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500
1000
1500
2000
2500
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Millions €
17
38
49
72 70
43
18
AFD Group Corporate Responsibility
2011 report
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How to read through this report
Interactive table of contents
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Contents
Letter from the AFD Group Chief Executive
Part 1. AFD Group’s Environmental, Social and
Governance Reporting
Part 2. Our Approach to Environmental, Social and
Governance Responsibility
Foreword
Environmental, Social and Governance Responsibility
Policy Goals
Operating Risk Management
Internal Organization for Environmental, Social and
Governance Responsibility
Part 3. Our Internal Governance, Corporate Ethics
and Anti-Fraud and Corruption Controls
Part 4. Our Stakeholders
Stakeholder descriptions and interactions
Stakeholder Engagement
Improvement Plan for 2012-2016
Partie 5. Our Funding Operations
Corporate Responsibility in External Operations
AFD Group’s Climate Strategy: An Exemplary Approach
Partie 6. Our Work Force
Our Commitment to Our People
Avenues to Improvement
2011 Human Resources Outcomes
Improvement Plan for 2012-2016
Partie 7. Environmental Responsibility
in Our Internal Operations
Managing AFD Group’s Environmental Footprint
Avenues to Improvement
Improvement Plan for 2012-2016
Partie 8. Our Method
Inspired by the Global Reporting Initiative Framework
Report Scope and Boundaries
Reporting Period
GRI Indicator Index
Abbreviations
4 75
87
104
5
9
25
29
50
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The AFD Group strategy for 2012-2016 sets more strin-
gent requirements for our organization – requirements that
push it to be exemplary in all its work. We must be as
demanding of ourselves as we are of our aid beneficiaries,
particularly with regard to the environmental, social and
governance responsibility issues so central to our activity.
The development of our new strategy reaffirmed our com-
mitment to an ambitious corporate responsibility policy,
one that we will soon submit for third-party validation.
Environmental, social and governance issues remain
essential concerns when we consider development aid
operations for funding. For example, our Group has a cli-
mate-change strategy that stipulates that 50% of our fun-
ding must combat atmospheric greenhouse gas effects.
More generally, our aid interventions successfully disse-
minate good practices, particularly good labor and gover-
nance practices – two of the essential components of
genuinely sustainable development.
Internally, we will further formalize our protocols to enhance
corporate responsibility practices. We will consolidate our
Letter from the AFD Group Chief Executive
reporting, broaden its scope, and improve its measure-
ments. These aims drove our preparation of this first
annual report dedicated to corporate responsibility, as we
anticipate more rigorous reporting regulations for public
institutions in years to come.
In the wake of several years’ growth and expanded hiring,
AFD Group’s strengthened commitment to corporate res-
ponsibility is more essential than ever. In addition to mee-
ting accountability obligations, corporate responsibility
measures contribute to work force cohesion and shared
values. In the same vein, we have also revised our code
of business ethics to strengthen and adapt it to the needs
of a larger organization.
I want to thank Jean-Loup Feltz, a close adviser, who died
suddenly at the beginning of 2012. He championed a more
evolved and aware sense of corporate responsibility for
the Group, and through his technical and human gifts, he
succeeded in showing us that this step was essential – a
major affirmation of AFD Group’s identity.
Dov ZERAH
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AFD Group’s Environmental, Social and Governance Reporting
1. his inaugural Environmental, Social and Gover-
nance Report embodies a key commitment of
the AFD Group: responding to stakeholders’
demands for transparency, responsibility and
accountability. In accordance with French and European
Union rules for nonfinancial reporting, this report has a
dual purpose: (1) providing visibility on the Group’s internal
and external operations, and (2) clearly demonstrating the
Group’s ongoing progress in managing social, environmen-
tal and operational risks.
TPhoto Ademe ©
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1•
1. For financial statements, see Reference Document section of the AFD Group 2011 Annual Report.
2. Etablissement public industriel et commercial, or EPIC.
3. More information on the Global Reporting Initiative is available at www.globalreporting.org
4. The Charter of the United Nations is available at www.hrweb.org/legal/unchartr.html
5. The 8 fundamental conventions include: freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining, the elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labor, the effective abolition of child labor, and the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation. Complete texts are available on www.ilo.org/global/standards/introduction-to-international-labour-standards/conventions-and-recommendations/lang--en/index.htm
AFD Group’s EnvironmEntAl, sociAl AnD GovErnAncE rEportinG
The AFD Group consists of the Agence Française de Déve-
loppement (AFD), France’s bilateral development finance
agency, and the Société de Promotion et de Participation
pour la Coopération Economique (PROPARCO), a majo-
rity-owned (59%) subsidiary focused on private-sector
development. Both entities are based in Paris and work
in developing and emerging countries and France’s over-
seas provinces. AFD and PROPARCO use various financial
and other instruments – grants, loans, general budget
aid, guarantees, equity participations, studies, research,
and so forth – to meet aid beneficiaries’ needs. In the
lowest-income countries of sub-Saharan Africa, the Group’s
funding centers on grants and highly concessional loans
with subsidized interest rates and terms. Middle-income
developing and emerging countries and France’s overseas
provinces, as well as companies in foreign countries and
the overseas provinces, benefit from loans (often unsub-
sidized) and other types of financing.
Together, AFD and PROPARCO account for 99% of the
Group’s assets and consolidated net income1. Under
French law, AFD is both a public industrial and commercial
institution2 and a specialized financial institution subject
to bank regulation and risk controls. AFD Group strives
to be an exemplary public entity, spreading good social,
environmental and governance practices with its develop-
ment activities. This report adheres to the Global Repor-
ting Initiative’s G3.1 Guidelines to identify key corporate
responsibility issues and indicators; these are summarized
in the index at the end of this report3.
In conceiving and writing this report, AFD Group drew upon
France’s international commitments to human rights, as
expressed in the Charter of the United Nations (UN)4,
and to rights of workers as outlined in the “fundamen-
tal” conventions of the International Labour Organisation
(ILO)5. The Group also draws upon the Organisation for Eco-
nomic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) guidelines
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1•presented to AFD’s and PROPARCO’s respective board of
governors in 2012. The policy’s scope and strategic fra-
mework covers both AFD and PROPARCO – not least in its
labor relations aspects, since employees of both entities
share a common AFD employment contract, comply with
the same rules, and enjoy the same work force protections.
Because AFD Group regularly borrows in capital markets
to finance its development work, it publishes full financial
statements and disclosures in an annual report known as
the “registration document,” as required by French banking
regulations and endorsed by the French Financial Markets
Authority11. Since 2006, the registration document has
contained all nonfinancial information required by French
for multinational enterprises6, the principles espoused
by the Global Compact7, of which AFD is a member, and
those embraced in the Sustainable Development Charter
for French Public Institutions and Enterprises8. Finally,
the report also owes its inspiration to France’s National
Sustainable Development Strategy for 2010-139 and the
International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 26000
social responsibility standard10.
While this is the first report solely dedicated to social
and environmental responsibility and governance, the
AFD Group instituted its first five-year social and environ-
mental responsibility policy in January 2007. That policy
is currently being updated for 2012-2016, and will be
6. Full text of 2011 edition available at www.oecd.org/dataoecd/43/29/48004323.pdf
7. The United Nations Global Compact centers on 10 universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption. Full text is available at www.unglobalcompact.org/AboutTheGC/TheTenPrinciples/index.html
8. Charte française du développement durable des établissements publics. The charter is available in French at www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/3_-_Charte_DD-2.pdf
9. The full text is available in English at www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/NSDSp60.pdf
10. Additional information about the voluntary ISO standard for social responsibility is available at www.iso.org/iso/iso_catalogue/management_and_leadership_standards/social_responsibility/sr_discovering_iso26000.htm
11. Autorité des marchés financiers, or AMF.
AFD Group’s EnvironmEntAl, sociAl AnD GovErnAncE rEportinG
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1•law12 about the Group’s impact on its work force, its com-
munity and society at large.
Overall, AFD Group’s approach to corporate responsibility
covers two dimensions of its activity:
•Internal operations of AFD’s and PROPARCO’s headquar-
ters in Paris, their 70 field offices in foreign countries and
French overseas provinces, and AFD’s corporate university,
the Center for Economic, Financial and Banking Studies
(or CEFEB)13, in Marseilles, France.
•External operations for development project financing
and execution.
AFD Group’s chief executive, Dov Zerah, has long empha-
sized that internal and external operations require constant
progress in corporate responsibility; this report is but one
manifestation of that emphasis. In November 2010, he
named a special report coordinator for this long-term mis-
sion, who in turn led a working Group in monthly meetings
that examined cross-cutting social, environmental and
governance issues. This has refined the conception and
furthered the operational reach of the Group’s corporate
responsibility policy, principles and goals – subjects cove-
red in detail by this first overview. This full AFD Group 2011
Environmental, Social and Governance Report is available
for download from the Internet on www.afd.fr. A summary
also appears in the print version of the AFD 2011 Annual
Report, available to interested parties upon request and
particularly useful for those without easy access to the
Internet. ■
AFD Group’s EnvironmEntAl, sociAl AnD GovErnAncE rEportinG
12. The laws are known as “new economic rules” (nouvelles régulations économiques, or NRE) and “Grenelle Environment II,” which were updated in 2010.These laws aim to reduce French greenhouse gas emissions by 75% by the year 2050. In particular, they foresee a series of measures to encourage “ecological urban planning” that, rather than requiring excessive land and energy resources, uses new technologies in new buildings and more efficient heating systems in older buildings. This would entail the comprehensive application of low-energy-consumption building standards by 2012, along with the construction of energy-positive buildings that generate more energy than they consume.
13. Centre d’études économiques, financières et bancaires, or CEFEB.
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Our Approach to Environmental, Social and Governance Responsibility
2. Foreword
he AFD Group began developing its corporate
responsibility approach in 2005, and formula-
ted its guiding principles in 2007. Until now,
the Group has primarily communicated its
social, environmental and governance efforts to interes-
ted parties in the financial markets, where it raises funds
through bond issues. The Group’s corporate responsibility
TThe « A Cleaner World Without Cans » operation in New Caledonia
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2•
reports were included in the registration document section
of its annual financial and activity report, and published
online by the French Financial Markets Authority.
This inaugural iteration of the AFD Group’s dedicated
Environmental, Social and Governance Report covers the
Group’s 2011 activities. It is intended for a wider range
of readers than the registration document and addresses
all of the AFD Group’s stakeholders – investors and regu-
lators, but also peer institutions, nongovernmental organi-
zations, citizen’s groups, policy makers, aid beneficiaries,
employees, French citizens and those of the countries
where the Group operates. This report affirms the Group’s
commitment to accountability, progress and dialogue –
as befits a public institution pursuing the public interest
– while demonstrating that good governance must now
include social and environmental imperatives.
Environmental, Social and Governance Responsibility Policy Goals
AFD Group promotes sustainable and equitable develop-
ment in developing and emerging countries and in France’s
overseas provinces, always striving to improve how it inte-
grates these concerns in its business conduct. To this end,
AFD Group created a policy for environmental and social
responsibility and governance for its internal and external
operations, which was validated by its board of governors
and implemented in 2007.
The following precepts and goals guide AFD Group’s envi-
ronmental, social and governance responsibility policy.
They draw on the values, principles and rules for res-
ponsible and equitable development that underpin major
international charters and conventions, as cited in the
previous section, AFD Group’s Environmental, Social and
Governance Reporting.
The AFD Group’s eight guiding principles and goals are
as follows:
•Focusing external and internal operations on people
– improving their living conditions and well-being, while
respecting the fundamental rights and social and cultural
diversity of all the Group’s collaborators.
•Affirming the three-pronged need for economic growth,
wealth redistribution, and reduction of both long-term unem-
ployment and globalization’s work force impact (as defined
by the Group of Twenty in Cannes in November 201114 ).
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14. A description of the G20 package of measures is available at www.g20.org/Documents2011/11/Cannes%20Action%20plan%204%20November%202011.pdf.
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2•
•Meeting the obligation to use public funding efficien-tly
by ensuring the quality of the Group’s practices and results,
and by integrating lessons learned through regular project
performance evaluations.
•Promoting transparency and stakeholder engagement
by improving public access to information about opera-
tions, while complying with confidentiality rules and data
privacy laws.
AFD Group’s corporate governance policy helps its per-
sonnel integrate these principles into the Group’s strate-
gic programs, thereby fostering other key aims: ensuring
greater public information about these issues, promoting
related know-how internally, reducing the Group’s eco-
logical footprint, and strengthening oversight of these
concerns in all Group-financed aid operations.
The policy spurs managers and employees in all 70 field
offices and AFD’s headquarters to design and execute
corporate responsibility action plans. These plans are
overseen by a corporate responsibility steering committee,
which includes several key positions: the Group’s chief
human resources officer, responsible for labor relations;
the chief administrative officer, responsible for internal
All require specific measures to achieve sustainable
and equitable development that alleviates poverty and
inequality.
•Preserving climate, renewable natural resources, and
ecosystems crucial for economic and social development;
focusing the greatest efforts on environmental remediation
and climate change mitigation and adaptation, in order to
decrease the vulnerability of the poorest.
•Contributing financing for cultural heritage preserva-
tion and appreciation, in accordance with the 2002 World
Summit for Sustainable Development in Johannesburg:
this summit defined culture as the fourth pillar15 of sus-
tainable development, alongside social, economic and
environmental support.
•Adapting aid interventions to the needs of fragile situa-
tions in countries affected by violent conflicts, creating
effective conditions for dispute resolutions that restore
social cohesion and peace.
•Giving priority to partnerships and joint actions that
exploit the wide range of professionals and organizations
dedicated to sustainable and equitable development, while
promoting good social, environmental and governance
practices among these partners.
15. More information is available on http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/documents/WSSD_POI_PD/English/POI_PD.htm.
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2•
Operating Risk Management
Financial and Economic Risk Management
AFD Group senior management takes many steps to ensure
adequate attention and resources to the management of
financial and economic performance risks. These steps
are detailed in the Group’s strategy for 2012-2016, and
align with the means-and-objective agreement the Group
signed with the French government, covering AFD Group’s
cooperation and development mandate. As a credit insti-
tution, the Group is regulated by French banking laws and
oversight, both of which mirror European Union and other
international directives; therefore, the Group’s capital
management is subject to the Basel III Accords. The pre-
ceding Basel II Accords rested on three precepts: (1) mini-
mum bank capital requirements, measured by a liquidity
ratio, (2) improved tools for capital adequacy assessments
by bank supervisors, and (3) more extensive disclosure
requirements to help enforce market discipline. Following
the 2007 financial crisis, Basel III16 introduced reforms,
extending some Basel II rules while upgrading others to
strengthen the financial system. One of the reforms calls
environmental impacts; the director of external rela-
tionships and partnerships, responsible for transparency
in communications; and the respective chief operating
officers of AFD and of PROPARCO, responsible for deve-
lopment aid projects financed by the Group.
AFD Group’s chief executive has emphasized environ-
mental, social and governance concerns and risk mana-
gement by appointing a special coordinator to champion
the policy and to set up a performance evaluation system.
This system uses key responsibility indicators that mea-
sure progress at two levels – management effectiveness
and impacts –the better to manage environmental, social
and governance risks in internal and external operations.
These indicators are explained in detail in the following
parts of this report.
As part of AFD Group’s 2012-2016 strategic plan, and
under the aegis of the special coordinator, the 2012-
2016 corporate responsibility action plan will progressi-
vely strengthen these performance indicators, measuring
improvements in the relevance and execution of internal
and external actions.
16. The Group of Governors and Heads of Supervision announced higher global minimum capital standards in September 2010.
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2•
The Group’s aid operations address priority issues – areas
where, compared with peer entities, AFD Group is particu-
larly well-situated to act. This attention to leveraging the
Group’s strengths underpins the Group’s 2012-2016 stra-
tegy. Every three years, on average, senior managers define
priority intervention frameworks for each country, working
with their embassies, economic services, backgrounds
and apparent needs.
As part of its risk-management exercise, AFD Group’s senior
management examines the economic impact of every aid
operation it finances; it also conducts post-project perfor-
mance evaluations,. An additional tool for performance
benchmarking arises out of strong partnerships with peer
institutions. These partnerships foster an ongoing dialogue
that identifies areas for improvement within the Group.
Peer reviews also foster sharing of good practices and
other means to bolster internal and external operations.
Such feedback also helps the Group better target aid fun-
ding, making its interventions more effective.
for a gradual phasing-in of higher minimum capital require-
ments, beginning 1 January 2013. Other Basel III reforms
increase capital buffer and liquidity requirements. AFD
Group vigilantly follows international regulators’ changes
to prudential rules, even though the Group’s lending and
other activities are less sensitive to some types of credit,
counterparty, model and market risks.
The Group’s management of its capital requirements
includes a systematic review of all risks and regular
reviews of the Group’s lending and investment portfolios,
particularly at fiscal year end. AFD created an executive-
level Risk department in 2010, and PROPARCO will create
a better-staffed Commitments department in 2012: both
departments will use improved risk management tools and
other means to secure their respective assets.
AFD Group’s board of governors analyzes financial accounts
and budgets each year, paying special attention to organi-
zational efficiency by examining its cost-income ratio. The
board watches over the stability of the Group’s financial
performance and gauges its outcomes in the international
context, where the work of AFD and PROPARCO depends
on the work of private sector entrepreneurs, suppliers and
business services providers.
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2•
These measures control access to the premises, prevent
fire and water damage, and account for seismic risk in
buildings, with upgrading or changing of premises as requi-
red. At the Paris headquarters, senior management has
put a designated employee in charge of safety to better
highlight and address these issues.
Environmental Risk Management
AFD and PROPARCO manage and mitigate environmen-
tal risks, both internally and in development aid opera-
tions, via project selection standards, as well as tools
that identify projects’ impacts on climate change and
natural resources. These efforts are guided by a 2012-
2016 climate strategy and an internal environment stra-
tegy, approved by AFD’s board of directors in 2011 and by
PROPARCO’s board in 2012. The climate strategy applies
to external aid operations, while the internal environment
strategy aims to reduce the Group’s own environmental
footprint. The strategies promote the following environ-
mentally-friendly and “pro-climate” practices for external
and internal operations:
The Group manages human-resources and other risk as
follows:
•Senior management has ensured containment of cer-
tain labor risks, especially those related to supplemen-
tary pensions. In 2008, AFD Group’s in-house pension
system was reformed and incorporated into a collective
fund managed by a French public industrial and commer-
cial entity, the National Provident Fund17 ; present-day
workers pay into this fund for benefit-drawing pensioners.
•Employee remuneration is adjusted on a by-country
basis using a grid that calibrates pay, benefits and wor-
king conditions to local laws. In addition, AFD Group has
its own in-house benefits regime that complements the
public one and enhances its employees’ pension rights,
social insurance and other benefits.
•Senior management initiated a program to increase
internalized expertise and skills, rather than relying on out-
side consultants; this program will be pursued rigorously
under the 2012-2016 strategy.
•To ensure the physical safety of staff members and
visitors, a risk-management team has established rules
and tools for use at headquarters and in the field offices.
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17. Caisse Nationale de Prévoyance, or CNP.
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2••Internally, AFD Group has a dedicated employee char-
ged with measuring the environmental impacts of AFD,
PROPARCO and CEFEB internal operations. AFD Group
conducts environmental audits and carbon footprint calcu-
lations to monitor the impacts and improve the reliability
of measurement indicators.
•Senior management has defined and implemented action
plans to reduce the environmental and carbon footprints
of the Group’s internal operations. Priority actions include:
(1) reducing business travel by using video conferencing,
(2) reducing water and paper consumption, (3) developing
plans to increase energy efficiency and use renewable
energy sources, (4) offsetting carbon emissions by purcha-
sing carbon credits to achieve carbon neutrality, (5) ove-
rhauling waste management systems, and (6) pursuing a
responsible and environmentally-aware purchasing policy.
•Internal communication raises employee awareness
about sustainable development and encourages “green
behavior” in all areas.
•Dedicated environmental and social support units within
AFD and PROPARCO provide technical assistance and
advice to their respective development project teams.
These support units also identify financial levers that will
encourage borrowers or aid beneficiaries to improve their
own environmental performance.
•Another unit dedicated to pro-climate support works
with project teams to systematically measure the carbon
footprint of funded projects, using a robust and conser-
vative in-house emissions measurement tool.
•Senior management has committed to long-term pro-
climate project funding, aiming to invest 50% of AFD’s
annual commitments in foreign countries, and 30% of
PROPARCO’s, in projects with positive climate impacts
that also meet poverty alleviation and economic develop-
ment goals
•When reviewing projects for funding, project teams use
“positive impact on the climate” as an additional selection
criterion, while also considering the Group’s geographic
priorities, the target countries’ economic development
levels, and their climate concerns as addressed in their
own national development plans and policies.
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2•
•The Group promotes diversity through commitments to
gender equality and greater opportunity for the disabled in
hiring and management, as per employment agreements
signed with workers in 2007 and again in 2011.
•Since 2007, the Group’s occupational safety and health
office has improved working conditions through programs
for alcohol-abuse prevention and workstation manage-
ment. In 2012, the health and safety office will focus on
preventing work-related stress and psychological problems.
