ABSTRACT
The shift to country frameworks is founded on the assumption that countries must take responsibility themselves for ownership for environmental and social safeguards, including for displacement by development. The World Bank gathered up at least two decades of earlier research work into a policy formulation on involuntary resettlement. The World Bank’s 1980 policy identified feelings of powerlessness and alienation resulting from displacement. The disruption of entire communities, in particular, resulted in weakened social cohesion and diminished capacity for productive action – with economic, psychological and socioeconomic consequences. Risks and vulnerabilities are sure to arise after external assistance ceases; it is critical for communities and their constituent households to develop strong adaptive capacities. This echoes the search for ‘durable solutions’ in other forms of displacement, including in cases of protracted displacement. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals provide an opportunity to address displacement in a more holistic way.
