Scoping a baseline study

A baseline scope should specify the decisions the study will support, the people and resources potentially affected, and the evidence needed to assess change. Begin while project alternatives remain open. The output is a study specification that the assessment, engineering, engagement and survey teams can use together.

The original discussion drew extensively on IFC's Addressing the Social Dimensions of Private Sector Projects (2003). Its scoping and baseline sections connect early consultation, secondary evidence and field research. This remains useful methodological history; the transaction's applicable policy edition determines its requirements.

Prepare the study specification

Record the proposed activities and alternatives, plausible impact pathways, study boundaries, affected groups, reference periods, available evidence and gaps requiring field verification. Identify which design decisions need findings first. Assign a responsible specialist and a review date to each unresolved question.

For each priority issue, connect a question to a method and an intended use. A concern about fishing access may require seasonal-use mapping, interviews with crews and traders, and household livelihood measures. A concern about school access may require travel-time evidence, service records and interviews about affordability and safety. The target baseline data discussion develops this selection process.

Separate the collection tasks

IFC's 2023 resettlement handbook, Module 4, Table 4.1 distinguishes the affected-person census, land and asset inventory, socioeconomic research and livelihood studies. Specify their populations and relationships separately, then join records through stable identifiers. The detailed baseline survey guide explains the resulting instrument and data design.

Review official statistics alongside local knowledge. Record the edition, date, geographic unit and definition behind each benchmark. Use consultation to identify missing users, seasonal activity and contested access. Feed findings back to affected groups and the design team through a documented review process.

Preserve the original Maluku questions

The earlier scope linked household rosters, livelihoods, expenditure, territorial ties, culture and perceptions to fieldwork modules. These topics now inform the Indonesia design discussion. It explains how to align questions with BPS instruments while retaining locally important relationships. The original scope's 2013 agricultural census and historical BPS links remain in the reference review; their dates matter when selecting contemporary benchmarks.

Before mobilization, approve the scope, indicator dictionary, frame, consent arrangements, team roles, pilot plan and analysis outline. Revisit the scope when new impacts or affected groups emerge.