•AFD’s chief executive ensures that a senior manager
attends each committee meeting of employee and union
representatives, in order to encourage dialogue and main-
tain high quality labor relations. A Group-wide meeting in
Paris provides an opportunity for senior management to
meet with employee representatives from headquarters,
as well as directors of field offices and employee repre-
sentatives (from one-third of the field offices each year).
Social Risk Management
AFD Group cultivates and sustains a diverse work force;
it promotes nondiscriminatory behavior and respect for
human rights among its employees, its aid beneficiaries
and its suppliers. The Group also works to reduce inequity
in the communities in which it operates, and takes into
consideration environmental, social and governance fac-
tors in both selecting projects for funding and their imple-
mentation methods. These practices align with the Group’s
commitment to environmental and social stewardship, to
prudent risk management, and to serving the best inte-
rests of aid beneficiaries.
Labor Initiatives
•In conjunction with an increase in project commitments,
AFD Group has redoubled efforts to strengthen its human
capital, in particular by sharing know-how, optimizing its
field offices through new regional hubs, and increasing
recruitment among skilled local nationals for permanent
in-country positions.
•The Group has improved operations in field office
networks by unifying all human resources supervision
and helping all employees plan and train for future career
paths.
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2••The Group’s code of business ethics will be revised
in 2012; it covers conflicts of interest and other ethical
issues and describes behaviors that do not comply with
laws or internal rules.
•The Group performs an internal audit of personnel
management procedures in field offices and at headquar-
ters. These procedures promote fair employment practices
and address issues related to employee discipline and
fraudulent behavior.
•The Group has long guaranteed freedom of associa-
tion and has negotiated a collective bargaining agreement
specifically for its employees. Over time, labor relations
have been professionalized; discussions about achieving
union-type goals in funding, materials and policies have
not reached a formal agreement but remain ongoing.
Management scrutinizes the promotions of employees
who represent the trade union to ensure they are not dis-
criminated against.
•In its external aid operations, AFD Group performs due
diligence in agreements signed with borrowers and aid
beneficiaries, insuring respect for the rights of indigenous
peoples and preventing child labor, forced or compulsory
labor, and work in prohibited sectors.
Human Rights Initiatives
•In 2011, for internal and external operations, AFD Group
instituted the use of filters that preclude companies vio-
lating human or workers’ rights from bidding on AFD or
PROPARCO contracts.
•AFD Group began modernizing its purchasing depart-
ment in 2011, and will include human rights concerns
when training buyers in administrative procedures, monito-
ring suppliers, and so forth. The management of tenders
has been automated and follows standard European Union
operating procedures.
AFD Group signed a commitment to nondiscrimination
on the basis of disability in 2011, and will sign further
nondiscrimination pacts on the basis of disability and
age in 2012. Compliance with these commitments has
entailed creating an online job application that publishes
all openings and serves as the single point of entry for
candidates.
•Internally, AFD Group uses committees and a work
council that equally represent employees and manage-
ment; these manage staff promotions and employee com-
plaints, grievances and appeals.
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Community Initiatives
•AFD Group environmental and social support units pro-
vide technical assistance, advice and support to borrowers
and aid beneficiaries so that they may improve their own cor-
porate responsibility performance. The support units also
identify financial levers to encourage such improvements.
•AFD Group works to avoid corruption and misappro-
priation of funds in beneficiary countries through internal
rules and operating procedures, contractual provisions
agreed with funding recipients, and inspections that must
be made or verified by its own agents.
•The Group avoids anti-competitive practices. For
example, aid is “untied,” meaning that funding does not
depend on whether recipients use it to buy goods or ser-
vices from French suppliers; all tenders awarded as part
of a funding agreement are formally open to competition.
•AFD Group also produces multi-purpose knowledge that
informs and shapes public policy, particularly on topics of
interest to the countries and the communities it serves.
The Group shares its knowledge about shared priorities
such as sustainable development, agricultural production,
food security, infrastructure construction, education and
health, particularly in low-income Sub-Saharan African
countries. It also shares its knowledge about the climate
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and the environment, private enterprise and entrepre-
neurship, urban development and neighborhood renewal,
focusing on middle-income and emerging countries.
•As a good corporate citizen, AFD Group complies with
all laws and regulations in France and in the countries
where it carries out development projects. It ensures
compliance through internal controls, internal audits, and
internal and project monitoring, alongside supervision by
regulatory agencies such as the French Court of Auditors,
the General Inspectorate of Finance, national banking
supervisors and others.
Funding Initiatives
•AFD Group ensures that the grants, subsidized or mar-
ket-rate loans it commits to foreign countries and France’s
overseas provinces properly match each locality and each
type of intervention. The Group achieves this by directly
verifying the intervention subject and applying an interest
rate grid that allows for zero, fixed, variable or capped
interest rates.
•The Group further ensures the integrity of its allocations
by managing the social, environmental and governance
risks of projects prior to funding approval, during imple-
mentation, and after project completion.
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Internal Organization for Environmental, Social and Governance Responsibility
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CEO
Decides
Management Board
Informs and proposes
Executive Board
Prepares decisions
Helps the group processadvance through discussion,
analysis and proposals
Corporate ResponsibilityWorking Group
Represents all divisionsfrom AFD, Proparcoand the field offices
Management CommitteeMember in charge of
coordinating corporateresponsibility policies
Leads and coordinates
Corporate responsibilitygoals
Promote a safe, healthy,diverse, talented workforce
Control environmentalimpacts of headquarters
and field officeenvironmental impacts
Control environmental,governance and social risksin external aid operations
Strengthen AFD Group’sbrand image and acceptance
among stakeholders
AFD Communications andPartnerships Division
in charge of transparencyand developed-world
partnerships
Human Resources DivisionIn charge of internalsocial responsibility
IT and BuildingDepartment
In charge of internalenvironmentalresponsibility
Proparco Operations DivisionIn charge of corporate
responsibility forexternal aid operations
AFD Operations Division In charge of corporate
responsibilityfor external aid operations
Definition andimplementation
Contribute to internal andexternal discussions about
and acceptance ofcorporate responsibility
Chief Strategy Officerin charge of strategic
plans
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Internal Social Responsibility
The AFD Human Resources division director and her team
are responsible for ensuring internal labor practices and
overseeing work force relations, via two offices and three
departments.
Work Force Management and Budget Office18
This office provides employee-related administrative repor-
ting and supports the Human Resources division’s stee-
ring, budgeting and budget monitoring efforts.
Industrial Relations Office19
This office participates in meetings with work force repre-
sentatives, prepares and organizes union negotiations,
monitors employment law and compliance, and provides
employment-related legal advice.
Department of Training, Continuing Education
and Human Resources Development20
This department ensures employee skills development,
implements training and education programs, and improves
human resources processes.
Management Coordination
In November 2010, the AFD Group’s chief executive officer
appointed a special coordinator for environmental, social
and governance responsibility policy to formulate a cohe-
rent corporate responsibility program. In 2011, the chief
executive prioritized reporting on the subject, setting the
stage for this inaugural report; the corporate responsibility
program will be finalized in 2012.
Dedicated Working Group
After six months of preliminary work, on 23 June 2011 the
special coordinator and the AFD Group Executive Board
decided to create a dedicated corporate-responsibility
working group. Since then, its fifteen members from AFD,
PROPARCO divisions and some field offices have met on
a monthly basis to discuss practical, cross-functional
topics, and to work on issues related to the Group’s cor-
porate responsibility approach. Each working group mem-
ber relays information about this work and offers relevant
training to other employees in their respective divisions
and departments.
18. Pôle Contrôle de Gestion Sociale et Budgétaire, or PGS.
19. Pôle Relations Sociales, or RSO.
20. Division Formation Continue et Développement des Ressources Humaines, or FCD.
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21. Division Gestion des Carrières et Recrutement, or GCR.
22. Division Administration et Rétributions, or ADM.
Internal Environmental Responsibility
An individual reporting to the AFD Group chief adminis-
trative officer and working in the Effective Professions
Office acts as the point person for internal environmen-
tal responsibility issues. The cross-functional office sets
up organizational systems and procedures for all Group
departments.
The head of internal environmental responsibility helps
define the Group’s environmental policy and strategy and
coordinates carbon emission-reduction projects for inter-
nal purchasing, waste management, power consumption,
and so forth. He pursues five principal tasks:
•Using diagnostic tools to examine the environmental
and carbon footprints of AFD Group headquarters buildings
and field offices, measuring the Group’s greenhouse gas
(GHG) emissions and managing its ecological footprint.
•Proposing and initiating GHG emission reduction pro-
jects.
•Offsetting the Group’s emissions by purchasing carbon
credits, aiming for carbon-neutral operations.
Career Management and Recruiting Department21
This department analyzes internal needs for specific
skills, recruits new hires, oversees employee inductions,
manages careers and job mobility, and provides advice
and support to managers and other employees to prevent
work-related psychological risks.
Administration and Remuneration Department22
This department manages employee remuneration and
benefits, related administrative and legal matters, work
force protections, pension administration and oversight,
and the Human Resources division information system.
The department maintains employee records in all ope-
rating countries and manages employee travel, pension
plans, and health, life and disability insurance. It also facili-
tates geographic mobility through individual work contracts,
provides tax advice, and manages expatriations, worker
protections, benefits, and employee personal insurance
and savings plans.
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23. Département des Appuis Transversaux, or DAT.
24. Division d’Appui Environnemental et Social, or AES.
25. Division de Changement Climatique, or CLI.
Environmental and Social Support Office24
The Environmental and Social Support (E&SS) office
provides expertise to AFD project teams, helping them
manage environmental and social risks as they prepare
and monitor AFD-financed development projects.
This office also conducts training and awareness exercises
in environmental and social responsibility and governance
issues for project managers and all other AFD employees,
the better to integrate the Group’s approach.
Climate Change Office25
The Climate Change office leads, supports and consoli-
dates AFD projects that affect the climate, whether for
climate-change adaptation or mitigation.
Within PROPARCO
Within PROPARCO, the Environment, Social and Impact
Unit26 reports to the deputy chief executive in charge of
general administration. The unit has three main tasks:
managing environmental and social risks for PROPARCO-
financed projects; improving the environmental and social
•Raising awareness about the environmental aspects
of sustainable development within the work force, and
mobilizing concern for the environment, climate change,
waste management, energy efficiency, and so on.
•Participating in working groups with national and inter-
national partners on the topic of environmental responsi-
bility, and assisting the start-up and supervision of studies
on the subject.
External Environmental and Social Responsibility
Within AFD
Within AFD’s Operations division, the Cross-Functional Sup-
port23 department implements environmental, social and
governance risk management for external (aid) operations.
The department supports operational teams, manages
and monitors cross-functional projects, performs quality
controls, and keeps current on new tools and procedures.
Within the department, two offices focus on operational
corporate responsibility issues.
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•Providing support for corporate responsibility by crea-
ting tools, and by offering training and similar measures
to other departments in the Group.
Transparency
In 2007, the AFD Group adopted a transparency-in-com-
munications policy, inaugurated with detailed informa-
tion about its business operations and projects on the
AFD website, www.afd.fr. Since the policy’s inception, an
employee dedicated to the subject has explained the trans-
parency policy internally and ensured its implementation
through annual action plans.
26. Unité Environnement, Social et Impact, or UESI.
27. Direction des Opérations, or DOP.
28. Division du Portefeuille, or PTF.
29. Division des Risques, or RIS.
30. Division Juridique, or DJU.
quality of PROPARCO projects and related borrower per-
formance; and measuring PROPARCO development pro-
jects’ impacts and results. To achieve these aims, the unit
provides technical support to business managers in the
Operations division27 and the Portfolio department28, and
to analysts in the Risk Division29. It also works with the
Legal department30 to define aid beneficiaries’ contrac-
tual environmental and social commitments. Managing
these risks and commitments includes:
•Participating in the AFD Group’s definition of environ-
mental and social responsibility and governance strate-
gies, and adapting them for PROPARCO.
•Helping manage environmental, social and governance
risks in PROPARCO-financed projects, from initial identifi-
cation through post-project evaluation.
•Promoting better environmental and social performance
in projects.
•Analyzing PROPARCO borrower commitments to mana-
ging their environmental and social risks, and monito-
ring implementation of these commitments, as per PRO-
PARCO’s funding contracts.
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2• Organizationally, the Strategy division does not have spe-
cific human or other resources dedicated to corporate
responsibility issues or implementation. Rather, the divi-
sion’s managers and their teams are exposed to social,
environmental and governance imperatives “naturally” in
the course of their work and have shared their thoughts
on several topics for this report: these include, among
others, AFD’s corporate university, its knowledge-produc-
tion activities, and the environmental financing facility34
it manages. ■
Strategy
The AFD Group Strategy division31 has two means of inte-
grating environmental, social and governance concerns into
its objectives: (1) it provides internal critiques, questio-
ning the Group’s actions in the two crucial realms of inter-
vention strategy and operations quality, and (2) it keeps
abreast of international standards, rules and conventions
for strategic purposes.
Within the Strategy division, the Strategic Steering and
Forecasting department32 houses the Organizing and Fore-
casting department33 – a central but not unique place for
incubating new ideas and examining new topics. Once new
thinking has matured sufficiently, the Strategy division
shares it with the Group’s operational departments. The
Strategic Steering and Forecasting department contributed
much to the corporate responsibility process, for example,
and to transparency in particular.
31. Direction de la Stratégie, or STR.
32. Pilotage Stratégique et Prospective, or PSP.
33. Animation et Prospective, or APR.
34. The French Global Environment Fund (Fonds Français pour l’Environnement Mondial, or FFEM)
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Internal Governance
s a public establishment and specialized
financial institution, AFD Group is accoun-
table for its activities. Its governance rests
on structures that ensure transparency and
good management. These structures include a strategic
orientation board that oversees preparation and execution
of the “means and objectives” contract between France
AOur Internal Governance, Corporate Ethics and Anti-Fraud and Corruption Controls
3.
AFD’s Corporate Responsbility working group
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and the Group, a board of governors that deliberates on
the Group’s strategic direction, its contract with the French
government, its financial operations and investments, its
borrowings and project financing, its asset management,
and its selection of internal and external auditors. An exter-
nal auditor and the internal audit committee assist the
board of governors in its supervisory role. The audit com-
mittee verifies the quality of information furnished by all of
the AFD Group’s divisions, and assesses the accounting
methods used as well as the quality of internal controls.
The French Institute of Internal Audit and Control35 certifies
the Group’s auditing methods and internal control activi-
ties in accordance with French professional internal audit
procedures and international audit and internal control
standards. AFD and PROPARCO each have an Executive
board of senior managers that oversees their respective
internal and external operations.
Corporate Ethics
Since 2004, AFD Group’s corporate ethics program has
used codes and counselors to encourage and facilitate ethi-
cal business practices. The program has three objectives:
(1) provide guidelines for expected ethical and professional
behavior, (2) help employees facing ethical dilemmas to
respond appropriately, and (3) foster work force and inter-
company solidarity and strengthen Group performance by
improving and unifying business practices.
The ethics program rests on two written codes, the AFD
Group corporate code and the code of business ethics, both
having supplemental instructions. The program also fea-
tures an ethics advisory and support service for employees.
The corporate code sets out the Group’s mission and values
statement, and expresses the Group’s goal of creating a
community of professionals dedicated to development. It
emphasizes essential individual and collective commit-
ments, notably to social and environmental responsibility,
compliance with laws and regulations, and the fight against
money-laundering, terrorism financing and corruption. The
code of business ethics describes specific ways that mana-
gers, employees and the Group (as an employer) should
act on these commitments. A corporate ethics advisor
interprets how the code should be applied on an everyday
basis, and is available to offer counseling to employees. The
ethics advisory may also ask the Group’s corporate ethics
advisory committee to rule on internal matters, and make
recommendations for improvements to the ethics program.
our intErnAl GovErnAncE, corporAtE Ethics AnD Anti-FrAuD AnD corruption controls
35. Institut Français de l’Audit et du Contrôle Internes, or IFACI.
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ciples in an equity participation. This background informa-
tion fuels the project team’s extensive financial analyses
and also serves the know-your-customer due diligence
required of all financial institutions. Such due diligence
especially looks for “politically exposed persons,” such as
senior politicians and high-ranking government, judicial or
military officials and executives of state-owned corpora-
tions. It also requires understanding certain things about
the managers and management structure of a borrowing
company. The project team clarifies any suspicious infor-
mation or activity, which may, in turn, lead the team to
deny funding for a project.
•AFD Group routinely finances aid beneficiaries’ pur-
chases of a variety of goods and services for public
works and services, such as construction works, in a
process known as “procurement” that follows speci-
fic procedures. To fight corrupt practices – fraud, price-
fixing, coercion, collusion, graft, and so forth – the Group
puts selection criteria in place to prequalify bidders prior
to advertising the tender. It also requires borrowers
and grant recipients to deploy anti-corrupt-practices
controls to ensure integrity, transparency, equity and effi-
ciency at various stages of the procurement process.
The main control device is the “no objection letter” that
the borrower or grant recipient must issue at specific
Anti-Fraud and Corruption Controls
As France’s central operator for bilateral development
aid, AFD Group is particularly vigilant that all loans, gua-
rantees and subsidies that it grants are allocated to their
intended purposes. The Group is equally vigilant about
investing only in reputable and well-governed companies.
This vigilance goes hand-in-hand with the Group’s man-
date to alleviate poverty, because corrupt practices, fraud
and other misappropriations of development-aid funding
hinder the Group’s mission. The same is true of any aid
financing that is used – unbeknownst to the Group – to
launder money or finance terrorism.
AFD Group is relentless in combating everything that might
tarnish its development financing: collusion, coercion,
corruption, graft, fraud, money laundering, terrorism finan-
cing and so forth. The Group has introduced a number of
internal rules, operating procedures, contractual arran-
gements and inspection points that its employees must
apply or verify.
•When reviewing a potential project, an AFD Group pro-
ject manager and his/or her team must gather informa-
tion about the potential aid beneficiary – the recipient of
a grant, the borrower in a lending transaction – or a com-
pany’s (or other legal entity’s) beneficial owners and prin-
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contractors, to take other steps to combat corrupt prac-
tices, money laundering, and terrorism financing. These
steps include swearing that they have not unduly influenced
the project’s execution to the detriment of the aid bene-
ficiary, and that nothing in the tender, negotiation or exe-
cution of any works or services could be construed as a
corrupt practice, as defined by the 2003 United Nations
anti-corruption convention.
Improvement Plan for 2012-2016
During 2012, AFD Group will update its online training
courses for new hires, and strengthen its anti- fraud, cor-
ruption, money-laundering and terrorism-financing policy
when it ratifies its third strategic orientation plan for 2012-
2016. Two of the plan’s cornerstones rest on ensuring
financial safety and combating corruption in the Group’s
internal and external operations. ■
points in the bid process to assure it has performed its
due diligence on bidders, in compliance with the Group’s
financing agreement. Once the bidding process has ended,
the Group’s project team regularly monitors the borrower
or grant recipient and the financed work.
•In 2011, the Group set up an internal, online anti-money-
laundering training course. Directed toward employees who
have or may hold a job where money-laundering could
occur, 1300 have already completed the course.
•AFD Group also provides all employees an intranet tool
to filter lists of financial and trade sanctions, embargoes
and restrictions imposed by the European Union, France,
Great Britain, the United Nations and the United States
against certain entities and sectors. Project teams use
the filter when first reviewing a potential project, before
starting a business relationship, and periodically during a
project’s lifetime. They apply the filter to all sectors, sup-
pliers (for in-house purchases and for aid beneficiaries’
purchases), aid beneficiaries including private companies,
and the beneficial owner(s) and major shareholder(s),
directors and managers related to that company.
•AFD Group also funds non-public works and services
through direct to borrower loan financing, grants and other
funding agreements contain a number of clauses that
require grant recipients and borrowers, and their sub-
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Our Stakeholders4.
The photo exhibition, « A New Look at Developing Countries”, in Paris
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our stAkEholDErs
Stakeholder descriptions and interactions
Bilateral and multilateraldevelopment banks and funds,
including FGEF
GroupAFD
Proparco
NGOs, foundations, charities,nonprofits, local governments,
universities academic institutions
Central governments,public services
Parliament
Supervisory ministries Regulators
AFD Group Stakeholder Configuration
InternalExternal
Civil society
Partner networks
Aid beneficiaries
Suppliers /Subcontractors
Public authorities
Shareholder Frenchgovernment (100%)
Board of Governors /Executive &Management
Boards
Local governments
Public and privateenterprises
NGOs, nonprofitsfoundations
Employees, interns,consultants
Enterprise committeerepresentatives
Employee delegates
Unions
Central work council
Enterprise committees
Hygiene, Security andWorking Conditions committee
Employees
our stAkEholDErs
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Stakeholder Engagement
Over the past ten years, AFD Group has developed increasin-
gly open and accessible means of communicating with
internal and external stakeholders. This strategy is partly
driven by regulatory requirements, but also by a desire
to more fully engage the public and other stakeholders.
