Over the past twenty years, Altai Consulting has developed deep expertise in driving social performance across infrastructure, extractive and energy projects in the Middle East and Africa. Our work spans land acquisition, community engagement, and resettlement planning, conducted in accordance with IFC Performance Standards on Environment and Social Sustainability. This expertise allows us to support clients in understanding local contexts, identifying community needs, mapping key stakeholders, and designing strategic investment programmes that are both aligned with our clients' vision and beneficial to the communities in which they operate. From legal and institutional reviews to GIS mapping, quantitative surveys, Stakeholder Engagement Plans, and Land Acquisition and Resettlement Plans, we equip international organisations and private sector clients with the tools and frameworks needed to ensure a beneficial, inclusive, and resilient local presence.

Research and community engagement for fair compensation and improvements to living conditions, according to IFC Performance Standards (PS) in Iraq

• Client: a global energy player

• Thematic Pillars: Community mapping, Stakeholder engagement, Land acquisition & resettlement, GIS

• Geography: Iraq

Altai was commissioned to work on a large-scale infrastructure project in Iraq, engaging with communities to avoid involuntary resettlement wherever possible and to minimise the impact on displaced populations through mitigation measures such as fair compensation and improvements to living conditions. The work was conducted in accordance with the IFC Performance Standards (PS) on Environmental and Social Sustainability. Altai Consulting’s intervention mobilised a team of more than 30 land acquisition experts, social researchers and local data collection team members focusing on:

• Legal & institutional review

• GIS mapping of the area of interest wit 1,100 polygons delineated and 5,000 pictures geotagged and documented thanks to extensive fieldwork, satellite imagery analytics and a GIS platform allowing for real time updates based on Mergin technology

• Quantitative surveys and qualitative fieldwork

• Community mapping

• Stakeholder Engagement

• Resettlement Policy

• Land Acquisition & Resettlement Plans (LARPs)

• Ad hoc support to implementation

Social impact assessment in Libya

• Client: a global energy player

• Thematic Pillars: Community mapping, Stakeholder Engagement

• Geography: Libya

Altai Consulting was commissioned to conduct a social impact assessment of the company operations in Libya. The project aimed to:

• Define the direct and indirect areas of influence of the activities in Libya

• Map the formal and informal groups and communities in the areas of operation, as well as the stakeholders potentially affected by the activities

• Assess the impact of operations on local groups and communities

• Assess the impact of the presence of local groups and communities on operations

• Identify mitigating measures to alleviate negative impact and maximise positive impact

Socio-economic impact assessment of PAYG solar home system products in Kenya

• Client: the Shell Foundation

• Thematic Pillar: Monitoring Evaluation & Learning

• Geography: Kenya

The objective of the research for the Shell Foundation was to answer the following questions:

• Measure the penetration of Pay As You Go (PAYGo) products broken down by income levels

• Assess the full spectrum of net socio-economic benefits of serving customers at different income levels

• Shed light on the key purchasing drivers of PAYGo at different income levels, and identify how these products help customers achieve their ambitions and what elements of service they aspire to

The project was structured around three modules combining field data collection (quantitative and qualitative) in Kenya as well as expert validation.

Formulation of social investments leveraging the OECD DAC criteria

• Client: a global energy player

• Thematic Pillars: Community mapping, Formulation of Social Investments

• Geography: Libya

Altai Consulting was commissioned to formulate social investments for an energy operations in Libya. The project aimed to:

• Support the client in understanding the local context

• Identify community needs and concerns

• Map out key stakeholders and potential partners across local communities and institutions, and draft engagement plans

• Conduct extensive fieldwork in the communities including qualitative and quantitative research as well as social media analytics, following a 360° approach covering socioeconomic factors, social and economic organisation, health context, institutions, social and political context, infrastructure, culture, and more

• Use frameworks like the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) to formulate and shortlist social investments