, there are numerous instances when projects further put marginalized communities and sectors at risk due to approaches that pursue profit over people's lives, livelihoods, rights and environment.

This can be seen in the cases of the SMART Project in Maharashtra state in India and the Dhaka Environmentally Sustainable Water Supply Project in Bangladesh (DESWSP), where financing and approaches from international finance institutions (IFIs) do not genuinely contribute in achieving sustainable development for all. Rather, these projects have paved the way for the corporate capture of development, at the expense of the marginalized and the environment.

Corporate capture of development processes

While SDG 17 pursues partnership for the goals, it can be seen how market-based and private sector solutions are given prominence. The project narrowly underwent meaningful consultations with affected farmers and communities. From the assessments done by  Vikas Andhyayan Kendra (VAK) , the bank and the local government did not consult the affected communities and CSO partners throughout the project duration. Meanwhile, the SMART Project, under a public-private partnership scheme, promoted the incorporation of smallholder farmers in value chains,  contracting their produce with large multinational corporations  like Reliance, Amazon, Walmart, Mahindra Agro, Pepsico, Tata Rallis, Big Basket, Patanjali, Tata Chemical, among others. Private financing was also heavily mobilized for the project.

Despite claiming to foster partnership between farmers and agri-business entities, and socioeconomic progress in the state,  official   documents  from the World Bank show otherwise in terms of assuring that farmers reap its benefits coming from marketization schemes employed in farming processes and outputs. With this, a total of 23,500 farmers were negatively impacted by this initiative.

From the World Bank's  recent report , data shows how, despite insisting on the effectivity of market-based solutions, there was no increase in the net price realization at producer level. This means that farmer produces remain to be very low in value despite the supposed market stimulations and farming assistance postured by the bank.

Inclusion of farmers in receiving important agricultural assets or services was also not met since the last report. This is another reflection of the lack of support to farmers despite the project claiming to be an assistance program to a predominantly agricultural state.

Farmers and their communities were also displaced from their land. The construction of the  Samruddhi Expressway project  which aims to link Maharashtra districts to Mumbai, and is connected to the SMART Project, has paved the way for unjust land acquisition. The 8,311 hectares of land acquired for the construction of the project were forcibly taken from these farmers with inadequate compensation in the districts of Aurangabad, Nasik, Nagpur, Wardha, Amravati, Washim, Buldana, Jalna, and Ahamadnagar. In addition, farming facilities for the SMART Project itself were also constructed on farmlands which also contributed to the farmers' loss of land and livelihood. Recently, the farmers of Maharashtra have  protested and marched to Mumbai  to demand fair compensation for their produce, provision of subsidies and call for redistributive land reform.

For the Dhaka Environmentally Sustainable Water Supply Project (DESWSP), the project employed minimal mechanisms to include CSOs and affected communities in meaningful consultations throughout the project implementation. Grassroots organizations were left out in the process of deciding on the frameworks and processes involved in the project. CSO participation was limited to submitting complaints through the bank's Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM). Under the supervision of the ADB, the organizations also saw little involvement of CSOs and minimal field consultations, especially in terms of project planning, procurement and monitoring.

While the  Gender Action Plan of the ADB  sets a target of making sure that at least 40% to 50% of the participants are women, based from on-ground assessments of the Center for Participatory Research and Development, these consultations were merely limited to project activities when in fact, communities, especially women and other marginalized groups should be involved from the level of project planning.

Without inclusive and meaningful consultations, households have been displaced with inadequate compensation. In addition to households, temples, cultivated land and shops that are essential to people's religion, culture and daily life, have also been affected by the water project. Despite promising to give BDT 100,000 (approximately USD 950) to affected families, they only got half of this.

Putting profit over people and the planet

The SDG Progress Report raised alarm on the continued regression in SDG 13 (Climate Action), as the region remains to be disproportionately impacted by the impacts of the climate crisis. The regression on SDG 13 is also due to the large-scale infrastructure projects and unsustainable business activities being pursued, which results to massive environmental impact.

In Maharashtra, the project has brought about hazardous waste spills, soil erosion, landslide risks, flooding and irrigation problems. This worsens the state's exposure to extreme weather conditions, with  11 out of 26 districts in the state are considered to be highly vulnerable to climate-related agricultural distress while another 14 districts are moderately vulnerable . See the map below.

In effect, the climate crisis also negatively impacts crop production and food insecurity are also rampant in many districts impacting Goals 1 (No poverty) and 2 (No hunger). In fact,  78% of Maharashtra households suffered food insecurity in 2022  due to climate-related events.

Meanwhile, the Dhaka Environmentally Sustainable Water Supply Project caused water, land, noise and light pollution. Wastewater has spilled into the local water body and also into the Meghna River. Chemical and oil spills from the construction has made water unsanitary and agricultural land barren, impacting the lives and livelihoods of affected communities near the project site. The noise and light pollution caused by the project has impacted people's daily lives, threatening their safety, health and well-being. These also worsens the climate crisis disproportionately faced by the marginalized.

In both the SMART Project and DESWSP, corporate capture enforced through private financing and loans from IFIs only worsen the social conditions of the marginalized such as farmers, rural and urban poor, women, workers, fisherfolk, and promote the degradation of the environment. Despite safeguards and project monitoring, the likes of the ADB and the World Bank persist in implementing policies that are  weak in asserting the rights of the people . Many times, these banks are even in cahoots with giant corporations whose goals align with market-oriented processes and solutions.

Gearing development in this direction minimally supports the fulfillment of the SDGs. Reliance on private finance and onerous loans from IFIs do not allow for democratic ownership of projects since they only reinforce lack of dialogues and inclusive partnerships with communities. This contributes to lack of regard to the contextual needs and demands of marginalized groups in the region. In effect, other aspects of peoples lives - their livelihood, homes, rights, and environment are severely affected as well causing deeper poverty and injustice.

The SMART Project and the DESWSP are reflections of how the Asia-Pacific region is  faring in its achievement of the SDGs . While development projects are supposed to contribute to positive development outcomes, without the partnership of development actors with the communities and civil society, there will be further regression on the goals and worsen the crises the region faces. As profit is prioritized over people's rights and welfare, the corporate capture of development will only contribute to widening inequalities and worsening environmental degradation.

As the world draws nearer to 2030, it is imperative that development must be anchored on a people-centered, rights-based and climate-resilient approach. This can only be achieved by addressing structural barriers to development and forwarding peoples' democratic ownership and participation in development processes.