Criterion: Land Acquisition and Resettlement
Policy commitment to respect land rights, minimize resettlement, and where unavoidable, implement Resettlement Action Plans ensuring equitable compensation and livelihood restoration.
Full Description
SHR03 Land Acquisition and Resettlement
Standard Section: 9.3 Category: Social Human Rights Scheme: Responsible Minerals Assurance Process (RMAP) Standard Version: 2.0 for Piloting (effective April 30, 2025)
Overview
Policy commitment to respect land rights, minimize resettlement, and where unavoidable, implement Resettlement Action Plans ensuring equitable compensation and livelihood restoration.
Requirements
The Facility shall:
- 9.3.1 Establish a documented policy that includes a commitment to respect land rights, avoid land acquisition and resettlement where possible, prohibit forced evictions, and seek resolution to existing claims and conflicts of land title in compliance with applicable laws.
- 9.3.2 Optimize Facility designs to minimize land acquisition and avoid resettlement and physical or economic displacement. This includes consideration of alternative designs.
- 9.3.3 Identify and assess potential and actual adverse impacts on stakeholders related to physical and economic displacement resulting from the construction and operation of the Facility.
- 9.3.4 Where land acquisition or resettlement is necessary, implement a Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) or Livelihood Restoration Plan to fairly mitigate and remediate adverse impacts, in consultation with affected stakeholders, to ensure the social and cultural continuity of the community. The action plan shall include measures to provide equitable compensation for lost assets, a resettlement budget and schedule, identify entitlements of all affected stakeholder, and restoration actions for displaced stakeholders whose livelihoods, living conditions, and incomes are affected.
- 9.3.5 Conduct ongoing monitoring and evaluation of implementation of the RAP, in consultation with affected stakeholders in alignment with Section 6.5 and take corrective actions where planned actions are not being met.
Source: RMI Facility Standard for Social, Environmental, OHS and Governance Risks, Version 2.0 for Piloting (April 2025), Section 9.3
Profiles using this criterion
Responsible Minerals Assurance Process
Conformity Alignment
Meets
Pass: Yes
Definition: "Facility has a documented policy committing to respect land rights, avoid forced evictions, and resolve land title conflicts. Facility has optimized design to minimize land acquisition, identified and assessed adverse impacts on displaced stakeholders, and where land acquisition is necessary, has implemented a Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) or Livelihood Restoration Plan with equitable compensation, resettlement budget, stakeholder entitlements, and restoration actions, with ongoing monitoring."
Partially Meets
Pass: No
Definition: "Land acquisition and resettlement policy exists but is partially implemented: e.g., policy commits to avoiding forced evictions but no RAP has been developed where resettlement has occurred, design optimization to minimize land acquisition is not documented, or RAP monitoring is not conducted as required."
Remediation: 180 days
Does Not Meet
Pass: No
Definition: "No documented policy on land rights, evidence of forced evictions or displacement without a RAP or compensation plan, or no action to resolve existing land conflicts."
Remediation: 90 days
Priority
Pass: No
Definition: "Priority findings are not raised against this criterion. Forced evictions and land rights violations are assessed under Does not Meet."
Remediation: 30 days
Not Applicable
Pass: Yes
Definition: "This criterion may be not applicable where the facility has not acquired land or resettled any communities and the risk assessment confirms no risk of physical or economic displacement from current or planned operations."
Not Able To Assess
Pass: No
Definition: "The assessor was unable to access land acquisition records, resettlement documentation, or interview affected stakeholders to verify the status of land rights and resettlement actions."
Change Log
1.0.0 (2026-06-24)
Initial release.