TOOL T-18 | Assessment | Module 5: Inclusion & Safe Expression

Vulnerability & Exclusion Screening

WHEN TO USE At the start of each project phase; before any consultation design.

How to Use It

1. Using the Stakeholder Map and community context knowledge, list all potentially vulnerable or excluded groups in the project area.

2. For each group, assess: (a) physical barriers, (b) social barriers (power dynamics, fear), (c) economic barriers (time constraints), and (d) informational barriers (language, literacy, awareness).

3. Rate exclusion risk: High, Medium, Low.

4. For each High-risk group, specify a targeted engagement approach and assign responsibility.

5. Document the screening and attach to the engagement plan.

6. Review at each phase transition.

Purpose

To systematically identify groups at risk of exclusion from engagement processes (fisherfolk, women, tenants, elderly, informal settlers, migrants, youth), and to flag the specific barriers they face so that engagement design can address them. Groups not screened for exclusion are rarely included in practice.

Field Rationale

At Laguna Lake, fisherfolk were present in the project area but absent from formal consultations. At MTerra, farm workers were not included in any formal engagement process. In both cases, the groups were not screened for exclusion at the engagement design stage.