Specific provisions of French law mandate and regulate
the Group’s communications with employees, trade unions,
investors, regulators and other national authorities. Labor
law requires that the Group communicate with employees
and work councils about employee representation, trade
union laws, labor discussions and negotiations. Banking
law requires communication with investors and France’s
Financial Markets Authority about internal controls, finan-
cial statements and annual activities. Public enterprise
law requires communication with the Group’s national
oversight authorities and institutions.
European public developmentfinance institutions
Proparco
Non-European publicdevelopment finance institutions
Private sector financialinstitutions
Proparco Stakeholder Configuration
InternalExternal
Civil SocietyShared Group actions
Partner network
Borrowers
Suppliers /Subcontractors
Private sector non-financialcompanies
Employees
Employee representativeon Board of Governors
Employee delegate
Central work council
Enterprise committees
CHSCT
Employees
Shareholders,including AFD (59%)
Public andprivate directors
Internal/externalGroup controls
our stAkEholDErs
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our stAkEholDErs
visibility through communication, bolstering civil society’s
awareness and understanding of French aid policies. This
attention to public accountability helps create quality dia-
logue and trust-filled relationships with all stakeholders
over the long term.
The AFD Group’s stakeholder engagement strategy centers
on three principles – visibility, dialogue and accountabi-
lity36 – and four main objectives:
•Communicating about AFD Group’s public interest mis-
sion.
•Raising awareness and understanding about the Group’s
aid activities.
•Explaining the Group’s vision and strategy.
•Establishing ongoing dialogue with stakeholders and
other interested parties, in a spirit of transparency and
mutual understanding.
AFD Group has invested in these expanded means and
increased the quality of its dialogue with other French
and international stakeholders: aid beneficiaries, donors
and peer institutions, nongovernmental organizations,
civil society, private sector companies, and others. The
Group makes some 130 anonymous email contact points
available to facilitate stakeholder communication with
headquarters and field offices, including one dedicated
to transparency, [email protected].
This active communication and reciprocal dialogue allows
the Group to improve its services, funding instruments
and expertise while allowing stakeholders to do likewise.
Suggestions from any stakeholder – regardless of role in
the Group– can help advance its public service mission:
financing development.
Accountability to Stakeholders
AFD Group’s stakeholder engagement strategy addresses
accountability expectations within its sphere of influence,
in the spirit defined by the ISO 26000 social responsibi-
lity standard. As France’s central operator for develop-
ment aid, the Group seeks to increase its credibility and
36. Visibility measures include the AFD Group website, www.afd.fr and the transparency contact point, [email protected]; examples of dialogue occur in the four “town hall meetings” conducted annually with the French public and an NGO; accountability efforts include discussions with the public and parliamentarians during the Group’s 70th anniversary events in 2011.
our stAkEholDErs
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our stAkEholDErs
projects are published on the AFD Group website as soon
as these receive funding approval from the Group’s board
of governors and either the Project Committee or the NGO
Project Committee. Of 330 projects approved for funding
in 2011 (including those conducted with NGOs from deve-
loped countries), 263 were posted by September 2011.
By year end, the overall publication rate reached 81%;
only 67 communiqués remained unpublished as of 31
December 2011 (see figure below).
Many of AFD Group’s French and international develop-
ment peers, as well as donors, civil society organizations
and partners, have repeatedly asked the Group to better
publicize its mission and work before approved projects
actually begin. Consequently, communiqués about new
AFD Group’s Accountability and Transparency Boundaries
Government officials Supervisory ministriesParliamentarians Directors
Civil Society
NGO Public Local governmentsRating agencies Aid beneficiaries
Companies
Influences Influences
Accountability
Transparency
To publish
Published
To publish
Published
39%
61%
Non-NGO Projects Publication Rate 2011
19%
81%
All Projects Publication Rate 2011Non-NGO Projects Publishing Rate 2009-2011
December 2009 December 2010 December 2011
26
6761
%
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our stAkEholDErs
The percentage of new project communiqués published for
joint AFD-NGO partner projects is relatively high because
they are less expensive and less complex than projects
that AFD implements directly. Excluding NGO partner pro-
jects, the publication rate falls to 61%, somewhat lower
than in 2010. Grant recipients and borrowers review and
approve all new project communiqués prior to their publi-
cation.
AFD Group also plans to publish post-project evaluation
overviews (on qualifying projects37) to increase its accoun-
tability to stakeholders. After a pilot phase, management
increased the number of projects evaluated and gradually
expanded a decentralized post-project evaluation system,
where the local or regional field office conducts the eva-
luation in the project country. In 2011, 78% of projects
that qualified for evaluation were assessed. By 2013,
AFD Group aims to systematically evaluate 90% of such
projects.
To publish
Published
To publish
Published
39%
61%
Non-NGO Projects Publication Rate 2011
19%
81%
All Projects Publication Rate 2011Non-NGO Projects Publishing Rate 2009-2011
December 2009 December 2010 December 2011
26
6761
%37. Projects that can be evaluated entail commitments greater than €750,000, excluding funds for studies and capacity building, fungible projects, global budgetary aid, and credit or other risk guarantees for PROPARCO’s loans and equity participations.
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our stAkEholDErs
that the share of projects in foreign countries scoring
“satisfactory” or better was stable from 2006 to 2011,
representing 77% in 2011. This resembles the trends
observed when assessing projects during execution.
The Group uses evaluation criteria defined by the OECD’s
Development Co-operation Directorate38, assessing each
project’s relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, impact and
sustainability. In general, post-project evaluations indicate
Foreign aid post-project evaluations 2007-2011
62
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
82
68
8178%
"Satisfactory" or better foreign aid projects 2006-2011
80
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
73
83
76 7776
%
38. More information about the OECD criteria is available on http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/42/6/49756382.pdf
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our stAkEholDErs
and headquarters. In the same spirit, the chief executive
regularly emails employees about his work-related trips to
foreign countries and France’s overseas provinces.
Additional internal stakeholders include the following com-
mittees, each composed of employees and, in some cases,
external advisors.
Central Work Council39: a legally mandated committee
for work force relations and trade union negotiations.
Enterprise Committee40: a legally mandated committee
in every French enterprise with 50 or more employees,
whose purpose is to express employee wishes on a variety
of topics. AFD Group has five enterprise committees, one
in Paris for AFD and PROPARCO, and one in each of the
four largest overseas provinces; see Part 5 of this report,
“Our Work Force.”
Hygiene, Security and Work Conditions Committee41:
a legally mandated committee focusing on workplace
improvements, with an equal number of representatives
from the Paris Enterprise Committee and from AFD and
PROPARCO employee delegates; see Part 5 of this report,
“Our Work Force.”
Since October 2011, the Group’s IT system has been
programmed to generate post-project reports and perfor-
mance scores. These reports should help project teams
improve performance scores improve in the future.
Stakeholder Descriptions
Internal stakeholders: Employees, committees and CEFEB
In 2011, employees participated in designing a new five-
year (2012-2016) strategic plan for AFD Group, stimula-
ting additional internal dialogue. Employees debated one
another about the Group’s medium-term future and contri-
buted written observations and suggestions to a dedica-
ted intranet site. The Group’s oversight authorities also
participated in the strategic plan’s design. In 2012, the
proposed five-year plan will be submitted to AFD Group’s
board of governors for acceptance.
The Internal Communications department publishes a
bimonthly newsletter on the Group’s intranet, the Conti-
nents’ Echo, to promote work force cohesion. Targeting all
employees, the Echo provides information about projects
and important events, collected from various field offices
39. Comité central d’entreprise, or CEE.
40. Comités d’Etablissements, or CE.
41. Comité d’hygiène, de sécurité et des conditions de travail, or HSCT.
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Board of Governors and sub-committees42: legally
mandated committees that determine the AFD Group’s
strategic direction, financial operations, and borrowing:
see Part 2, “Governance.”
Audit and Internal Control Committee43: a legally man-
dated committee that serves the board of governors and
the inspector general; see Part 2, “Governance.”
Center for Economic, Financial and Banking Stu-
dies44, or CEFEB: a corporate university and training ins-
titute; see below.
Executive Board: one each for AFD and for PROPARCO,
these oversee operations and answer to the board of
governors; see Part 2, “Governance.”
42. Conseil d’administration et ses comités délégués.
43. Comité d’audit et le contrôle interne.
44. Centre d’Études Financières Économiques et Bancaires, or CEFEB.
45. For more information on the OECD non-binding principles and standards for responsible business conduct in a global context, consistent with applicable laws and internationally recognized standards, see http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/43/29/48004323.pdf
Corporate Responsibility Training at AFD Group’s Corporate University
The Center for Economic, Financial and Banking
Studies, or CEFEB, is the Group’s corporate
university. Based in Marseilles, it aims to build
capacity and competency through professional training
courses and seminars. It serves those who help
implement AFD Group projects – Group employees,
but also professionals and officials in beneficiary
countries and provinces, and other partners in
developing, emerging and developed countries.
CEFEB promotes education as a means of increasing
social and environmental responsibility and good
governance, in accordance with OECD guidelines for
multinational enterprises45. CEFEB serves as both
a meeting ground and an important internal tool for
learning and engagement on these vital issues.
Since 2005, CEFEB has expanded the number
of corporate responsibility courses for AFD Group
aid beneficiaries and partners. It offers generalist,
professional certificate and degree programs, such as
a Masters in Public and Private Works, where students
spend 15% of their time on corporate responsibility
issues. It also offers longer or shorter courses
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46. Centre d’Etudes et de Recherches sur le Développement International, or CERDI.
47. See the AFD publication, Savoirs communs, number 11 (in French).
specializing in the subject. In 2011, CEFEB offered
more than three weeks of corporate responsibility
training in its Masters in Sustainable Development
program, in conjunction with the University of
Auvergne’s Center for International Development
Studies and Research in
Clermont-Ferrand46, France. Since 2007,
CEFEB has also included corporate responsibility
issues in many seminars on infrastructure
development (particularly for water, energy and
transportation) and on capital investment financing
in the poorest and emerging countries.
CEFEB regularly updates its list of seminars on
www.cefeb.org.
CEFEB also promotes corporate responsibility
by designing and teaching specific courses for
AFD Group employees. Since 2010, CEFEB has
conducted a seminar on biodiversity to highlight its
protection in countries where the Group operates. In
2010, CEFEB also retrofitted its Group-owned office
building in Marseilles to facilitate disability access.
The Group’s 2012-2016 strategy foresees CEFEB
efforts to include corporate responsibility issues in
more courses, particularly when training executives
working in AFD Group field offices. ■
External stakeholders: Civil society, NGOs, Aid Beneficiaries, Donors and Peer Institu-tions, Overseers and the French Parliament
For more than 10 years, AFD Group has conducted an
ongoing dialogue with all its external stakeholders: French
and foreign civil society, NGOs, aid beneficiaries, peer ins-
titutions, oversight authorities and the French parliament.
Since part of the Group’s aid funding comes from public
resources, the French public has an interest in the Group’s
activities. Inaugurated in 1941, AFD produced a number
of public events and communiqués about its work on
the occasion of its 70th anniversary in 2011. AFD Group
headquarters and field offices also engage civil society
stakeholders in the countries where the Group operates.
For example, in 2011, more than 40 field offices produced
their own public events for the Group’s 70th anniversary.
The Group also published a study47 about partnering with
civil society for development purposes. The study was co-
produced with an NGO, and examined simple yet fundamen-
tal ideas, such as the rationale for building civil society,
observations about intercultural dialogue, and explana-
tions for the relationship between food security and peace.
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financed projects and increase aid effectiveness – the
central topic of past development conferences in Accra,
Paris and Busan. At the end of 2011, AFD Group counted
55 partnership agreements with development finance ins-
titutions and agencies, as well as foreign governments,
foundations, nonprofit organizations and NGOs.
AFD Group also works with NGOs from developed and
developing countries to implement joint or independent
operations and to incubate ideas. At the beginning of
2009, AFD Group adopted a special funding mechanism to
finance the projects of French and European NGOs working
independently of AFD in the Group’s regions of operation.
AFD Group maintains supportive relationships with its aid
beneficiaries that go beyond simple financial ties. These
relationships are bolstered by the Group’s network of
employees working in each country, and through syste-
matic use of financing-contract clauses requiring regular
meetings and technical support.
AFD Group’s gradually assembled network of donor par-
tners and peer institutions has proven one of its major
strengths. The Group’s partners and peers share regio-
nal and local knowledge, design joint project-financing
programs, co-produce conferences and other events, and
make co-lending arrangements, leveraging each other’s
assets and skills. These partnerships improve the effec-
tiveness of aid operations and help spread good social,
environmental and governance practices. In particular, AFD
and PROPARCO maintain increasingly close cooperative
relationships with national development aid agencies in
the European Union, and with the European Investment
Bank (EIB) and the European Commission. For example,
EIB, AFD and KfW Bankengruppe, the German deve-
lopment bank, belong to the Mutual Reliance Initiative
network, which aims to simplify procedures for jointly-
An Opportunity to Share AFD Experiences with Citizens
As part of its 70th anniversary celebration, AFD
Group created a traveling open-air photo exhibition,
“A New Look at Developing Countries,” featuring
photos and videos of real people and projects in
developing countries. The Group expanded on the
show and included a series of public debates about
development aid, which shared the Group’s expertise
and experiences with a large audience. Nearly 175,000
people had seen the exhibition by the end of 2011.
In France, public conferences on topics related
to the photos attracted 3,200 attendees, while 40
AFD field offices in foreign countries produced 140
similar events. The debates and conferences proved
stimulating for the audiences and Group alike,
raising awareness about often-misunderstood topics
and issues while illuminating the Group’s work and
France’s development aid policy. ■
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AFD’s international stakeholder “ecosystem”�
International Foundations & Charities
Bill & Melinda Gates FoundationAga Khan Development NetworkPrince Albert II of Monaco FoundationConservation International
Emerging Donors
ChinaBrazilSouth AfricaArab States
Multilateral Donors
World BankAfrican Development BankAsian Development BankInter-American Development BankIslamic Development Bank
Bilateral Donors
German Foreign Aid (KfW, GIZ)British Foreign Aid (DFID)Japanese Cooperation (JICA)American Foreign Aid (USAID, MCC)
United Nations
UNDPUNEPIFADUNIDOGlobal Compact
European Donors
European Investment BankEuropean CommissionEuropean Development FinanceInstitutions
Global Funds
UNITAIDGlobal Aids FundFast-TrackGAVIGlobal Environment Fund
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AFD’s French partners and interlocutors
Nonprofits
Nongovernmental OrganizationsFrench National Platform
of International Solidarity NGOs(Coordination Sud)
Academics & Think-tanks
CERDI/FERDIIDDRI
Collège de France
Private Sector
CompaniesFoundations
Networks & Platforms
Decentralized FrenchCooperation
RegionsDepartments
TownsWater AuthoritiesCités Unies France
Parliamentarians
FranceEurope
The AFD Group also maintains contact daily with its French
oversight authorities, given that the Group has acted as
the sole authority for France’s foreign aid since 1998.
The policy’s strategic and financial implementation requires
constant contact between the Group and its overseers.
In 2011, French government officials defined a new
foreign aid strategy and means framework, which led to
a three-year means-and-objectives contract, signed by AFD
Group’s chief executive and six supervisory ministries on
29 October 2011.
The Group must also account for its actions to members
of the French Parliament, meaning the National Assem-
bly and the Senate. The Parliament affects the Group
through national budget decisions. It also affects the
Group through legislation, parliamentary reports, recom-
mendations, and related actions.
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The Relationship Between AFD Group and the French Parliament
AFD Group and the French Parliament traditionally
maintain an indirect relationship through an annual
“questions for the government” session, where
citizens ask questions and the Group prepares the
government’s answers on development subjects.
In some years, the Group and Parliament have
direct talks, as when public enterprise legislation
changes (as it did in July 2010), or in response to
parliamentary interest in how the Group executes
French aid policy – the subject of substantial
questioning in 2011. An AFD study and two
parliamentary reports published in 2009 and 2011
covered bilateral and multilateral aid issues; as a
result, the Group and government created four steps
to enhance France’s development aid strategy: (1)
simplifying the institutional architecture of French
aid; (2) recognizing the complementary nature of
bilateral and multilateral aid efforts; (3) aligning
bilateral aid for “proximate causes” and multilateral
aid for “great causes”; and (4) optimizing bilateral
partnerships. ■
The French Global Environment Facility
In 1994, France created the French Global
Environment Facility48 (FGEF), a bilateral fund for
sustainable development projects; it makes grants
in addition to and in tandem with those of the
Global Environment Facility (GEF). Between 1994
and 2014, the FGEF will have received €354.11
million from the French government to cover grants
and operating costs. Every four years, the French
government tops up the fund, providing about €20
million per year just for grants.
The FGEF follows a biannual strategy, validated
by a steering committee made up of representatives
from AFD and five French ministries: economy,
foreign affairs, sustainable development, research
and agriculture. AFD houses the FGEF secretariat,
providing administrative support and governance for
the fund on behalf of France. AFD also manages the
fund’s assets.
As the institutional arm of the FGEF, AFD spreads
exemplary environmental practices through
the FGEF’s innovative, socially-oriented and
48. Fonds Français pour l’Environnement Mondial, or FFEM.
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experimental funding operations. In the past 17 years,
the FGEF has funded more than 200 pilot projects
and programs that reconcile economic growth with
environmental protection. These innovative projects
serve as models; when they succeed on a small scale,
they expand France’s capacity to finance larger-
scale socially responsible environmental projects
and policies – ones that address climate change,
biodiversity preservation, international waters,
desertification, persistent organic pollutants and
stratospheric ozone.
AFD demonstrates its commitment to the
environment by initiating, financing and carrying
out FGEF projects, focusing on sectors that meet
basic human needs and preserve global public goods
– greater economic well-being, social justice, more
secure peace, environmental sustainability, and so
forth. ■
AFD Groupand Stakeholders Mutual Influences
Stakeholders’influenceon AFD
AFD Group’s influence on stakeholders
Involved ExternalStakeholders
Public authorities,shareholders, regulators,
supervisors
Internal StakeholdersEmployees, boards
of directors
Affected External StakeholdersAid beneficiaries, suppliers,
subcontractors, civil society, partners
Low High
High
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AFD Group and Human Rights
As befits a development finance institution dedicated
to fighting poverty, AFD Group has integrated
human rights into its operations and conduct
since its creation. Today this effort aligns with the
10th guideline of France’s current sustainable
development strategy. For example, AFD and
PROPARCO work in the microfinance sector in
partnership with other reputable funding agencies,
and in close collaboration with the Consultative
Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), the World Bank’s
fiduciary fund supporting public policy and aid
agencies. In 2011, AFD and PROPARCO experts
actively helped prepare for the G-20 meeting in
France. The Group also leads and funds projects
for the so-called “base of the pyramid” to meet
the poor’s basic needs in emerging and developing
countries.
AFD Group has also further integrated human
rights in its external and internal operations.
Externally, project teams now target psychological
and social risks when preparing projects that address
traumatic situations – armed conflicts or natural
catastrophes. Project teams also include resources
for psychological and legal counseling within their
funding arrangements. Internally, the Group has
set up a unit, comprised of management, employee
representatives and delegates, to oversee working
conditions, prevent psychological risks, and listen to
individuals’ needs. ■
Promoting Corporate Governance in the Private Sector
In recent years, AFD has organized conferences with deve-
loped-world companies to bolster their environmental and
social responsibility, good governance, and investment
in the developing world. In partnership with firms doing
business in developing countries – especially French multi-
nationals – the Group also funds and co-produces research
on new business opportunities with positive economic
and employment potential. These efforts toward corpo-
rate responsibility and development contributions draw on
guidelines in France’s National Sustainable Development
Strategy and the ISO 26000 social responsibility recom-
mendations for community involvement49.
49. Community involvement and development refers to non-commercial, non-exploitative actions companies can take to benefit the locality(ies) and/or country(ies) where the company has operations.
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In 2011, AFD private-sector conferences and studies cen-
tered on three major topics. The first focused on so-cal-
led “base of the pyramid” strategies, showing companies
how to make their products and services more affordable,
accessible, available and appropriate for the poorest
consumers50. A second conference covered so-called
“fair trade” strategies to encourage equitable corporate
purchasing practices; a third reviewed “local community”
strategies in firms’ countries of operation, including job
creation, local hiring and purchasing, and time and money
donations to civic concerns51. To further encourage pri-
vate-sector development initiatives, AFD also partners
with national and international organizations involved in
sustainable development and corporate governance, such
as the United Nations and nonprofit business networks52.
50. One example of such products might be a low-cost family shampoo that works with cold water, one that can be produced, distributed and advertised efficiently through partnership with a local company
51. For more information (in French) see www.afd.fr/lang/en/home/AFD/nospartenaires/entreprises-partenaires.
52. For more information see http://www.afd.fr/lang/en/home/AFD/nospartenaires.
53. For more information, see AFD Group’s entry on www.globalcompact.org.
AFD Partners to Promote Good Corporate Governance in the Private Sector
United Nations Global Compact: In 2000, Kofi
Annan (the then-secretary-general of the United
Nations) launched the Global Compact. This
strategic policy initiative addressed businesses
committed to operating in line with ten universally
accepted principles, covering human rights, labor,
environment and the fight against corruption. In
2004, AFD was the first bilateral donor to sign onto
the Global Compact. Every year, the Group reports
on its operational progress on the ten principles and
good corporate governance53. AFD also manages
France’s financial contribution to Global Compact
operations.
