ADB Sets New Safeguards to Protect Vulnerable Groups in Development Projects

ADB’s new primer explains how development projects must actively protect and include disadvantaged or vulnerable people at every stage, from planning to monitoring. It provides practical guidance to ensure fair access to benefits, prevent disproportionate harm, and promote meaningful participation across sectors.

As countries across Asia and the Pacific invest heavily in roads, power plants, schools, and health facilities, the Asian Development Bank is sharpening its focus on who benefits from these projects and who might be left behind. In February 2026, ADB’s Office of Safeguards released a new primer titled Applying ADB’s Environmental and Social Framework Provisions for Disadvantaged or Vulnerable People.

The message is clear and practical: development projects must not harm disadvantaged or vulnerable people, and they must ensure these groups can fairly share in project benefits. The document is designed for government agencies, contractors, consultants, and project staff working on ADB-financed projects. It translates policy requirements into everyday actions that can be applied from planning to project completion.

Who Are the Disadvantaged or Vulnerable?

The primer defines disadvantaged or vulnerable individuals or groups as those more likely to suffer harm from a project, less able to benefit from it, or excluded from meaningful consultation. This can include Indigenous Peoples, women facing discrimination, people with disabilities, low-income households, migrant workers, or ethnic minorities.

Instead of assuming that all communities benefit equally, the guide encourages project teams to ask simple but important questions. Who is not attending meetings? Who cannot access new services because of cost, distance, or disability? Who may face higher risks of eviction, harassment, or job loss?

By asking these questions early, project planners can identify risks before they become serious problems. The goal is not only to avoid harm but also to actively promote equal access to opportunities.

Strong Rules Across All Project Areas

The primer explains that inclusion is not limited to one part of ADB’s safeguard system. Seven of the ten Environmental and Social Standards contain specific requirements to protect disadvantaged or vulnerable groups.

Under the standard on risk assessment, borrowers must identify groups that may be disproportionately affected and design tailored mitigation measures. For example, if women face safety risks during construction, or if persons with disabilities cannot use new infrastructure, these issues must be directly addressed.

Labor standards prohibit discrimination in hiring, wages, and working conditions. Employers must ensure equal opportunity and protect against harassment, violence, and exploitation.

Health and safety standards require extra care where vulnerable communities face higher exposure to pollution, accidents, or disease. Confidential and survivor-centered grievance systems must be in place to address sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment.

When land is acquired for projects, meaningful consultation is required, with special attention to vulnerable people. Compensation and livelihood restoration plans must consider gender, tenure rights, and local realities. For Indigenous Peoples, the framework stresses respect for land, culture, and decision-making systems, including free, prior, and informed consent where required.

Climate change is also part of the equation. Vulnerable communities must be consulted on climate risks, adaptation measures, and resilience planning.

From Policy to Practice

What makes the primer stand out is its practical guidance. It walks through the project cycle step by step.

During scoping and assessment, project teams are encouraged to collect data that is broken down by gender, disability, ethnicity, and income level. This helps identify who may be at higher risk. Consultations must be safe, inclusive, and accessible, using local languages and appropriate formats.

The guide also promotes an “intersectional” approach. A person may face multiple disadvantages at once, such as being both Indigenous and living with a disability. Projects must understand these overlapping risks instead of treating communities as uniform groups.

In high-risk situations, identifying certain vulnerable groups could expose them to harm. In such cases, the primer recommends anonymous consultations, indirect data collection, and careful handling of sensitive information.

During project design, tailored measures may include accessible buildings with ramps and signage, gender-sensitive transport planning, targeted livelihood programs, or flexible work arrangements for vulnerable workers. Grievance systems should be easy to use and available through multiple channels, including community-based options.

Making Inclusion Measurable

Inclusion does not stop at design. The primer stresses strong monitoring and reporting. Projects should track participation and benefits using disaggregated data to ensure vulnerable groups are not excluded. Independent reviews may be needed for high-risk activities such as resettlement.

Clear communication is equally important. Project information should be shared in simple, understandable formats, including visual or audio materials where literacy is a concern.

The appendix provides sector-specific examples for education, health, energy, transport, agriculture, urban development, financial intermediaries, and public sector management. These examples translate broad principles into practical actions and measurable indicators.

Overall, the primer signals a shift in development thinking. Disadvantaged or vulnerable people are not passive recipients of aid. They are rights-holders whose participation, safety, and fair access to benefits are essential to successful projects. By embedding inclusion into every stage of the project cycle, ADB aims to ensure that growth across the region is not only faster, but fairer and more resilient.