The World Bank supports development thatimproves human welfare and reduces poverty. Achieving thisgoal requires sustainable economic growth; the developmentof physical infrastructure, human resources, andinstitutions; and sound environmental management. In recentyears development practitioners have recognized that havingstakeholders participate in project selection and design hasa number of advantages: it can help reach the poor and othervulnerable groups, strengthen participants'"ownership" of the project, and improvedecision-making. Development practitioners also recognizethat systematic social analysis can help ensure thatprojects achieve their objectives, that they areappropriately targeted, that they are acceptable to theintended beneficiaries, and that they are institutionallyfeasible. Social assessment (SA) supports participation, andis a tool for incorporating social analysis into theBank's projects and analytical work. SA is thesystematic investigation of the social processes and factorsthat affect the outcomes of development projects. In projectwork, Bank staff use SA to identify key stakeholders andestablish a framework for their participation in theproject, to ensure that intended beneficiaries find theproject's objectives acceptable, to assess the socialimpacts of a project and determine how to mitigate anyadverse impacts, and to develop the institutional capacitynecessary for the project to succeed.
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