USAID Africa Trade and Investment Partnerships Opportunity:
Continental Services - Climate Finance APS Addendum
Issuance date: April 24th, 2023
Closing date for submission of concept papers: September 30, 2023 5.00PM EDT
Overview:
USAID established the Africa Trade and Investment (ATI) Program to mobilize enterprise-driven solutions that increase trade and investment and contribute to job creation in Africa. As part of the global effort to increase climate finance flows, USAID's 2022-2030 Climate Strategy has set a target of mobilizing $150 billion in climate finance by 2030 from public and private sources. To meet these climate targets and incentivize investment, USAID is integrating climate finance throughout its programming and mechanisms to increasingly engage the private sector.
USAID/KEA, the USAID Africa Bureau (AFR), and the Prosper Africa Secretariat are currently inviting concepts from businesses and financial intermediaries such as fund managers and financial institutions across the African continent whose core businesses and/or demonstrated pipeline of SMEs and growth-oriented businesses provide social, environmental, and financial return through climate finance. Submitted concepts may also demonstrate potential to scale their model, geography, and/or financial offerings.
For the purposes of this APS, applicable climate finance focal areas include: access to water, adaptation finance, biodiversity conservation, carbon finance, clean cooking, ecotourism, electro mobility (e-mobility), green/climate smart technologies, methane abatement in livestock and agriculture, and renewable energy.
Overarching Priorities for the Climate Finance APS:
- Partner with companies, intermediaries, and fund managers that are setting up new climate-specific funds; or are successfully mobilizing investment through existing offerings that allow for U.S. investment in climate-smart or resilient sectors
- Support carbon brokers or developers connecting private investment with transparent carbon-based projects that have inclusive and equitable benefit-sharing frameworks
- Collaborate alongside partners with a compelling climate investment thesis, demonstrated deal flow and capital raising capabilities, and management team
- Work with intermediaries on a performance-basis to ensure capital raising/deployment milestones are properly incentivized and funds are climate positive.
Illustrative Interventions for the Climate Finance APS:
- Companies, intermediaries, and funds:
- Grant capital to support and incentivize capital raises (e.g. first loss will be catalytic as investors have already been identified)
- Subsidize/support the operational costs of establishing/scaling a financial vehicle (e.g. expanding management)
- Development of innovative financial products to expand affordable consumer access to climate products or technologies (pay-go models, etc.)
- Development of de-risking and/or project development facilities
- Technical assistance to build the capacity of fund managers to receive and deploy capital
- Matchmaking to locate blended finance or catalytic capital anchor investments
- Facilitating private investment in climate finance while bringing long-term, climate-resilient, sustainable development in and around protected areas
Funding Range:
It is anticipated that awards under this facility will be in the form of sub-grants and will range from $500,000 to $2,500,000.
Selection Criteria- Additional Information:
This addendum follows the Technical Selection Criteria and Cost Evaluation (Section IV) in the ATI APS. For Climate Finance concept papers and full proposals, applicants should be aware of the following more specific aspects of the topline criteria:
- Under The concept & the objectives it will cover: Interested applicants should include specific details on how the funding sought will be catalytic in nature to increase climate finance and support climate-based objectives.
- Under Additionality & the value of the partnership: Interested applicants should include information on how the intended concept will address a market gap, specific need for climate financing, and target transaction size (as applicable).
- Ability to leverage private sector resources, assets, capabilities and expertise: Leveraged amounts will be considered within the context of the applicant’s objectives and impact in the market(s) and sector(s) in which the applicant is operating.
- Under Corporate capability: Interested applicants should demonstrate their prior history of successful operations/financing and their established presence and pipeline in the specific market(s)/country(ies) identified.
USAID and the Prosper Africa Secretariat are particularly interested in concepts that demonstrate innovative structures which allow USAID to crowd-in private sector financing for greater and more sustainable impact through climate finance (e.g. use of a recoverable grant, establishment of a revolving window).
Information on Applying:
To apply for funding, interested applicants must submit a concept note via the ATI intake site. This concept note will include the technical details of the proposed project, an estimated cost of the activity, and details on the applicant’s company and experience. All applications are due by September 30, 2023. For more information and relevant deadlines, we encourage all interested applicants to visit the entire ATI Annual Program Statement (APS) here.
Note:
- Applications will be evaluated on a rolling basis until the available funding is fully utilized.
- Please see our FAQs page and this PowerPoint deck for suggestions on structuring a grants concept note.
- ATI responds only to submissions that are selected to advance to the next stage.
- Note: All applicants that advance to the next stage must have a current Unique Entity Identifier (UEID) and register in the U.S. government’s System for Award Management at sam.gov. It is recommended that organizations begin to secure their UEID and SAM registration as early as possible to avoid delays as it can be a lengthy process. Applicants can register for a UEI by accessing this website.