France Global Compact: French companies
committed to the Global Compact have united in
their own nonprofit group, France Global Compact.
AFD sits on the nonprofit’s management committee.
On 25-26 October 2011, AFD, France Global
Compact and the French Ministry of Foreign and
European Affairs jointly sponsored two conferences.
One was entitled “How Can Companies Significantly
Help in Achieving the UN Millennium Development
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Goals?” and the other “What Kind of Partnerships
Can Occur Between NGOs, Companies and Public
Institutions?”
IMS-Entreprendre pour la Cité: The nonprofit
organization, IMS-Entreprendre pour la Cité
(Institute for Solidarity Giving-Entrepreneurs for the
City), was created in 1986 by socially-responsible
French business leaders. It now comprises nearly
200 French companies that improve social equity
by creating value for the communities in which they
operate, in France and abroad.
In 2008, AFD and the nonprofit organized a
colloquium, “Do Business for Development,”
where attendees discussed trends in corporate
commitments to help developing countries; they
also identified new avenues for partnerships between
public institutions, private-sector companies and
organizations, NGOs, and civil society. In 2011,
AFD and IMS-Entreprendre pour la Cité signed a
partnership with two goals:
(1) Preparing, funding and leading a collaborative
European platform for “Smart, Sustainable and
Inclusive Growth at the Base of the Pyramid;”
(2) Sharing governance best practices and
experiences with firms from developed and
developing countries by mobilizing French
companies, particularly small- and medium-sized
enterprises.
Institut Véolia Environment: The Institut Véolia
Environment, created by the French water, waste
and energy multinational Véolia Environment S.A.,
provides insights into major global challenges related
to the environment. On 27-28 June 2011, AFD and
the Institute organized an international conference
on reconciling poverty alleviation with environmental
quality preservation, with a session dedicated to role
of the private sector.
Plateforme pour le Commerce Equitable: The
Plateforme pour le Commerce Equitable (Fair Trade
Platform, or PFCE), a nonprofit organization, was
created in 1997 to lobby for fair trade and French
fair-trade companies. The PFCE works to ensure the
autonomy and dignity of producers in developing
countries, and argues for changes to conventional
international trade rules. AFD has partnered with
PFCE to help increase the share of fair-trade
products in corporate purchases and strategies.
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Ashoka France: Ashoka is a global nonprofit
network of social entrepreneurs engaged in
innovative projects. AFD recognizes the importance
and positive effects of social entrepreneurship in
developing countries. It therefore joined with other
donors in underwriting a summit meeting for social
entrepreneurs, organized by Ashoka France in June
2011. More than 300 social entrepreneurs from all
over the world participated in the summit, alongside
other stakeholders – large and small companies,
public-sector institutions and organizations, NGOs,
and the media. Another Ashoka event brought
African social entrepreneurs to Paris to meet with
AFD’s chief executive.
CARE France: CARE France is a chapter of
CARE, a leading humanitarian organization fighting
global poverty. Over the past 15 years, CARE
France has partnered with private companies to
address the causes of poverty. The partnerships ally
economic profit with benefits from positive social,
environmental and governance performance. AFD
signed an agreement in December 2011 to finance
CARE France’s corporate responsibility-oriented
partnerships with French companies.
These partnerships will address topics such as
access to basic services for the poor, the fight against
climate change, and firms’ creation of jobs and
economic growth in countries where they operate.
RSE & Développement: The French nonprofit
group, RSE & Développement (SER &
Development) researches and reports on corporate
social and environmental responsibility in developing
and emerging countries. It aims to increase public
awareness of these issues, and to encourage
companies toward development that meets the
United Nations Millennium Development Goals.
The nonprofit maintains the largest French-language
Internet portal on these subjects54. The website
aims to educate companies –from all nations and
levels of development – in corporate responsibility
issues and tools pertinent to developing countries.
It also encourages discussion of best practices
and their implementation, as well as collective
approaches to corporate responsibility. In 2011,
AFD signed a partnership agreement with RSE &
Développement to provide upgrade support for the
portal, making it more professional, modern and
comprehensive. ■
54. See www.res-et-ped.info.
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Sharing Knowledge with Stakeholders
The AFD Strategy Department contributes to operational
doctrines, five-year strategic plans, and the annual report
to the board of governors on the strategic value of Group
efforts. The Department also creates knowledge about
development aid activities, theories, issues, regions and
priorities. This knowledge capitalizes on the Group’s expe-
rience and puts it into a broader perspective. Knowledge
production takes the form of topical and sectoral research,
evaluations, training courses, conference production, ad
hoc partnership management, and so forth.
The resulting knowledge takes shape in books and other
publications and circulates at conferences and other
events. Producing this knowledge, and sharing it with
internal and external stakeholders, helps the Group (1)
streamline its strategic choices, sectors and regions, (2)
enhance the pertinence and effectiveness of its aid inter-
ventions, and (3) increase its presence and influence in
national and international discussions, the better to serve
the interests of the Group’s governmental over-seers and
sponsors.
The AFD Strategy Department’s knowledge production com-
plements other Group publications, which equally share
and exploit the Group’s best thinking about its operations
and outcomes. The AFD Communications department,
PROPARCO, and the French Global Environment Fund also
publish a variety of valuable materials to better inform and
engage stakeholders. Much of the material is available
for download from the Group’s website55.
55. For an exhaustive list of 2011 publications, refer to the Publications portal at www.afd.fr.
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Improvement Plan for 2012-2016
AFD Group plans to improve the amount and kind of infor-
mation it shares with internal and external stakeholders,
providing even more accountability and knowledge. Over
2012-2016, the Group will:
1. Increase the number of publications about aid inter-
ventions (both those conducted alone and with NGOs), to
cover 90% of all projects.
2. Increase the number of project evaluations and moni-
toring reports during the project lifecycle.
3. Conduct an independent assessment of AFD Group’s
external operations performance in 2012.
4. Improve identification and selection of priorities for
research coverage and knowledge production, based on
subjects of common interest to the Group and to stake-
holders.
5. Set up a research committee internally to devise annual
research plans and examine proposals. ■
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Corporate Responsibility in External Operations
Aiming for Responsible Financing and Implementations
s France’s bilateral donor, AFD Group funds
sustainable economic development projects
all over the world. In Sub-Saharan countries,
AFD focuses on poverty reduction; in the Medi-
terranean Basin region, on improving living conditions;
in emerging countries, on protecting the environment;
AOur Funding Operations5.
AFD funds the sustainable development policy of Curitiba, Brazil
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and in France’s overseas provinces, on promoting natio-
nal solidarity. In the same regions, PROPARCO catalyzes
local and foreign private-sector investments to foster eco-
nomic growth, to encourage sustainable and responsible
development, and to meet the UN Millennium Develop-
ment Goals. PROPARCO also helps its funded companies
improve their own environmental, social and governance
performances. Both AFD and PROPARCO comply with the
Group’s corporate responsibility policy, managing the envi-
ronmental, social and governance risks inherent in their
aid interventions throughout each project’s lifecycle. This
also enables them to improve project quality.
In 2009, PROPARCO underscored the Group’s commitment
to responsible private-sector financing and investment by
signing the Declaration of Principles promulgated by the
Association of European Development Finance Institutions
(EDFI)56. The Declaration mirrors the precepts of the UN-
backed Principles for Responsible Investment Initiative57
– a network of institutional investors practicing six prin-
ciples of environmental, social and corporate governance.
Two environmental and social support (E&SS) offices
underpin AFD’s and PROPARCO’s respective commitments
to responsible aid financing and implementation:
1. Environmental and Social Support
Department58 :
created within AFD in 2007, this department compri-
sed four environmental experts and two sociologists in
2011.
2. Environmental and Social Impacts Unit59 : created
within PROPARCO in 2010, this unit comprised three mul-
tidisciplinary experts in 2011.
Providing Appropriate Risk Management Support
AFD Group created its environmental, social and gover-
nance policy in 2007 to improve risk management, since
any development project – no matter how well-intentioned
– may adversely affect populations or the environment.
To manage these risks while pursing the Group’s sustai-
nable development mandate, both AFD and PROPARCO
56. For more information on EDFI, see http://www.edfi.be/.
57. For the entire list of six principles, see http://www.unpri.org/principles/.
58. Division d’Appui Environnemental et Social, or AES.
59. Unité Environnement Social et Impacts, or UESI.
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•Monitoring risk prevention and mitigation measures
during project execution.
AFD and PROPARCO project teams can turn to their res-
pective environmental and social support departments for
the following services:
•Assistance for pre-funding risk assessments and post-
funding risk management.
•Analysis of the project team’s risk management
approach and effectiveness.
•Monitoring of aid beneficiaries’ compliance with contrac-
tual commitments.
•Design and deployment of tools for environmental and
social risk assessment, risk monitoring, and post-project
evaluation.
•In-house training and writing of standard risk-manage-
ment clauses for contracts.
•Contributions to knowledge production and the Group’s
risk management expertise.
subject all “qualified”60 aid projects61 to a systema-
tic “ex-ante” risk assessment (that is, before approving
funding for a project). The AFD and PROPARCO project
teams perform a preliminary environmental and social
risk assessment, and their respective E&SS and project
teams detail these potential risks. The teams then join
with the borrower or grant recipient to monitor the actual
project risks during implementation. The teams do this
whether such projects are financed directly by AFD or PRO-
PARCO, or through financial intermediaries, such as banks.
Following steps similar to those that fight corruption and
poor governance within and without the Group, AFD and
PROPARCO project teams apply the following controls to
mitigate environmental and social risks in their qualified
aid operations:
•Preventively assessing each project’s social and envi-
ronmental effects – including climate change impacts –
prior to funding and implementation.
•Proposing suitable measures to avert, abate or offset
anticipated negative effects.
60. The following types of financing proposals do not qualify for ex-ante assessments: subventions and delegated funding from the French foreign ministry, refinancing for very indebted poor countries, funding for feasibility and other studies, funding from the European Union, and so forth.
61. “Projects” are all development aid interventions except those funded by so-called “comprehensive” aid. Comprehensive aid projects do not go through the review process, and/or their financing covers a wide variety of purposes within a single project.
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•Defining the due diligence required of the project team.
•Assisting with due diligence and project examination
for projects that present high risk levels (A-level) or that
will need special support, such as for A-level financial
institutions.
•Requiring the aid beneficiary to develop risk mitigation
measures and ways to improve project performance.
•Formalizing the aid beneficiary’s commitments in risk
mitigation and performance improvement, via a project
financing contract.
•Creating an action plan with the borrower or grant reci-
pient to operationalize the commitments and track their
implementation.
•Analyzing and reporting on the effectiveness of the
E&SS strategy, its measures and action plan implemen-
tation; reviewing the periodic progress reports submitted
by the aid beneficiary; conducting oversight visits to the
project if it presents high risk levels.
•Analyzing and reporting the completed project’s actual
and residual risks, and the outcomes and performance of
the E&SS procedures and plans.
•Monitoring of trends in risk management practices and
participation in international conferences.
•Developing partnerships with other donors and lenders,
encouragement of common risk management practices,
and review of joint project proposals prior to approval.
Regarding the last point – creating common practices and
procedures among peer institutions – AFD currently works
with the World Bank, KfW and the European Investment
Bank, while PROPARCO collaborates with EDFI and the
World Bank’s private sector arm, the International Finance
Corporation (IFC).
As mentioned previously, in addition to helping internal
project teams, the AFD and PROPARCO environmental and
social support (E&SS) departments also assist aid benefi-
ciaries to improve the environmental and social quality of
their projects and labor practices. The E&SS experts pro-
vide technical assistance, advice and consulting services,
helping borrowers and grant recipients follow international
standards and receive certifications. The E&SS experts
also identify financial levers that motivate aid beneficia-
ries to improve their performances. For every qualified AFD
Group project, the E&SS experts follow these procedures:
•Identifying potential environmental and social risks, and
assessing risk levels in conjunction with the AFD or PRO-
PARCO project team (see box on risk level classifications).
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AFD Group Standards for Project Acceptance
AFD Group has listed exclusionary criteria that it
uses to deny project-funding requests on ethical,
regulatory, environmental or social grounds. Boards
of governors of both AFD and PROPARCO
validated the list at the beginning of 2011, and
codified the criteria in the Group’s July 2011 guide
to financing tenders in foreign countries62.
All Group-financed foreign aid operations must
comply with the target country’s national laws.
However, in cases where a country’s laws are
incomplete or changing, the Group applies
standards, rules and good practices for project
financing, as set by multilateral peer institutions,
including:
- The World Bank safeguard policies63 for public
sector financing64.
- The International Finance Corporation
performance standards for private sector financing.
The Group also draws on their international
conventions, declarations and guidelines that it (and
its aid beneficiaries) have signed, including:
- The United Nations Convention on the elimination
of all forms of discrimination against women65.
In addition, AFD Group and its aid-receiving
countries also draw on the conventions and
guidelines mentioned in the introduction to this
report: the U.N. Charter for universal human rights,
the ILO conventions for workers rights, and the
OECD guidelines for multinational enterprises. ■
62. The AFD Group guide to financing tenders in foreign countries is available on http://www.afd.fr/webdav/site/afd/shared/PORTAILS/SECTEURS/ENTREPRISE/pdf/Guide_Passation_Marches_AFD.pdf
63. For more information, see http://go.worldbank.org/WTA1ODE7T0.
64. For the IFC standards, see http://www.ifc.org/ifcext/enviro.nsf/AttachmentsByTitle/pol_PerformanceStandards2006_full/$FILE/IFC+Performance+Standards.pdf
65. For more information on the so-called CEDAW convention, see http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/cedaw/.
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Ex-Ante Assessment Coverage
Over time, AFD Group has increased the number of pro-
ject proposals that qualify for environmental and social
risk assessments during the funding review process..
When the Group began its ex-ante assessment procedures
in 2008 (after implementing its corporate responsibility
policy in 2007), AFD’s E&SS team performed an ex-ante
assessment on all but 12% of AFD’s qualifying financing
proposals, which represented only 0.6% of AFD funding
that year. The unanalyzed proposals were both low risk
(C-level) and low value.
By 2011, the AFD E&SS team performed an ex-ante risk
assessment on all but 6% of qualified projects, which
represented only 0.3% of AFD funding that year. Since
2009, the PROPARCO E&SS team has performed an ex-
ante assessment of the environmental and social risks
and impacts on 100% of its qualified financing proposals.
In 2011, the social and environmental risks allocation by
value and by volume for authorized AFD and PROPARCO
projects stood as follows:
AFD Group Portfolio Risk Levels
In accordance with international standards,
AFD Group classifies the projects that it directly
finances according to three levels of social and
environmental risk: (1) A-level indicating high risk,
(2) B-level indicating moderate risk, and (3) C-level
indicating low or no risk. In addition, the projects
that the Group finances through an intermediary
financial institution are coded FI and A, B, or C,
depending on the financial institution’s overall
portfolio risk, as in FI-A, FI-B or FI-C. ■
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AFD Group Approved Project Portfolio Environmental and Social Risk Levels 2011 (by volume)
31
6
12
34 25
19
A-level: high risk
B-level: moderate risk
C-level: no risk
Directly Financed ProjectsRisk Levels
FI-A-level: high risk
FI-B-level: moderate risk
FI-C-level: no risk
Intermediary Financial InstitutionPortfolio Risk Levels
Unrated
AFD Group Approved Project Portfolio Environmental and Social Risk Levels 2011(by value)
54
14
14
11
5
10
AFD Group Approved Project Portfolio Environmental and Social Risk Levels 2011 (by volume)
31
6
12
34 25
19
A-level: high risk
B-level: moderate risk
C-level: no risk
Directly Financed ProjectsRisk Levels
FI-A-level: high risk
FI-B-level: moderate risk
FI-C-level: no risk
Intermediary Financial InstitutionPortfolio Risk Levels
Unrated
AFD Group Approved Project Portfolio Environmental and Social Risk Levels 2011(by value)
54
14
14
11
5
10
AFD Group Approved Project Portfolio Environmental and Social Risk Levels 2011 (by volume)
31
6
12
34 25
19
A-level: high risk
B-level: moderate risk
C-level: no risk
Directly Financed ProjectsRisk Levels
FI-A-level: high risk
FI-B-level: moderate risk
FI-C-level: no risk
Intermediary Financial InstitutionPortfolio Risk Levels
Unrated
AFD Group Approved Project Portfolio Environmental and Social Risk Levels 2011(by value)
54
14
14
11
5
10
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Bujagali Dam Hydropower Project in Uganda
Uganda suffers from a severe shortage of electricity.
Significant power outages negatively affect the
nation’s economy and citizen well-being. To
remedy this situation, AFD has helped finance a
250-megawatt hydroelectric dam near Bujagali
Falls on the Nile, above Lake Victoria in Uganda.
The power station will have five 50-megawatt
turbines and should increase Uganda’s total
electricity production capacity to a minimum of
520 megawatts, ample to meet demand and prevent
outages. The total project cost is US$906 million,
of which $612 million will go for construction work
and $8.5 million to compensate for environmental
and social costs.
A carbon footprint assessment of the Bujagali Dam
hydropower station predicts that over 50 years
the station will produce only 266,000 metric tons
equivalent of carbon dioxide (tCO2e); that is 112
to 220 times fewer greenhouse gas emissions than
the equivalent power produced by a thermal plant.
The Clean Development Mechanism certified
Five Examples of E&SS for Projects and Impacts
the project in 2011, and the aid beneficiary slated
to operate the dam should be able to sell 904,000
tCO2e of carbon offset credits per year.
In all, 85 families comprising 634 people will be
displaced by the dam, and relocated to a new village,
Naminya. Another 1,203 families representing 4,525
individuals will be affected by the dam through total
or partial expropriations of their cultivable land.
Thus a total of 1,288 families and 5,158 individuals
will receive financial compensation paid by the
hydropower project aid beneficiary.
When an AFD project team visited the area in 2003
to assess the project’s environmental and social
impacts, it found that residents of affected villages
had identified two critical problems – their lack of
access to drinking water and electricity. In addition,
the team saw that major erosion problems on the
steep banks of the Nile could benefit from a riverbank
reforestation program. AFD therefore financed
an additional $2.8 million program to cover these
supplementary environmental and social problems,
providing a grant within a subsidized loan for works
executed by the beneficiary.
By the end of 2011, more than the 400 hectares
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targeted for reforestation had been replanted,
primarily because of the riverside villagers’
remarkable mobilization. They took great interest in
the type of vegetation selected for the reforestation
project. Their need for drinking water access was
confirmed, and work on a water supply system was
finished in 2011 as well. The hydropower operating
company involved in the project agreed to pay each
household’s cost share for connecting to the rural
electrical grid. The remaining 70% of the cost was
covered by Uganda’s national rural electrification
agency. Because of AFD’s environmental and social
management program, the citizens most directly
affected by the project saw benefits over and beyond
the creation of infrastructure vital for the whole
country. ■
Corporate Responsibility and the Central Credit Fund in Vietnam
Vietnam presently counts a population of 85 million.
The majority (75%) live in rural areas, which
concentrate most of the country’s poorest residents.
In this context, lending services for rural populations
take on a special importance. In 1993, a small savings
and loan association, the People’s Credit Fund
(PCF), opened branches in towns and villages to
provide banking services to rural entrepreneurs not
served by national banks.
AFD granted a refinancing loan to the PCF
savings and loan network, which counts more than
1,000 branches mutually owned by their member-
companies. The network enjoys very high loyalty from
its members because of its cooperative status. The
savings and loans offer proximity, an understanding
of customers, and a solid network of local branch
offices.
In light of this, AFD also made a grant to the PCF
network to take advantage of its member-based
network. The grant monies helped the savings and
loan association play a new role – that of sharing
good social, environmental and labor practices
among its member-companies. The PCF network
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set up an innovative social and environmental risk-
management system. Its loan officers now consider
these risks alongside the financial aspects of each
loan application. The AFD project team assisted the
PCF network via a four-step process:
(1) Writing an environmental and social policy;
(2) Developing a manual for loan officers to
help them address environmental and social issues
relevant to entrepreneurs;
(3) Using the manual to train in-house trainers;
(4) Training the loan officers in the PCF branches.
The environmental and social policy serves two
complementary objectives: it increases PCF customer
awareness of their businesses’ impact on society,
workers and the environment, and it shares good
practices for managing these effects.
When a PCF loan officer grants a loan to a
farmer, for example, the loan officer will discuss the
farmer’s business and talk about ways to improve
environmental, health, safety and labor practices.
The loan officer may cover specific, farming-related
subjects, such as appropriate fertilizer use, proper
storage of food, or proper storage of hazardous
materials in enclosed areas away from children. The
discussion may touch on child labor issues or the use
of protective gear, such as masks, goggles, gloves
and overalls, when using fertilizers or other toxic
chemicals.
