The proposed Special Relief Grant of Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars (US$500,000) is the Bank’s contribution to the efforts to mitigate the effects the oil spill on the shoreline of Mauritius. Indeed, more than 1,000 tons of fuel have leaked into the Indian Ocean from the bulk carrier vessel, MW Wakashio, which ran aground on the south-east coast of Mauritius on 25 July 2020. The oil spill has resulted in health, conservation and economic challenges. The general population remains at ongoing risk of severe illness from petroleum and its associated pollutants. The Grant will be used to acquire critical services and expertise to mitigate the effect of the oil spill. The Bank’s identified areas of intervention are an integral part of the short-medium term actions that have been agreed upon by the Development Partner Group (DPG). DPG has identified the following critical areas of need: (i) Supporting the response teams on site including the National Guard, Special Mobile Forces and other actors; (ii) Environmental, economic and social impact response in order to protect sensitive natural, recreational, and cultural areas and resources; mitigate collateral harm; and facilitate environmental recovery, (iii) forensic and claims to support related legal issues, and (iv) Coordinating and strategic planning. The implementation period for this emergency operation will not exceed 6 months from 15 th September 2020 to 15th March 2021.

The objective is to contribute to the on-going efforts by the Government of Mauritius, Development Partners, the private sector, local and international NGOs and other actors to mitigate the impact the recent oil spill. The Bank’s relief assistance will support the GoM’s clean-up efforts and help stop the ecological and economic damage to the island nation.

SILUNGWE Yappy Gregory
y.silungwe@afdb.org 

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

You can submit an information request for project information at: https://www.afdb.org/en/disclosure-and-access-to-information/request-for-documents. Under the AfDBÕs Disclosure and Access to Information policy, if you feel the Bank has omitted to publish information or your request for information is unreasonably denied, you can file an appeal at https://www.afdb.org/en/disclosure-and-access-to-information/appeals-process 

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF AfDB

The Independent Review Mechanism (IRM), which is administered by the Compliance Review and Mediation Unit (CRMU), is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who have been or are likely to be adversely affected by an African Development Bank (AfDB)-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the IRM, it may assist you by either seeking to address your problems by facilitating a dispute resolution dialogue between you and those implementing the project and/or investigating whether the AfDB complied with its policies to prevent environmental and social harms. You can submit a complaint electronically by emailing crmuinfo@afdb.org, b.kargougou@afdb.org, b.fall@afdb.org, and/or s.toure@afdb.org. You can learn more about the IRM and how to file a complaint at: https://www.afdb.org/en/independent-review-mechanism/