GENERAL INFORMATION
Grant Approval Date
End (estimated) Date
Project Cost
$525,000
Sector
Energy / Climate Change
Executing Agency
Center for Ecological Monitoring
Current status
Ongoing
Background
Sub-Saharan Africa contributes less than 4% to global greenhouse gas emissions but remains the most vulnerable region to climate change impacts. Its economies, heavily dependent on natural resources and agriculture, face growing threats from extreme weather events such as droughts, floods, and temperature stress. Although many countries have developed Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), their implementation is constrained by limited financial and institutional capacities.
The Green Climate Fund (GCF) and Adaptation Fund (AF) introduced the direct access modality to strengthen national ownership and capacity in project management and fiduciary standards. However, many African countries struggle to meet accreditation requirements because of gaps in governance, safeguards, and documentation.
The Centre de Suivi Écologique (CSE), the first African institution accredited to both the AF (2010) and the GCF (2015), has since assisted numerous developing countries in readiness and accreditation processes through South-South cooperation. Building on this track record, the current project aims to strengthen three national institutions, ODEF (Togo), OBPE (Burundi), and BAGRI (Niger), to access and manage climate finance more effectively.
Objectives
Overall objective:
- To strengthen South-South cooperation on direct access to climate finance by supporting national institutions in accreditation and project development for the GCF and AF.
Specific objectives:
- Support ODEF, OBPE, and BAGRI in completing their accreditation with the GCF.
- Build their capacity to design and submit high-quality, bankable adaptation and mitigation projects aligned with national priorities and NDCs.
- Develop a project concept note to be submitted to AF and GCF
- Develop a knowledge management system to document, share, and replicate best practices and lessons learned on direct access across Africa.
Main Components/Outputs
Component 1: Support for Accreditation
Result 1: Three national entities (ODEF, OBPE, BAGRI) submit accreditation applications to the GCF.
Outputs:
- Accreditation manuals, toolkits, and country-specific guides developed and disseminated.
- Accreditation gap assessments conducted for each institution.
- Complete accreditation dossiers prepared and submitted.
Component 2: Project Development Support
Result 2: National entities are supported in developing and submitting project proposals to the AF and GCF.
Outputs:
- A concept note for the AF developed for Burundi (OBPE).
- A concept note for the GCF developed for Niger (BAGRI).
- A concept note for the AF developed for Togo (ODEF).
Component 3: Knowledge Management and Learning System
Result 3: An online system for documentation, learning, and knowledge sharing on direct access is operational at the CSE.
Outputs:
- Knowledge management platform designed, tested, and launched.
- Knowledge products (case studies, toolkits, lessons learned) developed and disseminated.
- Mechanisms for peer learning, virtual assistance, and replication established.
Key Achievements or Progress
Significant progress has been made under Outcome 1, with major strides in strengthening institutional capacities for GCF accreditation. Following the completion of gap analyses, tailored accreditation guides were developed for Togo and Burundi, including a first draft of the OBPE guide currently being refined. Comprehensive training materials were produced and used during capacity-building missions conducted in Bujumbura (25–29 March 2024) and Lomé (16–17 November 2023 and 11–15 March 2024), benefiting 36 participants, including 14 women. The corresponding reports were finalized, and a follow-up mission in Burundi (25–29 November 2024) ensured sustained progress. In parallel, gap assessment reports for ODEF (Togo) and OBPE (Burundi) were finalized and validated, providing concrete recommendations to strengthen internal systems, while work continues to finalize the BAGRI (Niger) assessment.
Under Outcome 2, the project advanced the formulation of climate finance proposals by facilitating a dedicated mission in Burundi to identify and prioritize adaptation project ideas aligned with national priorities and the criteria of the Adaptation Fund (AF). This participatory process led to the selection of a promising concept for development into a formal proposal and fostered stronger collaboration among national stakeholders. Although some challenges have delayed the finalization of concept notes for Burundi (AF), Togo (AF) and Niger (GCF), groundwork has been laid, and targeted actions are planned in 2025 to complete these deliverables.
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