If the loan officer is working with a borrower
from a farming-related activity, such as equipment
or vehicle repair, he or she may suggest the best
ways to manage hazardous waste, such as battery
acid and oil residues from machines – residues that
cause water pollution without proper disposal. The
officer might also discuss the storage of hazardous
waste, and how to avoid chemical reactions,
explosions, fires, leaks and poisoning, while making
other suggestions for safe working conditions.
This pragmatic and systematic approach allows
loan officers in the PCF network to offer a new
service to their customers, increasing customer
loyalty while disseminating best practices for
environmental and social concerns – practices that
will benefit local entrepreneurs. ■
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A Responsible Line of Credit for Halk Bank in Turkey
Commercial and retail banks are generally large
companies that strongly affect a country’s economic
fabric. AFD Group makes refinancing loans to
banks – loans that ultimately benefit local businesses,
particularly the small- and medium-size enterprises
(SMEs) that create the most jobs and contribute the
most to developing countries’ economies. Banks that
receive AFD Group financing play a central role in the
social and environmental consequences of the business
activities they finance in turn.
AFD Group promotes good social and environmental
practices in banking for two reasons: to strengthen
banks’ own corporate responsibility policies and risk
controls, and to encourage banks to educate their
business customers about these concerns and practices.
For example, AFD set up a partnership agreement
with Halkbank in Turkey in order to relay good social
and environmental practices to the bank’s customers.
A state-owned bank created in 1938, Halkbank has
a large, nationwide branch network that includes
disadvantaged areas. AFD granted a first line of credit
to Halkbank in 2007. This allowed AFD to raise
awareness of social and environmental responsibility
issues among the bank’s 400 staff members and 30
small- and medium-size business customers. After
this initial success, a second line of credit financed an
ambitious corporate responsibility program for three
years, from 2008 to 2011.
The second credit line’s underlying program had
two main components. The first affected Halkbank
directly, aiming to help the bank manage the social and
environmental risks in its loan portfolio and to train
bank employees on the subject. The AFD project team
accomplished this by setting up specific due diligence
procedures in Halbank’s loan approval process and by
providing training courses for all bank staff members.
The second component helped Halkbank’s SME
customers through various means, including:
- Granting loans to 160 SMEs in disadvantaged and
remote areas;
- Producing a campaign to raise SME awareness
about corporate responsibility concerns, while training
SME managers and staff on issues such as workplace,
environmental law compliance, and conservation
of water and energy. SMEs also received free risk
audits and certification assistance for ISO 14001
(environmental management) and OHSAS 18001
(a British Standard for occupational health and safety
management systems). ■
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Raising Environmental Standards at an Indonesian Paper Manufacturer
PT Fajar Surya Wisesa Tbk (FSW) is Indonesia’s
second largest producer of industrial paper for
cardboard and brown paper bags. FSW uses 100%
recycled paper, purchased in Indonesia for the
most part. The company, which received an ISO
14001 environmental management certification
in June 2010, expects to reach its full paper
production capacity of 1,000,000 tons in 2012.
FSW’s efforts to reduce its environmental
footprint distinguish it from its competitors. These
efforts include:
- Recycling waste paper.
- Reducing energy consumption by co-generating
electricity and steam with an on-site waste
incinerator.
- Using two wastewater treatment plants and
reducing water consumption by reusing the treated
wastewater.
FSW called on PROPARCO to finance the
purchase and installation of a new incinerator to
burn all wastepaper by-products and to produce
steam for the cardboard production process.
In connection with its financing, PROPARCO
commissioned an environmental and social audit
of FSW to assess its compliance with IFC’s
international performance standards and to
determine any additional actions needed.
The audit identified the need to address waste
incinerator emissions. Prior to working with
PROPARCO, FSW did not have any controls on
the incinerator to curb dioxin and furan emissions.
These toxic substances have important, proven
health risks. However, Indonesian law does
not require any air pollution controls for such
emissions.
PROPARCO therefore made an agreement
with FSW management: the company would curb
and regularly measure the quantity of dioxin and
furan emitted by the two incinerators, to ensure
that levels complied with international limits.
FSW managers also agreed to improve their
environmental and social risk management system
within twelve months. The management team
specifically promised to:
- Make hazardous materials storage safer.
- Secure access to the landfill and block
neighbors’ entry for safety reasons.
- Improve fire prevention and protection systems.
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- Require subcontractors to comply with FSW’s
environment, health and safety management
system. This extension of the system meets
the intention of ISO 26000 – influencing the
company’s subcontractors toward good practices,
or even including subcontractors within the
company’s reporting scope. ■
Other AFD Group External Operations Having Social and Environmental GoalsAFD Group promotes aid operations that
further its fundamental sustainable development
goal. Three projects illustrate how AFD and
PROPARCO achieve this.
From 2011 through 2015, AFD has financed
a project that uses satellite data to monitor
changes in Central African forest cover. This
method is widely recognized as essential for
tracking changes, and as an indispensible tool in
reducing greenhouse gas emissions arising from
deforestation and environmental degradation.
AFD’s initiated this pilot project to meet Central
African countries’ need for satellite-generated data,
and will invest an estimated €11.5 million in the
project over five years.
In September 2011, AFD also made a €300
thousand grant to a nonprofit collective, “Ethics
on the Label” (Ethique sur l’Etiquette). The
project aims to improve respect for human and
worker rights in the production of exports for
sale in France, in line with ILO conventions and
the UN Charter. The nonprofit will campaign to
increase awareness about worker human rights,
aiming to motivate many French consumers –
about 200,000 people directly – to prefer ethically-
produced products. The campaign will also address
employers, public officials and others in producing
countries, both in the developing world and in
Asia, as well as in France and Europe.
In 2011, PROPARCO in turn showed its
commitment to socially and environmentally
responsible development by funding a €14.1
million hospital project, and nine renewable-energy
credit lines and projects for a total of €193.6
million. ■
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Improvement Plan for 2012-2016
(1) Develop more environmental and social risk assess-
ment tools to allow Group project managers, as well as
borrowers and grant recipients, to take greater ownership
of corporate responsibility issues.
(2) Improve aid beneficiaries’ in-house corporate responsi-
bility skills through continuous training, particularly for
in-house project managers.
(3) Improve monitoring of aid beneficiary efforts to meet
their environmental and social risk control obligations.
(4) Assess how well the Group responds to project team
opinions about environmental and social risks, both after
project reviews and during the project cycle, from funding
decisions through implementation monitoring.
(4) Improve consideration of environmental and social
impacts in completed project evaluations.
(5) Improve how Group teams assess and classify ser-
vices that generate environmental and social benefits, by
sector and purpose.
AFD Group’s Climate Strategy: An Exemplary Approach
Although climate concerns exceed the relatively narrow
focus of managing social and environmental risks in deve-
lopment projects, AFD Group has given its highest priority
to environmental preservation and climate change mitiga-
tion. The fight against climate change is inextricably linked
to economic and social development. Global warming’s
acceleration will hinder economic development over the
long term, just as economic development can exacerbate
warming through rapid increases in natural resource and
fossil fuel consumption.
As part of a 2012-2016 Climate Strategy validated by
AFD’s board of governors in November 2011 and by PRO-
PARCO’s in March 2012, AFD Group aims to become a
leading financier in the international fight against climate
change. It will deploy its experience, achievements and
advantages to help developing and emerging countries
meet the priorities and challenges posed by climate
change. The Group’s assistance will improve its aid bene-
ficiaries’ strategic integration of climate concerns and
their resilience to effects of climate change, while also
enhancing their economic and social development.
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(3) A policy of selecting projects according to their cli-
mate impacts, while also considering AFD’s geographic
mandates, each country’s level of development, and each
country’s development policy.
Measuring and Accounting for Impacts
Given the increased demand for transparency within civil
society and the international community, AFD Group has
established a clear and publicly available classification of
the climate-related projects that it finances.
AFD Group qualifies its standard development projects as
“climate projects” when they also fight climate change or
benefit the environment. This means that such projects
(1) reduce total GHG emissions more than they raise the
level of emissions during the project’s lifetime (mitigation),
and/or (2) reduce the vulnerability of populations, goods
and ecosystems to climate change impacts (adaptation).
These expected climate-change mitigations are calculated
via a particularly robust method, one developed to quantify
GHG emissions and reductions incurred in AFD-financed
projects. AFD is one of the few donors to have reached this
stage with its “Carbon Footprint Tool,” originally inspired by
AFD Group’s climate strategy rests on two main objectives:
(1) Positioning AFD Group as the central actor in French
funding commitments to fight climate change in developing
and emerging countries;
(2) Positioning AFD Group as a full-fledged actor in the
architecture of international climate finance, through its
deployment of European and other international climate-
related resources and mandates, and via its direct access
to thematic funds, notably the Green Climate Fund.
AFD Group grounds its climate strategy and identity on
three structural precepts, applied differentially according
to each country’s regional specificities66:
(1) An ambitious and sustained objective to make cli-
mate-related financing commitments equal to 50 percent
of AFD’s foreign-aid funding per year, and 30 percent of
PROPARCO’s annual total.
(2) Systematic measurement of every project’s carbon
footprint, using a robust and conservative internal method
from AFD Group’s operations manual67. The method calls
for estimating projects’ carbon footprints at the beginning
of each funding proposal review.
66. For more information, see the “Climate” portal on www.afd.fr.
67. For more information on AFD’s climate impact measurement method, see the “Climat” portal (in French) on http://climat.afd.fr and choose “Mesure des impacts.”
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In addition to the Climate Change department, a high-
level steering committee now guides the cross-functional
aspects of the Group’s climate strategy, ensuring coordi-
nation and mobilization between various departments.
The steering committee comprises representatives from
AFD and PROPARCO administrative divisions and from the
French Global Environment Facility secretariat69.
2011 Climate Project Results
In 2011, AFD Group committed nearly €2 billion to deve-
lopment projects that also fought climate change, of which
€1.6 billion financed greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions-
reduction (mitigation) projects, while the other €400 mil-
lion financed adaptation projects, for a total of 45 pro-
jects and programs. In addition, the Group committed
€48 million to financing “mixed” projects that have both
adaptation and mitigation effects. Of the total 2011 com-
mitments to climate projects, AFD authorized funding for
€1.815 billion, while PROPARCO’s share reached €179
million for six climate projects.
AFD Group uses a precise accounting method to improve
the transparency of communication about climate-related
work done by France’s Environment and Energy Manage-
ment Agency68. AFD leads the effort among international
donors to harmonize their carbon-footprint measurement
approaches.
AFD has also established classifications for projects that
target economies adapting to climate change. The classi-
fication system identifies regional vulnerabilities and the
types of action needed to reduce them. AFD has another
tool in development that would estimate its own projects’
vulnerabilities to climate change; this should foster solu-
tions to potential problems both when new projects come
under review and during their lifetime.
An Internal Division Dedicated to Fighting Climate Change
AFD has set up a Climate Change department to develop
tools and provide operational support, monitoring, and
implementation advice for of the Group’s climate stra-
tegy. The division integrates anti-climate-change diligence
and objectives into AFD’s standard procedures. These
procedures include the project classification and climate
impacts measurement mentioned above.
68. Agence de l’environnement et de la maîtrise de l’énergie, or ADEME.
69. Fonds Français pour l’Environnement Mondial, or FFEM.
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While substantial, the Group’s total commitment to cli-
mate projects in 2011 was some €71.3 million less than
in 2010, although the difference may be simply due to
the funding approval calendar for large projects. In 2011,
climate project commitments represented 41% of all AFD
commitments to foreign countries (compared with 55%
in 2010) and 19% of PROPARCO’s total (compared with
27% in 2010)70.
actions. Funding is classified as mitigation-related when
the completed project’s direct and estimated carbon foot-
print shows that it will reduce or (in the case of renewable
energy projects) avoid more than 10,000 tCO2e, compared
with pre-project conditions. Mitigation projects also include
those without measureable carbon footprints that are dedi-
cated to pro-climate actions, such as budget support for
a country’s national climate plan, bank credit lines dedi-
cated to financing renewable energy or energy efficiency,
and capacity-building for climate change issues. Funding
is classified as adaptation-related based on a matrix that
shows how the development project will lower a region’s
vulnerability.
70. AFD counts commitments to foreign countries in the year that the strategic board approves (commits) the financing, except for funding implemented on behalf of the French government or for global budgetary aid, debt-reduction contracts, credit risk guarantees for PROPARCO, and international funds and facilities, such as the Clean Technology Fund. PROPARCO counts the guarantees it receives from AFD in its annual commitments.
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AFD Group Climate Project Commitments 2005-2011
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
in € Millions
Number of " Climate projects "
Mitigation commitments (+ mixed)
Adaptation commitments (+ mixed)
17
38
49
72 70
43
18
AFD Group Climate Project Commitments 2005-2011
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
in € Millions
Number of " Climate projects "
Mitigation commitments (+ mixed)
Adaptation commitments (+ mixed)
17
38
49
72 70
43
18
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YEAR FUNDING APPROVED 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 TOTAL
Mitigation and mixed projects 16 18 28 34 51 53 35 235
Mitigation commitments (€ Million) 422 568 626 1,074 1,996 2,534 1,607 8,827
Average project value (€ Million) 25 32 21 33 40 48 46 38
Adaptation and mixed projects N/A N/A 29 24 27 22 15 117
Adaptation commitments (€ Million) N/A N/A 216 309 430 422 436 1,813
“Climate Projects” 17 18 38 49 72 68 45 307
“Climate” commitments total (€ Million) 422 568 779 1,236 2,388 2,707 1,994 10,094
AFD Group Adaptation and Mitigation Allocations 2005-2011
Commitments for Adaptation Projects
AFD Group Commitments for Adaptation Projects by Sector 2011
AFD Group classifies its climate-change adaptation pro-
jects into three categories:
1. Projects that conserve water, preserving it for the future.
2. Projects that improve the preservation and conservation
of other natural resources, such as forests, agricultural
land and fisheries.
3. Projects that add to knowledge about climate change
impacts.
Similarly to 2010, in 2011 the vast majority (87% by
value, 54% by number) of AFD commitments for adaptation
projects addressed water conservation. One-third of the
adaptation projects targeted agricultural land and other
natural resource preservation, representing 13% of com-
mitments by value.
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Agriculture and natural resources
Knowledge creation
Water
Adaptation projects by value 2011 (€ million)Adaptation projects by volume 2011
8
54%
2
13%
5
33%
382
87%
43
10%
11
3%
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Latin America and Caribbean
Asia and Pacific
North Africa and Middle East
Sub-saharian Africa
Adaptation projects by value 2011 (€ million) Adaptation projects by volume 2011
11426%
15235% 150
34%
215% 10
66%
320%
17%
17%
Geographically, the African continent – most vulnerable to
climate change – drew the majority of commitments for
adaptation projects. The sum was equally split between
the Sub-Saharan Africa (35%) and the North Africa (35%)
regions. In 2011, the Group made significant new commit-
ments to adaptation projects in Latin America, primarily for
a comprehensive water management project in Colombia.
However, adaptation commitments to Asia fell sharply,
from a 46% share in 2010 to 5% in 2011.
AFD Group Commitments for Adaptation Projects by Region 2011
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Commitments for Mitigation Projects
AFD group commitments for mitigation projects by sector 2011
An analysis of carbon footprints for AFD’s 2011 mitigation
project commitments shows that they should help avoid
or reduce 3.8 million tCO2e of emissions per year over
their lifetime. Since 2005, in cumulative terms, AFD Group
funding for mitigation projects should help avoid or reduce
emissions by more than 24 million tCO2e annually.
The energy sector received the largest share of directly-
funded mitigation project commitments (56%), and also
those funded through financial intermediaries (17%), via
bank credit lines for projects promoting renewable energy
and energy efficiency. Commitments for low-carbon urban
transportation projects decreased compared with 2010;
the transportation sector received 11% by value and 3%
by project volume, as several proposals under review were
pushed into 2012. Mitigation project commitments for
the agricultural land and forestry sectors declined from
€120 million for six projects in 2010 to €11 million for
four projects in 2011. Budget support for national climate
plans or policies declined from €545 million in 2010 to
€174 million in 2010.
Mitigation projects by value 2011 (€ million) Mitigation projects by volume 2011
Urban transportation
Carbon funds
Waste management
Carbon sequestration
Renewables
Financial intermediation
Budgetary aid
Energy efficiency
Fuel switch
40%14
4
39%
26%
26%
13%1
3%
11%
411%
411%
38%610
265
174
171
167 15930
21 11
16%
11%
11%
10%10%
2%1% 1%
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North Africa remained nearly the same, despite the uphea-
vals in the region. Mitigation commitments to Latin Ame-
rica and the Caribbean also show few changes. Mitigation
commitments for France’s overseas provinces remained
modest at €17 million. That sum does not reflect some
localities’ steps toward implementing new French energy
and climate adaptation policies, those that emerged from
the so-called Grenelle Environment roundtables.
AFD group commitments for mitigation projects by region 2011
Compared with 2010, regional allocation of 2011 commit-
ments changed more for mitigation than for adaptation.
Contributions to Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia declined.
However, this decrease may have arisen because some
project proposal reviews shifted into 2012, and because
terms and conditions for Asian interventions are being
renegotiated. Conversely, mitigation commitments for
Latin America and Caribbean
Asia and Pacific
North Africa and Middle East
French overseas provincesSub-saharian Africa
Mitigation projects by value 2011 (€ million) Mitigation projects by volume 2011
1234%
7
20%
823%5
14%
39%
31119%
583
37%
39925%
29718%
171%
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Climate Project Examples
Among the 45 climate projects AFD Group committed
to funding in 2011 – either directly or indirectly through
bank credit lines – those dedicated to mitigation included
clean energy projects, such as a solar thermal power plant
in Morocco, a hydropower dam in Panama, and energy-
efficient new building construction in China; sustainable
urban transportation projects, such as a second metro
line in Santo Domingo; and a carbon sequestration project
that featured “agroforestry” farming in rural Madagascar.
Projects dedicated to adaptation mainly focused on better
management of water and other natural resources, such
as repairing and upgrading water systems in Mozambique,
bolstering water infrastructure in Vietnam, and restoring
mangroves along Guinea’s coastline. Adaptation projects
also fostered knowledge about climate change impacts,
such as a climate change database developed in Ethiopia.
In addition, AFD approved two programs to provide general
budget support for national climate plans and policies in
Turkey and in Vietnam.
Carbon Footprints for Bank Credit Lines
The Group indirectly funds climate projects by providing
local and regional banks with dedicated credit lines. The
Group estimates the carbon impacts of these credit lines
in two ways, as commitments and as disbursements:
(1) Commitments in 2011 totaled €150 million for two
credit lines, one for energy efficiency and the other for
renewables; these are projected to reduce or avoid 230
thousand metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emis-
sions per year.
(2) Disbursements in 2011 totaled €176 million (out of
€545 million committed in previous years) for seven ener-
gy-efficiency or renewables credit lines in five countries
– China, India, Mauritius, Tunisia and Turkey; these are
projected to reduce or avoid 1.8 million metric tons of
carbon dioxide equivalent emissions per year.
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Beginning in 2012, the Group will determine the carbon
footprint and climate contribution for every proposed pro-
ject during the project review phase (prior to funding appro-
val); highly GHG-emissive projects may be rejected in some
cases, depending on the target country, its level of deve-
lopment, and its policy for fighting climate change. This
criterion combines with others in AFD’s standard impacts
analyses, such as poverty reduction, local employment,
and other social or environmental criteria. ■
Improvement Plan for 2012-2016
For the 2012-2016 period, AFD Group has committed to
achieving three objectives, by combining its ambitious
poverty alleviation and social development projects with
those benefitting climate:
(1) Raising annual funding for climate-related projects to
these levels:
- 50 percent of AFD’s annual foreign aid funding.
- 30 percent of PROPARCO’s annual foreign aid funding.
To achieve these commitments, oversight of the Group’s
climate-related activities will take place before and during
project planning and implementation.
(2) Systematically measuring and monitoring each project’s
carbon footprint.
AFD Group set up a procedure for measuring projects’
carbon footprints in 2011; it aims to gradually increase
the percentage of monitored projects from 70% in 2012
to 100% by 2016.
(3) Selecting projects according to their carbon footprint
and their contribution to fighting climate change.
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Our Commitment to Our People
FD Group’s human resources strategy arti-
culates the organization’s central values:
commitment, integrity, openness and mobi-
lity. These values find their expression in the
Group’s employment policies:
•Providing good working conditions to attract and retain
talented people.
AOur Work Force6.
AFD « 2011 World Meeting » participants
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•Ensuring consistency and transparency in career-buil-
ding and support, encouraging high-quality and ongoing
communications with employees and trade union repre-
sentatives.
•Promoting diversity through special recruiting efforts
that extend equal opportunities to women, older workers
and the disabled.
•Promoting internal parity and equality, particularly
through an increased presence of women in management
positions and by improved hiring, training and integration
of foreign nationals in the AFD field offices.
The Group has formalized these policies in “enterprise
agreements.” These agreements and other labor agree-
ments are further described in the AFD 2011 annual
report.
