Climate change innovation project preparation fund

Introduction

Central America is one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change. Climate change causes severe losses of life, crops and livestock and damages homes and public infrastructure. Events such as recurring droughts and hurricanes have a significant economic impact on the affected countries and demonstrate the urgency of taking action.

Objectives

This project will set up a Regional Fund to provide Central American Integration System (SICA) countries with funds to design projects that address and prevent natural disasters. The Fund shall serve as a catalyst to focus investment at the national and international level on the mitigation of the impact of extreme events, while improving capacity to deal with climate change.

Project activities

The Fund will help build countries’ capacities in the development of viable climate change projects by providing technical assistance for project preparation. It does so by facilitating:

• Climate risk assessment and studies for the development of disaster warning, monitoring and alert systems;
• Preparation of relevant studies for projects and identification of environmental indicators;
• Financial analysis of projects or the identification and evaluation of potential implementing entities;
• Definition of technical aspects of projects in relation to climate and natural disaster risk assessment;
• Improved capacity to access credit to finance climate change projects through integrated preparedness;
• Stronger capacity by CABEI for the formulation, implementation, execution, monitoring and evaluation of climate-focused projects;
• Promotion of gender indicators throughout the identification, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of climate-focused projects.

Results

The project shall achieve the following results:

• At least eight relevant climate projects will have access to technical assistance
• At least five viable projects formulated and prepared for external funding
• eight pre-feasibility and technical feasibility studies supported
• At least two environmental and social studies supported
• Five capacity building seminars and workshops conducted
• Five promotion and dissemination activities supported

Implementing partner

Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI)

Co-implementing partners

Instituto de Crédito Oficial (ICO), OEEB, Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), Agence Française de Développement (AFD), European Investment Bank (EIB), KFW