At the end of 2011, AFD Group counted 2,048 employees71
worldwide, 55 (3%) more than in 2010. Over the last
10 years, the employee roster for AFD, PROPARCO and
CEFEB has expanded by 23%. In that time, employees’
average age has declined; their average skill level has
increased, as have the percentages of women and of
foreign nationals working as managers in AFD field
offices. This actively-promoted effort to create favo-
rable working conditions fosters strong employee loyalty:
121 or fewer employees (6%) leave the company each year.
In accordance with its commitment to exemplary social
responsibility, the Group aims to consolidate its human
resources capital in 2012, following a period of expansion
and increased hiring.
71. This total includes nearly all employees who have transferred to work in French reserve banks in the overseas provinces.
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AFD Group Employee Distribution 2009-2011 Group Employee
* Not including apprentices and interns ** Since 2007, this number includes local and foreign hires and foreign consultants
EMPLOYEE HEADCOUNT End 2009 End 2010 End 2011
France (mainland)* 851 914 955
Field offices 152 159 151
Technical assistants 7 7 6
Transferees 28 23 22
AFD GROUP LOCAL AND FOREIGN EMPLOYEES** 1038 1103 1134
French overseas provinces 102 106 108
Foreign countries** 393 416 439
AFD GROUP LOCAL AND FOREIGN EMPLOYEES** 495 522 547
TOTAL AFD GROUP EMPLOYEES 1533 1625 1681
Reserve bank France employees* 103 104 105
Reserve bank local and foreign employees** 263 264 262
TOTAL RESERVE BANK EMPLOYEES 366 368 367
TOTAL EMPLOYEES MANAGED BY AFD GROUP 1899 1993 2048
AFD Group international volunteers 84 90 75
Reserve bank international volunteers 6 6 3
TOTAL INTERNATIONAL VOLUNTEERS 90 96 78
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Distribution by Geographic Region 2011 (Not including France)
49%
13%
15%
6%17%
North Africa & Middle East
Asia & Pacific
Latin America & Caribbean
French Overseas Provinces
Sub-saharan Africa
49%
13%
15%
6%17%
North Africa & Middle East
Asia & Pacific
Latin America & Caribbean
French Overseas Provinces
Sub-saharan Africa
FRENCH ExPATRIATES LOCAL FOREIGN HIRES INTERNATIONAL
VOLUNTEERS TOTAL AFD GROUP
Sub-Saharan Africa 69 267 44 380 49%
North Africa & Middle East 23 67 7 97 13%
Asia & Pacific 28 77 14 119 15%
Latin America & Caribbean 10 28 8 46 6%
French Overseas Provinces 21 108 1 130 17%
TOTAL 151 547 74 772 100%
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Avenues to Improvement
AFD Group’s greatest asset is its highly-qualified work
force. The human resources department strives to offer
the most favorable working conditions possible in order
to attract, retain and motivate talented employees. This
strategy centers on six essential efforts: performance
evaluation, remuneration, benefits, flextime, health and
safety, and equality and diversity.
Working conditions
Performance Evaluation
Several years ago, the Group instituted an annual perfor-
mance review program for all employees. The direct super-
visor interviews each employee and writes an evaluation
based on explicit criteria, assessing the employee’s per-
formance over the year. The performance review allows
managers to recognize employee contributions based
on job descriptions and jointly defined objectives. The
evaluation also determines training priorities and each
employee’s potential for professional growth.
Remuneration
The AFD Human Resources division ensures fair and high-
incentive remuneration for all employees worldwide. It
regularly reviews salary practices in each market, adjusting
a common baseline to fit each country. All employees are
included in the Group’s profit-sharing plan.
Group Employee Turnover 2011
Reasons for leaving AFD Group 2011 Total Employee
turnover rate
Retirement 45 2.2%
Quit 38 1.9%
End of transferee contract 7 0.3%
End of short-term contract 17 0.8%
Departure after trial period 7 0.3%
Dismissal* 4 0.2%
Death 3 0.1%
TOTAL 121 5.9%
Of which the overseas reserve banks 17
*Dismissals usually occur because of physical inability to do job
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Health and Safety
AFD Group takes the health and safety of all of its
employees seriously, wherever they are located. A com-
mittee dedicated to overall occupational health and safety
issues meets at least four times per year. An occupa-
tional safety unit, comprising some of these committee
members along with health and safety office experts and
human resources staff, also meets regularly to prevent
or resolve individual problems. Monthly human resources
meetings permit employee representatives to identify wor-
kers who need medical or psychological attention; the
relevant supervisors are also involved in this procedure.
All employees undergo annual medical and psychological
exams. The Group’s occupational physician prepares an
annual report on health issues that arise during the year,
which is then included in the occupational health and
safety committee’s report. The occupational safety unit
prepares and maintains standards and procedures used
in all locations to protect workers from a variety of risks,
such as terrorism, earthquakes, bird flu and other epide-
mics. If an event occurs that could jeopardize overseas
employee safety, a crisis unit and repatriation protocols
stand at the ready. Additional measures are provided on a
case-by-case basis for local in-country staff members. For
further preventive health care, the Group covers the cost of
vaccinations for employees working and traveling abroad.
Benefits
In 2011, all employees received national health, disability,
life and pension insurance coverage. All employees also
receive supplemental private insurance, provided where
needed by the Group. In particular, locally-recruited staff
members in foreign countries receive the same benefits
as employees working at the Paris headquarters. The
Group pays 100% of the premiums for disability and life
insurance, which covers active and retired employees and
their spouses.
Flextime
AFD Group offers various ways for employees at the
Paris headquarters and CEFEB to modify their working
hours and find a better work-life balance. For example,
employees may choose to work part-time or use a “vaca-
tion-days savings account,” and they also benefit from
France’s 35-hour workweek. They may also work from
home occasionally if their colleagues and manager agree
to that. In AFD field offices in foreign countries, locally-hired
employees enjoy a “French” employment status that allows
them to work 35 hours per week rather than the local
legal limit, which usually averages 37.5. All the Group’s
rules about working hours comply with ILO guidelines.
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responses and actions, especially during major
crises such as armed conflicts, natural catastrophes
and political upheavals. The administrative, human
resources and field office directors help initiate
security procedures and measures as needed. ■
AFD Group General Safety Measures for Employees and Materiel
Many AFD Group employees travel the world,
working with information stored on computers and
online. This makes employee safety and the security of
company data, materials and assets a high priority for
business continuity.
AFD Group’s chief executive regularly emphasizes
the importance of employee safety. In 2010, he signed
a Code of Safety that formalized this for employees
who work in AFD field offices, located in more than
60 countries. The chief executive works with senior
managers from headquarters and the field offices to
review safety measures and security risks. He also
makes a safety guide available to all permanent staff
members via the Group’s intranet; the guide details
procedures for the protection of people, data, and
other assets in specific situations.
Whenever senior management identifies an
unacceptable risk, it immediately responds with
the appropriate measures to reduce or eliminate
it. Risks are ranked by four levels, from low to
major. The occupational safety unit working at the
Paris headquarters constantly monitors risks for
headquarters and all offices. It proposes suitable
Equality, Parity and Diversity
AFD Group endeavors to give all equally-skilled job can-
didates equal access to employment, while paying extra
attention to its commitments to gender parity and diver-
sity. Discrimination is illegal in France, and AFD Group has
never faced judicial action on the subject.
In 2007, after signing a specific labor agreement with
employee trade union representatives, the Group instituted
a policy to actively hire and retain people with disabilities.
This agreement will be renegotiated in 2012; it will aim
to increase hires by outsourcing positions to specialized
job centers that subcontract to the disabled.
As the number of field offices has grown in recent years,
the Group has hired more foreign nationals as mana-
gers and permanent staff members in those offices. The
Group has also hired more young people through so-
called “youth training apprenticeship” or “alternating”
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In 2007, AFD Group signed a preliminary labor agree-
ment to promote employment parity between women
and men. In June 2011, a new agreement reiterated and
updated this commitment. It sets targets to promote the
contracts; the latter allow youth to pursue schooling while
interning with the company during alternating weeks,
months or years. In 2011, five young employees were
hired on youth training contracts and one as an intern.
AFD Group Employee Distribution by Age and Gender 2011 (as of 31 December 2011)
Total: 2,048 (Men = 994 or 48.5% / Women: 1,054 or 51.5%)Average age: 44 (Men: 45.5 / Women: 42.5)
Men Women
52 - 25
10450 25 à 29
192112 30 à 34
162141 35 à 39
130155 40 à 44
143157 45 à 49
163155 50 à 54
116151 55 à 59
3971 60 and +
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Good Labor Relations
AFD Group management considers good relationships and
dialogue with employee and trade union representatives
a central tenet of internal social responsibility. AFD Group
employees are covered by a special collective bargaining
agreement that applies to them alone. In addition, their
rights are protected by trade unions and French labor law.
Foreign nationals working in AFD field offices abroad may
also be covered by their countries’ collective bargaining
agreements for bank and financial institution workers.
The human resources director negotiates major changes to
employment practices or working conditions with the trade
unions and/or through formal consultation with employee
representatives. Major changes – those affecting working
conditions, training, employment, or the running of the
organization – can only come into effect after employee
representatives have had thirty days of information and/
or consultation. These representatives may come from
AFD, PROPARCO, CEFEB, or the overseas reserve banks72
and field offices, because all these Group employees work
professional development of women throughout their
careers, and applies to women employed as “managers”
under French law.
The Group’s target for December 31, 2013 would increase
representation of women at all levels of the company:
•Managers: 50%, up from 43.4% in 2011.
•Senior management (departments and divisions): 33%,
up from 25.4% in 2011.
•Field offices: 28%, up from 22.4% in 2011.
The Group also aims to promote women at the same rate
as men and in proportion to the targeted gender mix at
each level.
In 2012, the Group’s human resources department will
continue efforts to equalize pay between men and women
working in similar jobs. In cases where employees move
to overseas offices, the department will aim to make it
easier for their spouses to work in the country of trans-
fer; such a policy would overcome the main obstacle to
employee geographical mobility.
72. Institut d’Emission des Départements d’Outre-mer, or IEDOM and Institut d’Emission d’Outre-mer, or IEOM.
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CEFEB and the reserve banks collect individual and collec-
tive grievances about applications of labor law, rules, and
representation; they present these issues to managers in
the human resources department.
Four principles underpin AFD Group’s good labor relations:
(1) Constructive dialogue between senior management
and employee representatives propels the Group’s pro-
gress as a whole, since both sides seek to benefit the
collective interest.
(2) Respect for each side’s prerogatives and complemen-
tary roles informs discussions between senior manage-
ment and employee representatives.
(3) Professional negotiations, underpinned by the informa-
tion, training and external support that allow representa-
tives to exercise their mandate.
(4) Anticipation and quick resolution of problems, via the
Group’s tracking of labor-related changes and medium-
term trends..
under AFD contracts, as noted above. The representatives
sit on eight committees, with delegates as follows:
•Five Enterprise Committees, one for AFD and PRO-
PARCO at the Paris headquarters and four for the lar-
ger overseas field offices with more than 50 employees.
These committee representatives express the wishes of
employees concerning the Group’s management, finances,
economics, organization, working conditions, professional
training, and social welfare benefits. They also manage
social and cultural activities for employees and their fami-
lies, underwritten by the Group.
•One Central Work Council. This committee unites repre-
sentatives from the five committees above to review eco-
nomic and financial plans affecting employees covered by
French labor law.
•One AFD Group Committee. This committee unites all
the employee representatives from AFD, PROPARCO, CEFEB
and the overseas reserve banks.
•One AFD Group Occupational Health and Safety Com-
mittee. As mentioned previously, this committee works to
maintain or improve safety, security and working conditions
at AFD and PROPARCO headquarters in Paris, CEFEB in
Marseilles and in the field offices.
•In addition to the above representatives, employee
delegates from AFD Group headquarters, the field offices,
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the Group’s strategy, mission and concerns as well as
the work environment, so that they emerge well-prepared
for the organization’s present and future challenges. In
addition, employees promoted to management positions
receive management training and coaching.
The Group training policy dedicates substantial resources
to teaching and enhancement of foreign language skills.
It also focuses on specific technical skills related to the
Group’s many businesses – banking, finance, economics,
and project management. All employees follow a study
course that teaches core skills related to development aid
and to AFD Group’s role in the French cooperation system.
This “Development Business” track has gradually evolved
a more practical, project-oriented focus through a seminar
dedicated to fieldwork. In 2011 (the third year the seminar
was offered), three groups of employees visited projects
in Benin, Gabon and Réunion.
Building Sustainable Career Paths
Internal and geographic mobility
To retain the talented employees needed to execute AFD
Group’s development aid strategy, the human resources
department encourages internal and geographic mobility;
this helps employees create inspiring careers and gain new
skills. Human resources experts manage each individual’s
career path rather than applying a standard model. This
personalized attention creates better matches between
each employee’s skill set and the organization’s needs.
In 2011, 181 employees at AFD headquarters in Paris chan-
ged jobs within the company, received promotions and/or
took posts abroad. In the field offices, five employees were
promoted internally or stationed elsewhere; in the future,
the Group intends to increase mobility opportunities for
foreign nationals working in the field offices.
Professional Training
AFD Group develops employees’ skills by investing in pro-
fessional training programs above the legally-mandated
level, spending more than 4% of its gross payroll expense
on training, rather than the 1.6% minimum. The Group’s
training policy focuses on the induction of new hires. They
go through several weeks of seminars and activities to
become familiar with the Group’s operations and culture.
The induction process allows new hires to fully understand
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•Increased the Group’s commitment to gender parity in
hiring by signing a second labor equality agreement in June.
Improvement Plan for 2012-2016
(1) Continued enhancement of the talent and diversity of
the Group’s human capital through a recruitment policy
that will:
•Anticipate the skills that needed as aid intervention
strategies evolve.
•Aim for diversity and complementarity among employees.
(2) Continued building of sustainable individual career
paths through the following means:
•Assistance for internal and geographic mobility.
•Easier transfers between AFD, PROPARCO, CEFEB and
the reserve banks.
•Expertise transfers from senior to younger staff mem-
bers through mentoring.
•Strategic planning for work force skills training and
responsibilities.
(3) Additional training and coaching for managers.
(4) Completed redefinition of job descriptions, levels and
salary tables for employees hired in foreign countries. ■
2011 Human Resources Outcomes
To summarize the efforts outlined above, in 2011, the
AFD Group human resources department achieved the
following:
•Improved working conditions for employees hired abroad
by giving them a raise commensurate with France-based
employee salaries. The raise is worth one month’s wages,
known as the “13th month” in France.
•Extended labor relations and dialogue to employee
representatives from all the field offices through the World
Reunion meeting.
The Group “World Reunion” Meeting
In 2009, AFD Group created a new way to forge
work force cohesion and promote inter-employee
communication: the first “World Reunion” meeting.
The event’s goal is to increase cohesion between
employees working at headquarters in Paris and
those in the field offices. Between 2009 and 2011,
all field offices have seen one of their local national
employees attend the four-day seminar in Paris.
These employees share development experiences
from their countries, and in turn hear from
headquarters employees who present the Group’s
strategy and work in other regions. ■
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Managing AFD Group’s Environmental Footprint
s part of its corporate responsibility initiatives,
AFD Group has strategized ways to reduce
the environmental impact of its internal ope-
rations, similar to the “climate strategy” that
governs its external work. The resulting policies and action
plans both manage and reduce the effects of the Group’s
AEnvironmental Responsibility in our Internal Operations
7.
Videoconference between headquarters and field offices
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greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, fossil fuel consump-
tion, and waste production. The action plans largely rest
on carbon footprint measurements, energy audits, and
other environmental impact assessments. Other actions
include raising employees’ awareness about the impor-
tance of sustainable development and environmentally
responsible behavior.
Managing GHG Emissions
AFD Group has conducted annual carbon footprint mea-
surements at headquarters since 2006, and for its entire
office network since 2009. The Group aims to reduce the
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions generated by all its sites
to one-quarter the current amount by 2050, in accordance
with France’s so-called “Grenelle Factor 4” initiative.
The Group measures and ranks its GHG emissions with a
dashboard-type Carbon Footprint Tool, originally created by
the French Environment and Energy Management Agency73.
The ranking, from least to most significant source of emis-
sions, helps the Group target and reduce the GHG emis-
sions of both buildings and internal operations. Over time,
the Group has improved the original tool by collecting and
using real-life data, testing the data output’s applicability,
73.The original tool is known as the Bilan Carbone®, created by the Agence de l’environnement et de la maîtrise de l’énergie, or ADEME.
AFD Group HQ GHG emissions ranked by source 2011 (tCO2e)
Sources
tCO2 e
Travel
Freight
Purchases
Buildings
Servers
Waste
Energy
14489
4266
3031
730 45736 63
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AFD Group GHG Emissions 2006 to 2011 (tCO2e) (not including field offices)
20072006 2008 2009 2010 201115000
25000
24588
24163
23072
21102
19171
17304
tCO2 e
GHG EMISSIONS MEASURE 2009 2010 2011 VARIATION 2010-2011
AFD Group HQ TeqCO2 24,588 24,163 23,072 -5%
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Purchases appear a more challenging area for direct action,
as the Group cannot fully control suppliers’ manufacturing
or shipping processes.
Avenues to improvement
Managing Business Travel
Although it increased travel by opening field offices in
Mexico and Colombia in 2010, the Group installed video-
conference facilities at headquarters and every field office
in order to reduce intercompany and inter-office travel by
car, train and plane. Employees can remain at their desks
while collaborating with others on the projects they over-
see, participating in steering committee meetings and
roundtables, taking part in training courses, and watching
conferences and debates.
From 2010 to 2011, employees tripled their use of
videoconferencing from 233 to 705 videoconferences.
Employees and management appreciate not only the GHG
reductions videoconferencing offers, but its time-saving
aspects, too. The following table provides a monthly detail
of the 2011 videoconferences initiated at AFD Group head-
quarters and in field offices.
refining the measures and making them more reliable.
Instead of outsourcing the calculation process to the
energy agency, AFD Group now performs its own assess-
ments; this task falls within the remit of the Group’s head
of internal environment. Since 2009, the Group has also
conducted an annual energy audit of its headquarters.
The carbon footprint assessments and energy audits have
quantified the Group’s opportunities to reduce GHG emis-
sions and fight climate change. The primary avenues for
improvement include reduced business travel, increased
energy efficiency and renewables use in Group buildings,
and more carbon offset purchases. The graph below shows
the Group’s GHG emission sources ranked by magnitude.
The timeline shows that GHG emissions grew from 2006 to
2009 as the Group expanded its activities, until it initiated
steps (described below) to reduce and offset emissions
in 2009. From 2010 to 2011, overall GHG emissions
declined by 5% from 24,163 tCO2e to 23,069 tCO2e, as
shown below.
A development finance institution will obviously generate
the greatest single share of its GHG emissions via travel,
as employees move between Paris and other AFD offices,
or travel to and in aid-receiving countries to monitor pro-
jects. In 2011, business travel generated 14,889 tCO2e
of GHG emissions, followed by 4,266 tCO2e generated
by freight and 3,031 tCO2e generated by purchases.
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AFD field offices may also take steps to make environ-
mentally-friendly changes. For example, after seeing the
results of its carbon footprint assessment, the office in
Nouméa, New Caledonia began using shared minivans to
ferry employees between the office and the airport, instead
of using individual cars. However, even with videoconfe-
rencing and other steps, the average distance traveled by
a Group employee was 49,946 kilometers in 2011, gene-
rating 13.12 tCO2e – mostly from plane travel, as seen
in the chart and graph below.
AFD Group Videoconferencing Activity by Month and Location 2011
2011 JAN. FEB. MAR. APR. MAY JUNE JULY AUG. SEPT. OCT. NOV. DEC. TOTAL
HQ (AFD + PROPARCO)
49 64 75 56 75 59 60 22 72 58 59 43 692
Field Offices 1 2 2 0 3 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 13
TOTAL 50 66 77 56 78 62 60 22 72 60 59 43 705
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Employee Car
Commute
Employee Train
Employee Other
Employee Boat
Employee Plane
Visitor, All modes
AFD Group Travel Emissions by Tranportation Mode 2011
1836
9 0 6
12638
0 0
tCO2 e
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Managing Buildings and Computer Servers
As seen above, energy consumption in AFD Group headquar-
ters buildings ranks fifth among the Paris GHG emission
sources; the Group therefore launched a major energy-effi-
ciency drive in 2009 for its headquarters and field offices.
The effort centered on (1) optimizing temperature controls
for heating, cooling and ventilation, (2) replacing fossil
fuels with renewables, and (3) construction to high environ-
mental standards for new offices and employee housing.
This efficiency drive lowered energy consumption from 590
tCO2e in 2010, or 26% of all headquarters emissions,
to 457 tCO2e in 2011, or 20% of the total. The primary
areas of focus included computer servers, building tem-
peratures, alternative energies, and more environmentally-
friendly building practices. All of these efforts paid off in
2011 as shown below, as Group headquarters achieved
a 17% decrease in total energy consumption, including a
21% decrease per employee.
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BUSINESS TRAVEL GHG MEASURE 2009 2010 2011VARIATION 2010-2011
%
HQ and Field Offices Number 66 68 N/A N/A
Total Emissions tCO2e / year N/A 13,312 14,489 9%
Total Distance 1,000 km N/A 51,062 55,160 8%
Total Distance via Airplanes 1,000 km 20,501 22,421 N/A N/A
Emissions / employee tCO2e / employee N/A 12.72 13.12 3%
Distance / employee 1,000 km N/A 48,802 49,946 2%
N/A = not available
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more applications simultaneously while significantly redu-
cing each server’s energy consumption. This lowered the
amount of electricity consumed by Group computer ser-
vers from 114,075 Kw/H in the second quarter of 2010
to 89,109 Kw/H by the first quarter of 2011. In all, server
electricity consumption declined 24%, from 406,822 Kw/H
in 2010 to 306,415 in 2011.
Consolidating Computer Servers
Between 2009 and 2010 – as part of its 2007-2011
strategy to reduce its environmental footprint, energy
dependence and electricity bill – AFD Group reorganized
and consolidated its information technology services. It
increased the power of its Windows and Unix servers,
thereby increasing their capacity to manage data and run
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ENERGY CONSUMPTION MEASURE 2009 2010 2011 VARIATION 2010-2011 (%)
Total Energy/m²
kWh/m²/year(Useable surface*)
N/A 208 172 -17%
Kw/H/m²/year (Total surface)
N/A 245 202 -17%
Total Energy MWh/year 5,312 5,506 4,555 -17%
Total Energy/Employee Kw/H/employee/year 5,896 5,811 4,595 -21%
Total Electricity MWh/year N/A 3,629 3,443 -5%
Total Steam MWh/year 1,743 1,876 1,112 -41%
1. Useable surface does not include utility areas and wall space.
AFD Group HQ Building Energy, Electricity and Steam Consumption 2009-2011
N/A = not available
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Using More Renewable Energy
In accordance with France’s “Grenelle Environment II”
directive to improve energy efficiency in public buildings,
AFD Group has also increased the share of renewables
in its energy mix, via a specific contract with EDF, the
leading energy provider. This effort will include installing
solar water heaters and photovoltaic panels, studying
other renewables options, and constructing or buying more
energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly buildings.
Solar Water Heaters
The Group has launched a program in field offices to
replace 215 inefficient electric water heaters with solar
water heaters as the former units depreciate. Almost all
of the Group’s hot water needs could be met by solar
energy, which would reduce the relevant electricity use by
80% or more.
Photovoltaic Panels and Cells
In 2005, the Group began studying a project to install a
photovoltaic (PV) power generation system at its headquar-
ters, with the first installation phase occurring in Novem-
ber and December 2011. A grid of PV panels covering
almost 170 square meters was overlaid on the buildings’
four gables. A second phase in summer 2012 will inte-
grate semitransparent PV cells in double-paned windows
covering one of the building’s exterior walls. At the same
Improving Lighting and Temperature Controls
The Group also took steps to better control building tem-
peratures in the headquarters and field office buildings.
At headquarters, LED light bulbs replaced conventional
ones in the washrooms, offices and meeting rooms; these
were connected to motion detectors that automatically
turn off lights when no one is present. Window blind ins-
tallation on the southern side of the building reduced
the need for air conditioning in the summer. In the field
offices, the Group’s building and logistics team ran audits
to find sources of wasted energy, and retrofitted buildings
for increased energy efficiency – for example, by adding
insulation, window blinds, awnings or air ventilation, and
changing conventional light bulbs to LED-type ones.
The building and logistics team also brought 1,305 air
conditioning units to desirable standards, replacing those
using ozone-depleting refrigerants outlawed as of 2014
(such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydro-chlorofluoro-
carbons (HCFCs)) with units using non-chlorine refrigerants
(such as R407C and R410); these units should be safer
for the ozone layer. The Group also instructed employees in
better air conditioner use – leaving them off when ambient
internal temperatures are below 26 degrees Centigrade,
and by keeping interior and exterior temperatures within
5-7 degrees Centigrade, as per the recommendations of
the French energy agency.
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to AFD’s low-impact “High Environmental Quality” (HEQ)
specifications. Work is due to be finished at the end of
2012, when the building will be audited to receive its HEQ
certification. Special internal task forces will oversee the
building’s outfitting to ensure it meets AFD’s standards
and recommendations for environmental responsibility.
In 2012-2013, the Group will build two bioclimatic vil-
las for employees working in the Fort-de-France office,
replacing two existing homes. The two residences aim
to be low-carbon with net-zero emissions. Studies now
underway will examine how to best adapt the homes to
their ecosystem, particularly for natural cooling and ven-
tilation. The Group would like to have both buildings cer-
tified HEQ. Since the end of 2011, it has worked with two
organizations, CERQUAL74 and Qualitel, to create and vali-
date the equivalent of HEQ criteria for use in the region;
this will allow HEQ technical requirements for building
materials and construction to conform to local standards.
Carbon Credit Offsets
As an environmentally responsible company, AFD Group
aims to exceed required standards and ultimately achieve
carbon neutrality. Beyond its steps to reduce its environ-
mental footprint, since 2007 the Group has purchased
time, the Group will improve the building’s insulation by
applying new solar panels on the outside. The PV installa-
tions should reduce or prevent 1,685 kilograms of carbon
dioxide emissions each year, while producing more than
16,850 Kw/H of electricity annually.
Renewable Energy Study
In 2012, AFD Group plans to study where and how to ins-
tall renewable energy sources and equipment in the field
offices, such as small wind turbines, PV panels, hydro-
power or biogas generators, and geothermal heat pumps.
The study will analyze technical proposals for their cost
benefits and GHG emission impacts, and will define a plan
for pilot projects to begin in several agencies in 2013.
The Group has already started experimenting with solar
powered lamps and lights in some courtyards and gardens.
Green Buildings
In addition to upgrading to more environmentally-frien-
dly equipment, AFD Group plans to buy an energy-effi-
cient office building in Paris and will build two low-car-
bon homes for employees in Martinique. In 2012, the
Group will advance-purchase an office building in Paris,
the “Mistral,” currently in energy-efficient retrofit according
74. Certification Qualité Logement, or Housing Quality Certification.
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This carbon offset purchase supports the Group’s geo-
graphical mandate for emerging Asia, adds value environ-
mentally, and offers interesting potential for social and
economic development.
Water Conservation
AFD Group has not yet taken active steps to conserve
water. From 2010 to 2011, water consumption dipped
slightly because less was used to cool the headquarters
during a cool summer season.
Food Service
AFD Group has also made a special effort to make its
Paris company cafeteria more environmentally friendly. In
July 2011, the Group signed a three-year contract, inclu-
ding specific environment-oriented clauses, with Eurest, a
foodservice company. These clauses oblige Eurest to keep
its GHG emissions low, give priority to local suppliers and
direct purchases from producers, consume less energy,
and ensure the provenance of food and equipment. Eurest
must also serve certified organic foods and help protect
biodiversity and fisheries by avoiding the use of palm oil
and not serving protected or endangered species, such
as blue fin tuna, blue lingcod or Nile perch.
carbon credit offsets for the GHG emissions generated
by AFD, PROPARCO and CEFEB buildings (excluding other
internal operations) in Paris and Marseilles. From 2007
to 2009, the Group offset 60,000 tCO2e of GHG emis-
sions, or 20,000 annually, by funding distribution of ener-
gy-efficient charcoal cooking stoves in Cambodian cities,
in cooperation with GERES75, a sustainable development
NGO. AFD, through GERES, contributes to economic and
social development and also fights deforestation with
this project. The GERES charcoal project sold more than
364,000 units from 2003 to 2007, stoves used by than
1.4 million Cambodians daily.
At the end of 2011, AFD Group purchased carbon offsets
covering 2010-12 for its Paris headquarters, based on
estimates that the buildings will generate 24,000 tCO2e
of GHG emissions per year, or 72,000 tCO2e over the
three years. This time the Group supported a new pro-
ject, “SD Biosupply,” run by EcoAct, a company speciali-
zing in carbon finance and offset mechanisms that follow
the verified carbon standard. SD Biosupply will produce
biogas (methane) by installing an anaerobic wastewater
treatment plant for a tapioca processor in Thailand. The
factory will use this biogas for manufacturing energy, thus
avoiding fossil fuels and reducing its carbon footprint.
75. Groupe Energies Renouvelables, Environnement et Solidarités, or Renewable Energy, Environment and Solidarity Group.
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Ordinary trash and wastepaper
- Sorting: The Group makes double-compartment waste-
baskets available to all headquarters employees for sor-
ting their wastepaper and other trash as they discard it.
Maintenance workers appropriately dispose of the sorted
trash in city facilities.
- Reducing paper consumption: The Group keeps track
of the amount of paper each employee uses for printing
and photocopying, combining this amount with nine other
factors used to calculate annual bonus payments. To help
employees reduce their paper consumption, all photoco-
piers and printers are set to print two sides automatically.
Managing Waste
For the past several years, AFD Group has worked to reco-
ver and recycle paper and its other waste products. It must
further reduce waste production and increase recycling to
comply with the Grenelle Environment II guidelines. For
comparison, the French produce more than 390 kilograms
(kg) of waste per person annually, at home and work; an
AFD Group employee generates 201 kg of waste at work
in 2011. The Group has reduced waste production by 6.7%
from 2009 to 2011 – despite an increase of activity – via
the following steps:
AFD Group HQ Water Consumption by Employee and Overall 2009-2010
WATER MEASURE 2009 2010 2011 VARIATION 2010-2011 (EN %)
Water consumption per employee
m3/employee/year 13 12 11 -8%
Liter/employee/day 63 58 53 -8%
CONSOMMATION TOTALE D’EAU M3/YEAR 11,458 11,317 10,787 -5%
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PAPER MEASURE 2010 2011 VARIATION 2010-2011 (%)
Total Consumption (all paper)1 Ton/year 65 68 5%
Total consumption all paper / employee2 Kg/employee/year 62 62 0%
Consumption ream and white paper /employee Kg/employee/year 45 44 -1%
White paper Ton/year 37 40 8%
Ream white paper/employee Ream/employee/year 16 16 0%
White paper/employee Kg/employee/year 39 41 5%
Printed matter Ton/year 22 24 9%
Percent recycled/employee % 39 no change N/A
1. Consumption of first-use white paper, other paper and printed matter (publications)2. Consumption of white paper and other types, not including printed matter
AFD Group HQ Paper Consumption by Type, Ton and Employee 2010-2011
N/A = not available
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Electronics and Hazardous Waste
- Computer hardware: As computer equipment depreciates,
the AFD Group IT, Buildings and Logistics department will
donate some working components from headquarters and
field offices; these units go to charities and schools who
respond to a call for takers. Other electrical and electronic
equipment goes to a company that hires French disabled
workers to refurbish and disassemble electronics; this
contributes to both waste reduction and social inclusion.
- Collection and treatment of batteries and CDs: At Group
headquarters, two convenient collection points permit AFD
and PROPARCO employees to dispose of their batteries
and compact discs. Two organizations collect these mate-
rials – ATF Gaia, 80% of whose employees have disabilities,
and a manufacturers’ recycling service, SCRELEC, whose
specialty is collecting and processing used batteries. The
companies ship the materials to specialized waste pro-
cessing centers for sorting, recycling and recovery.
- Recycling ink and toner cartridges: AFD Group also reco-
vers ink and toner cartridges used at its headquarters and
sends them for recycling, mailing them to the manufacturer
in preaddressed boxes. The manufacturer is a member
of the French Conibi consortium of computer and printer
manufacturers, which manages the return and recycling
program.
In 2011, employees also received larger computer screens
to make it easier to read documents onscreen. A French
worker consumes between 70 and 85 kg of paper per
year, while AFD Group employees in 2011 averaged less
than that – 62 kg per person of paper and printed matter.
- Paper recycling: At PROPARCO, a company specializing
in shredding and recycling confidential papers (Shred-It)
collects such waste separately. In 2011, PROPARCO recy-
cled 2120 kg of paper, saving 53 trees. The Group’s first-
use paper is 75-gram recycled, as certified by the Forest
Stewardship Council.
- Food composting: Several field offices have set up com-
posting units for food waste, following the example of the
Accra office in Ghana, whose director put such a unit in
his home.
- Operation “clean house”: In 2011, AFD cleaned out fif-
teen years’ accumulation from its basement storage with
help from APR2, a specialist in electrical and electronics
disposal. The Group ensured the recovery, recycling and
refurbishing of equipment and papers retrieved from a
32,000 kg pile of used furniture, archives, and obsolete
electrical and electronic equipment.
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Waste Management Overhaul
In 2011, waste management took a central place in the
Group’s internal discussions. Although the Group had
launched many waste reduction and recycling initiatives,
individual departments managed several of them and no
one had an overview of all the efforts. In the second half
of 2011, the Group held discussions with those depart-
ments to centralize information and develop an overview
of the situation.
The overview is the first step in an audit of the Group’s
waste management practices. This audit will ensure the
tracking of all Group inputs through the entire product life-
cycle, from the source through recovery and recycling. The
audit will also serve as the basis for the next step: a 2012
redesign of existing waste management systems, including
new multi-level sorting systems at AFD and PROPARCO
headquarters in Paris. The third step will expand the sorting
system to the field offices, adapting it to local conditions.
AFD Group HQ Waste and Trash Production by Type, by Employee and Overall 2009-2010
WASTE MEASURE 2009 2010 2011 VARIATION 2010-2011
Total Volume Ton/year 201 197 199 1%
Household-type trash* Ton/year N/A 169 171 1%
Production/employee Kg/employee N/A 201 201 0%
* Includes food waste N/A = not available
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procedures manual, (3) integrating consistent environmen-
tal and social clauses in updated tenders, and (4) adequa-
tely monitoring suppliers’ compliance with these clauses.
Raise Awareness About “Green” Behavior
In addition to the steps described above, AFD and PRO-
PARCO work to raise awareness – both among employees
and the public – about issues central to sustainable deve-
lopment. In particular, the Group steers employees to
reduce their environmental impacts in the ways mentioned
above – managing waste and reducing paper consumption;
it also educates employees about organic farming, pro-
tecting forests, and other current environmental issues.
The Group also organizes and participates in national and
international events, such as France’s Sustainable Deve-
lopment Week in April and the European Week for Waste
Reduction in November (see below). These efforts follow
France’s national sustainable development strategy, along
with the “exemplary state” action plan that the Grenelle
Environment II recommended for public institutions and
administrators.
Beyond raising internal awareness about waste, energy
and natural resource management, AFD Group organizes
conferences and debates about corporate responsibility
Responsible Purchasing
Acting on the truism that the best waste is that which we
never produce, AFD Group attacks the source of the pro-
blem: its office-supply vendors reduce excess paper, plastic
and cardboard packaging by delivering only bulk-wrapped
products to the Paris headquarters. Similarly, rational and
sustainable management of forests informs the Group’s
office-supply purchasing policy. Thus 59% of the paper
that the Group purchased for headquarters in 2011 was
chlorine-free recycled ream paper, certified by the Forest
Stewardship Council as originating in sustainably-managed
forests. In addition, the Group requires all its electrical
and electronic equipment to carry an Energy Star label.
In 2011 and continuing into the first quarter of 2012, AFD
Group began upgrading its purchasing department prac-
tices. Under the supervision of the Group head of internal
environment, the new program extends the scope and
systematizes procurement of sustainably and responsibly
produced products, following guidelines set by France’s
so-called “exemplary state” position paper of 200876.
The program covers four areas: (1) training buyers in the
latest procurement standards and regulatory requirements,
(2) updating the purchasing department’s administrative
76. See full text of the circular (in French) on http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000020243534
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The 2011 European Week for Waste Reduction
During the 2011 European Week for Waste Reduction
(EWWR), 21 November to 2 December, AFD
and PROPARCO joined the French Environment
and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) in
a campaign to foster national and internal waste
prevention awareness. Across Europe, the European
Commission supports the EWWR campaign with
its LIFE + program, a financing facility dedicated to
protecting the environment.
The Group’s participation in the campaign
is a response to France’s stringent “Grenelle
Environment II”78 law, which emphasizes the broader
responsibilities of waste producers. The law uses
the so-called “polluter-pays” principle to increase
consumer and corporate control of environmental
and health risks at the end of a product’s life. During
the EWWR week, the Group organized a first-of-its-
kind test project within AFD and PROPARCO; this
aimed to focus employee attention on waste issues
and to gauge their interest in environmental concerns
and actions, such as the April 2012 Sustainable
Development Week in France. ■
and sustainable development77. In 2011, it pursued par-
tnerships with the French Club of Public Institutions for
Sustainable Development; it also discussed environmen-
tal responsibility strategies in France’s overseas provinces,
with property management companies in which the Group
holds an equity interest.
77. In French, Club des établissements publics pour le développement durable.
78. French Law No. 2010-788 of 12 July 2010.
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•Updated procurement procedures and inclusion of
corporate responsibility clauses in standard supplier
contracts.
•Monitoring of supplier contracts with high environmen-
tal impacts.
•Developing means for micro- and small-size businesses
to respond to Group tenders.
(4) Expansion of environmentally responsible projects in
the field offices in 2012-2013.
•Improvement in field office ownership of environmental
stewardship issues; bolstering their performance (accor-
ding to each national context) through more responsible
purchasing, recycling, energy efficiency, renewable energy
use, and carpooling.
(5) Communicate about internal environmental responsi-
bility in 2012-2013.
•Raising employee awareness during France’s Sustai-
nable Development Week and the European Week for
Waste Reduction. ■
Improvement Plan for 2012-2016
(1) Increase energy efficiency and use of renewables in
Group buildings in 2012-2013.
•Increased use of PV panels and equipment at Group
headquarters.
•Completed upgrade of insulation at Group headquar-
ters.
•Studies on use of renewables for field offices.
•Use of high-efficiency and high environmental quality
specifications in buildings purchased or renovated by the
Group.
(2) Waste management in 2012-2013.
•Assessment of headquarters waste management, mat-
ching products with sources for recovery and recycling.
•Establishing guidelines for a multi-channel waste sor-
ting and management system at headquarters.
(3) Increase responsible purchasing in 2012-2013.
•Educating the Group purchasing unit about sustainable
procurement.
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Our Method8. Inspired by the Global Reporting Initiative Framework
o create the indicators for corporate res-
ponsibility actions presented in this inaugu-
ral report, AFD Group drew on guidelines set
out by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). All
the information presented reflects the Group’s continuing
commitment to improve transparency and, consequently,
T500
1000
1500
2000
2500
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Millions €
17
38
49
72 70
43
18
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our mEthoD
For more information on the method used to create this
report, please contact Jean-Louis Lecouffe on lecouffejl@
afd.fr or telephone France +331-53-44-30-46, or write him
care of AFD, 5 Rue Roland Barthes, 75598 Paris CEDEX
12, France.
stakeholders’ grasp of its environmental, social and gover-
nance responsibility practices. This report was first presen-
ted in early 2012 to three committees: the AFD Group Exe-
cutive Board, the Management Board and Central Works
Council. It was then relayed to all employees during the
annual Group meeting, attended by field office directors
as well as management and executives from AFD, PRO-
PARCO, CEFEB and the reserve banks at the Group’s Paris
headquarters.
The qualitative and quantitative data in this report was
collected and consolidated as per the Group’s administra-
tive procedures. According to the evaluation methodology
recommended in the GRI guidelines, this self-declared
assessment with no outside, third-party verification rates as
a B-level application. AFD Group will use third-party verifica-
tion for this 2011 corporate responsibility report in 2012.
All information in this report complies with French regula-
tions, including provisions relating to the so-call Law on
New Economic Regulations78, described in the introduction
to this report and in the AFD Group registration document.
79. Nouvelles Régulations Economiques, or NRE.
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In this report, whenever a measure or indicator did not
cover the report boundary or scope for social or environ-
mental data, the substitute boundary or scope was noted
and the reason for a partial or different measure or indica-
tor explained. For example, when 2011 quantitative data
were not available at report publication time, 2010 data
were used instead (and identified as such).
Reporting Period
This report covers the period from January 1 to Decem-
ber 31, 2011, as well as some data and events from pre-
vious years that are useful for understanding AFD Group’s
operating context and trends. This report also includes
discussion of some important actions from early 2012.
Report Scope and Boundaries
The economic and governance data contained in this report
covers the following boundaries (parameters):
•French government officials.
•Direct and indirect beneficiaries of AFD and PROPARCO
funding and other works;
•Suppliers for internal and external operations.
•Group employees.
The social and labor data cover these boundaries:
•Group employees, including international volunteers
and those working for the overseas reserve banks (but
not youth contract workers).
•Suppliers and business services providers.
The environmental data covers:
•Buildings in Paris and Marseilles occupied by AFD,
PROPARCO and CEFEB.
•Buildings in France’s overseas provinces and in emer-
ging and developing countries occupied by the field offices
or their employees.
107 | 132
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N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
1. STRATEGY AND ANALYSIS
1.1.
Statement from the most senior decision maker of the organization about the relevance of sustainability to the organization and its strategy.
Letter from the AFD Group CEO
Group
1.2.Description of key impacts, risks, and opportunities.
Letter from the AFD Group CEO – and in each subject inPart 1 / Governance
Group
2. ORGANIZATIONAL PROFILE
2.1. Name of the organization. Annual reports Group
2.2. Primary brands, products, and/or services. Annual reports Group
2.3.Operational structure of the organization,including main divisions, operating companies,subsidiaries, and joint ventures.
Annual reports Group
2.4. Location of organization’s headquarters. Annual reports Group
2.5.
Number of countries where the organizationoperates, and names of countries with either major operations or that are specifically relevant to the sustainability issues covered in the report.
Annual reports Group
2.6. Nature of ownership and legal form. Annual reports Group
GRI Indicator Index
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N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
2.7.Markets served (including geographic breakdown, sectors served, and types of customers/beneficiaries).
Annual reports Group
2.8.
Scale of the reporting organization, including:• Number of employees;• Number of operations;• Net sales (for private sector organizations) ornet revenues (for public sector organizations);• Total capitalization broken down in termsof debt and equity (for private sectororganizations); and • Quantity of products or services provided.• Total assets;• Beneficial ownership (including identity andpercentage of ownership of largest shareholders);and• Breakdowns by country/region of the following:• Sales/revenues by countries/regions thatmake up 5 percent or more of total revenues;• Costs by countries/regions that make up 5percent or more of total revenues; and• Employees.
Annual reports Registration document
Group
GRI Indicator Index
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N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
2.9.
Significant changes during the reporting period regarding size, structure, or ownership including:• The location of, or changes in operations,including facility openings, closings, andexpansions; and• Changes in the share capital structure andother capital formation, maintenance, andalteration operations (for private sector organizations).
Annual reportsRegistration document
Group
2.10 Awards received in the reporting period.Annual reports
Group
3. REPORT PARAMETERS
3.1. Reporting period for information provided. Part 7 / Method Group
3.2. Date of most recent previous report (if any). Not applicable Group
3.3. Reporting cycle (annual, biennial, etc.) Part 7 / Method Group
3.4.Contact point for questions regarding the report or its contents.
Part 7 / Method Group
GRI Indicator Index
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N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
3.5.
Process for defining report content, including:• Determining materiality;• Prioritizing topics within the report; and• Identifying stakeholders the organization expects to use the report.Include an explanation of how the organization has applied the ‘Guidance on Defining Report Content’, the associated Principles and the Technical Protocol – Applying the Report Content Principles.
Part 7 / Method Group
3.6.
Boundary of the report (e.g., countries, divisions, subsidiaries, leased facilities, joint ventures, suppliers).See GRI Boundary Protocol for further guidance.
Part 7 / Method Group
3.7.
State any specific limitations on the scope or boundary of the report. If boundary and scope do not address the full range of material economic, environmental, and social impacts of the organization, state the strategy and projected timeline for providing complete coverage.
Introduction to ESG reportingPart 7 / Method
Group
GRI Indicator Index
111 | 132
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N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
3.8.
Basis for reporting on joint ventures, subsidiaries, leased facilities, outsourced operations, and other entities that can significantly affect comparability from period to period and/or between organizations.
Not applicable Group
3.9.
Data measurement techniques and the bases of calculations, including assumptions and techniques underlying estimations applied to the compilation of the Indicators and other information in the report.
In each subject GroupThe data measurement technique is indicated in each table or graph.
3.10.
Explanation of the effect of any re-statementsof information provided in earlier reports, andthe reasons for such re-statement (e.g., mergers/acquisitions, change of base years/periods, nature of business, measurement methods).
Not applicable. Group
3.11.Significant changes from previous reportingperiods in the scope, boundary, or measurement methods applied in the report.
Not applicable. Group
GRI Indicator Index
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3.12.
Table identifying the location of the StandardDisclosures in the report.Identify the page numbers or web links where the following can be found:• Organizational Profile 2.1 – 2.10;• Report Parameters 3.1 – 3.13;• Governance, Commitments, and Engagement 4.1 – 4.17;• Disclosure of Management Approach, per category;• Core Performance Indicators;• Any GRI Additional Indicators that wereincluded; and• Any GRI Sector Supplement Indicators included in the report.
Part 7 / Method / GRI Indicator Index
Group
GRI Indicator Index
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3.13.
Policy and current practice with regard to seeking external assurance for the report. If not included in the assurance report accompanying the sustainability report, explain the scope and basis of any external assurance provided. Also explain the relationship between the reporting organization and the assurance provider(s).
Part 7 / Method /Third-party Validation
Group
4. GOVERNANCE, COMMITMENTS AND ENGAGEMENTS
4.1.
Governance structure of the organization, including committees under the highest governance body responsible for specific tasks, such as setting strategy or organizational oversight.
Annual reportsRegistration document / Governance
Group
Also available online on theLégifrance website / Article R516.13 of the French Financial and Monetary Code.
4.2.
Indicate whether the Chair of the highestgovernance body is also an executive officer(and, if so, their function within the organization’s management and the reasons for this arrangement).
Annual reportsRegistration document / Governance
GroupThe presidents of AFD and PROPARCO do not have an executive function.
GRI Indicator Index
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4.3.
For organizations that have a unitary board structure, state the number and gender of members of the highest governance body that are independent and/or non-executive members.
Annual reportsRegistration document/ Governance
Group
4.4.
Mechanisms for shareholders and employees to provide recommendations or direction to the highest governance body.Include reference to processes regarding:• The use of shareholder resolutions or other mechanisms for enabling minority shareholders to express opinions to the highest governance body; and • Informing and consulting employees about the working relationships with formalrepresentation bodies such as organizationlevel ‘work councils’, and representation of employees in the highest governance body.Identify topics related to economic, environmental, and social performance raised through these mechanisms during the reporting period.
Registration document / Governance
Group
GRI Indicator Index
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4.5.
Linkage between compensation for membersof the highest governance body, senior managers, and executives (including departurearrangements), and the organization’sperformance (including social and environmental performance).
Registration document / Governance Group
Nonexecutive directors are unpaid government appointees, except for the chairman of the board of governors who receives compensation unrelated to the organization’s financial performance. Incentive schemes for all AFD and PROPARCO employees, including senior managers and executives; scheme takes paper consumption into account.
4.6.Processes in place for the highest governance body to ensure conflicts of interest are avoided.
Registration document / Governance
Group
Details for AFD are also available from: State Council/ Commission for the transparency of political life; and the auditors’ report on regulated agreements.Details for PROPARCO are available in an internal document: the Code for nonexecutive directors and members of the Advisory Investment Committee and Audit Committee which is signed by the directors
GRI Indicator Index
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4.7.
Process for determining the composition, qualifications, and expertise of the members of the highest governance body and its committees, including any consideration of gender and other indicators of diversity.
Registration document / Governance
Group
Nonexecutive directors are appointed by the French government.Prudential supervisors require this information, including information directors’ backgrounds. If needed the French Court of Auditors verifies the information.Internal Document:“Directors’ Code”PROPARCO applies corporate banking law in this process.
4.8.
Internally developed statements of mission or values, codes of conduct, and principles relevant to economic, environmental, and social performance and the status of their implementation.Explain the degree to which these:• Are applied across the organization in differentregions and department/units; and• Relate to internationally agreed standards.
Part 2 / Anti-fraud and CorruptionPart 1 / ESG Policy Goals / Code of Business Ethics
Group
Internal document: “IT Code” (And Code of Business Ethics, and Code of Conduct)
GRI Indicator Index
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4.9.
Procedures of the highest governance body for overseeing the organization’s identification and management of economic, environmental, and social performance, including relevant risks and opportunities, and adherence or compliance with internationally agreed standards, codes of conduct, and principles. Include frequency with which the highest governance body assesses sustainability performance.
Group
AFD publishes an annual communiqué for the board of governors. PROPARCO will do so in the near future.
4.10.
Processes for evaluating the highest governance body’s own performance, particularly with respect to economic, environmental, and social performance.
Registration document / Governance
Group
Some directors hold highly-qualified positions leading environmentally or socially oriented organizations, such as France Nature Environnement.
COMMITMENTS TO ExTERNAL ENGAGEMENTS
4.11.
Explanation of whether and how the precautionary approach or principle is addressed by the organization.Article 15 of the Rio Principles introduced the precautionary approach. A response to 4.11 could address the organization’s approach to risk management in operational planning or the development and introduction of new products.
Annual report / Risk management
Group
AFD is certified by the French institute of independent internal It follows banking rules and regulations during project review and implementation. PROPARCO has an audit committee to review internal controls. Internal and portfolio risks are separated.AFD Group created a Risk division.
GRI Indicator Index
118 | 132
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4.12.
Externally developed economic, environmental, and social charters, principles, or other initiatives to which the organization subscribes or endorses. Include date of adoption, countries/operations where applied, and the range of stakeholders involved in the development and governance of these initiatives (e.g., multi-stakeholder, etc.).Differentiate between non-binding, voluntary initiatives and those with which the organization has an obligation to comply.
Part 1 / Introduction to ESG ReportingPart 3 /Stakeholder Engagement/ Promoting Corporate Governance in the Private Sector / Box
Group
GRI Indicator Index
119 | 132
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4.13.
Memberships in associations (such as industry associations) and/or national/ internationaladvocacy organizations in which the organization:• Has positions in governance bodies;• Participates in projects or committees;• Provides substantive funding beyond routinemembership dues; or• Views membership as strategic. This refers primarily to member-ships maintained at the organizational level
Part 3 / Stakeholder Engagement / Promoting Corporate Governance in the Private Sector/ Encadré
Group
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
4.14.
List of stakeholder groups engaged by the organization, e.g.• Civil society;• Customers;• Employees, other workers, and their tradeunions;• Local communities;• Shareholders and providers of capital; and• Suppliers.
Part 3 / Stakeholder InteractionsPart 3 / Stakeholder Engagement / Stakeholder Identification
Group
GRI Indicator Index
120 | 132
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4.15.
Basis for identification and selection of stakeholders with whom to engage. This includes the organization’s process for definingits stakeholder groups, and for determining the groups with which to engage and not to engage.
Part 3 / Stakeholder Engagement
Group
4.16.
Approaches to stakeholder engagement, including frequency of engagement by type and by stakeholder group.This could include surveys, focus groups, community panels, corporate advisory panels, written communication, management/union structures, and other vehicles. The organization should indicate whether any of the engagement was undertaken specifically as part of the report preparation process.
Part 3 / Stakeholder Engagement / Accountability
GroupEngagement with the NGO, Coordination Sud, is a notable example.
4.17.
Key topics and concerns that have been raisedthrough stakeholder engagement, and how the organization has responded to those key topics and concerns, including through its reporting.
Part 3 / Stakeholder Engagement
Group
GRI Indicator Index
121 | 132
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GRI Indicator Index | Economic performance
N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
DISCLOSURE ON MANAGEMENT APPROACH – ECONOMIC P. 10
EC2Financial implications and other risks and opportunities for the organization’s activities due to climate change.
Part 6 / Managing AFD Group’s Environmental Footprint / Carbon Credit Offsets
Group
EC3Coverage of the organization’s defined benefit plan obligations.
Part 5 / Our Work Force/ Working Conditions
Group
EC4Significant financial assistance received from the government.
Annual reportsRegistration document
Group
The French government gave €650 million to AFD Group in 2011 to subsidize external aid operations, not internal operations. AFD carefully assesses all grant project applications when distributing these funds, particularly with regard to the purpose of a project.
DIRECT AND INDIRECT ECONOMIC IMPACTS
EC9*Understanding and describing significantindirect economic impacts, including theextent of impacts.
Annual report / Our Business Activity / Potential impacts of our financing decisions
Group
122 | 132
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DISCLOSURE ON MANAGEMENT APPROACH – ENVIRONMENT P. 12
MATERIALS
EN1 Materials used by weight or volume.Part 6 / Managing AFD Group’s Environmental Footprint/ Waste Management Overhaul
AFD and PROPARCO headquarters
EN2Percentage of materials used that are recycled input materials.
Part 6 / Paper Consumption table
AFD and PROPARCO headquarters
ENERGY
EN3 Direct energy consumption by primary energy source.Part 6 / Using More Renewable Energy
AFD and PROPARCO headquarters
EN5Energy saved due to conservation and efficiency improvements.
Part 6 / Using More Renewable Energy
AFD and PROPARCO headquarters
EN6*
Initiatives to provide energy-efficientor renewable energy based productsand services, and reductions in energy requirements as a result of these initiatives.
Part 6 / Using More Renewable Energy
Group
EN7*Initiatives to reduce indirect energy consumption and reductions achieved.
Part 6 / Using More Renewable Energy
Group
GRI Indicator Index | Environnemental performance
123 | 132
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GRI Indicator Index | Environnemental performance
N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
WATER
EN8 Total water withdrawal by source. Part 6 / MeasuresAFD and PROPARCO headquarters
BIODIVERSITY
EN14Strategies, current actions, and future plans for managing impacts on biodiversity.
Part 6 / Using More Renewable Energy/ HQ Operations
Group
EMISSIONS, EFFLUENTS AND WASTE
EN16Total direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions by weight. (tCO2e)
Part 6 / Business Travel and Measures Group
EN18Initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reductions achieved.
Part 6 / Carbon Credit Offsets Group
EN22 Total weight of waste by type and disposal method.Part 6 / Waste Management Overhaul and Measures
AFD and PROPARCO headquarters
EN26Initiatives to mitigate environmental impactsof products and services, and extent of impact mitigation.
Part 6 Group
EN29*
Significant environmental impacts of transporting products and other goods and materials used for the organization’s operations, and transporting members of the work force.
Part 6 Group
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GRI Indicator Index | Labor practices and decent work
N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
DISCLOSURE ON MANAGEMENT APPROACH – PRACTICES AND DECENT WORK P. 13
EMPLOYMENT
LA1Total work force by employment type, employment contract, and region.
Part 5 / ESG Scope and Objectives
Group
LA2Total number and rate of new employee hires and employee turnover by age group, gender, and region.
Part 5 / Employee turnover
Group
LA3*Benefits provided to full-time employees that are not provided to temporary or part-time employees, by significant locations of operation.
Part 5 / Remuneration
Group
LABOR / MANAGEMENT RELATIONS
LA4Percentage of employees covered by collective bargaining agreements.
Part 5 / Employee representatives
Group
LA5Minimum notice period(s) regarding operational changes, including whether it is specified in collective agreements.
Part 5 / Employee representatives
Group
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY
LA8
Education, training, counseling, prevention, and risk-control programs in place to assist work force members, their families, or community members regarding serious diseases.
Part 5 / Health and Safety
Group
125 | 132
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LA9Health and safety topics covered in formal agreements with trade unions.
Part 5 / Health and Safety
Group
TRAINING AND EDUCATION
LA11*Programs for skills management and lifelong learning that support the continued employability of employees and assist them in managing career endings.
Part 5 / Professional training
Group
LA12*Percentage of employees receiving regular performance and career development reviews.
Part 5 / Building Sustainable Career Paths
Group
GRI Indicator Index | Employment
126 | 132
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GRI Indicator Index | Human rights
N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
DISCLOSURE ON MANAGEMENT APPROACH – HUMAN RIGHTS P. 14
PROCUREMENT AND INVESTMENT PRACTICES
HR1
Percentage and total number of significantinvestment agreements and contracts that include clauses incorporating human rights concerns, or that have undergone human rights screening.
Part 2 / Anti-fraud and corruption
Group
NON-DISCRIMINATION
HR4Total number of incidents of discrimination and corrective actions taken.
NA Group No incidents.
FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
HR5
Operations and significant suppliers identified in which the right to exercise freedom of association and collective bargaining may be violated or at significant risk, and actions taken to support these rights.
NA Group No incidents.
CHILD LABOR PROHIBITION
HR6
Operations and significant suppliers identified as having significant risk for incidents of childlabor, and measures taken to contribute to the effective abolition of child labor.
Part 2 / Ethics CodeCharte Ethique Group
Updating of procurement procedures is planned for 2012, following a responsible purchasing policy.
127 | 132
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FORCED OR COMPULSORY LABOR ABOLITION
HR2Percentage of significant suppliers,contractors, and other business partners thathave undergone human rights screening, and actions taken.
Part 6 / Responsible Purchasing Policy
Group
HR7
Operations and significant suppliers identified as having significant risk for incidents of forced or compulsory labor, and measures to contribute to the elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labor.
Part 6 / Responsible Purchasing Policy
Group
SECURITY PRACTICES
HR8*
Percentage of security personnel trainedin the organization’s policies or proceduresconcerning aspects of human rights that are relevant to operations.
Part 5 / Managing AFD Group’s Environmental Footprint/ Security
Group
In 2010, security procedures were implemented in the field offices. Headquarters has a security procedure that involves 65 director, 34 employees in the employee health and safety department, and contractors for building security.
INDIGENOUS RIGHTS
HR9*Total number of incidents of violations involving rights of indigenous people and actions taken.
NA Group No incidents.
GRI Indicator Index | Human rights
128 | 132
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GRI Indicator Index | Society
N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
DISCLOSURE ON MANAGEMENT APPROACH – SOCIETY P. 15
COMMUNITIES
SO1
Percentage of operations with implemented local community engagement, impact assessments, and development programs.
Part 4 / Group
CORRUPTION
S02Percentage and total number of business units analyzed for risks related to corruption.
Part 2 / Group
All projects are subject to funding agreements that contain strict anti-corruption clauses, politically exposed persons checks, anti-terrorism financing and money-laundering controls.
S03Percentage of employees trained inorganization’s anti-corruption policies and procedures.
Part 2 / Anti-corruption / Online learning
Group
S04Actions taken in response to incidents ofcorruption..
Group No corruption incidents.
PUBLIC POLICIES
S05Public policy positions and participation in public policy development and lobbying.
Part 3 / Stakeholder Engagement / Knowledge production
Group
Contribution to debates and progress through knowledge production, particularly conferences and debates about sustainable development.
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S06*
Total value of financial and in-kind contributions to political parties, politicians, and related institutions by country.
RAS Group No contributions.Internal controls and audits ensure none.
ANTI-COMPETITIVE BEHAVIOR
S07
Total number of legal actions for anticompetitivebehavior, anti-trust, and monopoly practices and their outcomes.
NA GroupNo legal actions.Systematic application of European Union rules for tenders.
COMPLIANCE
S08
Monetary value of significant fines and total number of non-monetary sanctions for noncompliance with laws and regulations.
NA Group No sanctions or fines.
GRI Indicator Index | Society
130 | 132
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GRI Indicator Index | Product Responsibility Performance
N°ISO N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUN-DARy COMMENT
DISCLOSURE ON MANAGEMENT APPROACH – PRODUCT RESPONSIBILITY P. 16
CONSUMER HEALTH AND SAFETY
PR1
Life cycle stages in which health and safety impacts of products and services are assessed for improvement, and percentage of significant products and services categories subject to such procedures.
Part 4 / Project performance evaluation
GroupThe health and safety aspects of external aid operations are included in ex-ante evaluations.
131 | 132
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GRI Indicator Index | Financial services performance supplement
N°GRI PERFORMANCE INDICATOR REFERENCE BOUNDARy COMMENT
PRODUCT PORTFOLIO
FS2Procedures for assessing and screening environmental and social risks in business lines.
Part 4 / Project performance evaluation
Group
FS4
Process(es) for improving staff competency to implement the environmental and social policies and procedures as applied to business lines.
Part 4 / Environmental & Social Support
Group
FS5Interactions with clients/investees/business partners regarding environmental and social risks and opportunities.
Part 4 / Environmental & Social Support
Group
FS6Percentage of the portfolio for business lines by specific region, size (e.g. micro/SME / large) and by sector.
Annual reports Group Broken down by region.
FS7
Monetary value of products and services designed to deliver a specific social benefit for each business line broken down by purpose.
Part 4 / Examples GroupPlans underway to categorize all aid operations following these criteria.
FS8
Monetary value of products and services designed to deliver a specific environmental benefit for each business line broken down by purpose.
Part 4 / Examples GroupPlans underway to categorize all aid operations following these criteria.
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Abbreviations
ADEME: Agence de l’Environnement et de la Maîtrise de l’Energie / Environment and Energy Management Agency (France)
AFD: Agence Française de Développement / French Development Agency
CEFEB: Centre d’Etudes Financières, Economiques et Bancaires / Center for Financial, Economic and Banking Studies
EDFI: European Development Finance Institutions
EIB: European Investment Bank
E&SS: Environmental and Social Support
FGEF: French Global Environment Facility
GERES: Groupe Energies Renouvelables, Environnement et Solidarités / Renewable Energy, Environment and Solidarity Group
GHG: Greenhouse gas
GRI: Global Reporting Initiative
HEQ: High Environmental Quality
ILO: International Labour Organisation
IMS: Institut du Mécénat de Solidarité / Institute for Solidarity Giving
ISO: International Organization for Standardization
KfW: Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau Bankengruppe
LED: Light Emitting Diode
NGO: Nongovernmental Organization
OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
OHSAS: Occupation Health and Safety Assessment Series
PCF: People’s Credit Fund
PFCE: Plateforme pour le Commerce Equitable / Fair Trade Platform
PROPARCO: Société de Promotion et de Participation pour la Coopération Economique / Investment and Promotions Company for Economic Cooperation
SER: Social and Environmental Responsibility
UN: United Nations