Application Deadline: February 17, 2023.
The Climate Finance Accelerator (CFA) is a global technical assistance programme funded by the UK government to directly support climate projects to access finance. The CFA operates in nine countries (Nigeria, Colombia, South Africa, Türkiye, Mexico, Peru, Pakistan, Egypt, and Vietnam) with the aim of encouraging the flows of finance required to deliver on countries’ ambition to limit global warming to 1.5°C.
In Nigeria, the CFA brings together the key actors in the climate finance investment chain: project proponents and developers, finance providers, and policymakers. Our aim is to facilitate a collaborative approach to unlocking finance for climate projects at scale and creating a pipeline of ‘investment ready’ low carbon projects. The CFA also seeks to deliver several co-benefits, such as supporting a just transition and green recovery efforts from COVID-19 through inclusive approaches to sustainable development, improved gender equality, and building resilience to climate impacts.
The CFA is a practical and deal-oriented programme that supports climate projects to improve their bankability and appeal to financiers. Preparing projects that are attractive to investors is challenging. Low carbon projects are often perceived as higher risk as new technologies and business models are not widely understood. Regulatory and policy barriers can also create blockages in accessing capital at scale.
The Climate Finance Accelerator offers a range of capacity building support to assist climate mitigation projects in accessing finance.
By engaging with the CFA programme, project developers can benefit from:
- Access to investors: CFA Nigeria provides project developers greater opportunities to access finance by working directly with potential investors to understand their needs and develop their projects accordingly. Through our reach, project proponents have the opportunity to reach commercial and concessional investors, operating both nationally and internationally.
- Coaching and best practice insights: CFA Nigeria provides access to expert insight and coaching. Through knowledge sharing sessions on what matters to financiers when taking the decision to invest, project developers will gain valuable insights and develop capabilities in making projects attractive and investment ready. For example, we will advise on the development of key materials such as term sheets for investors and marketing presentations.
- Networking opportunities: Project developers will have the opportunity to expand their network with investors and other key stakeholders in the climate finance landscape. These include government representatives at national and local level, national and international development banks and agencies, and a cohort of projects facing similar challenges. The network will provide project developers with long-lasting benefits to current and future low carbon opportunities.
- Increased visibility: Participation in CFA Nigeria and key events can raise the profile of a project amongst a range of stakeholders from regional and national policy makers, through to a range of stakeholders from local and international finance providers
- Achieving low carbon project objectives: CFA Nigeria supports projects to realise and communicate their positive impacts. We have access to climate, sectoral and social impact specialists and can assist projects to support local and national climate ambitions, as well as helping to unlock co-benefits such as poverty reduction, improved gender equality and social inclusion, and tackling biodiversity loss.
The type of projects the CFA Nigeria can support
CFA Nigeria supports low carbon projects that are seeking finance. Candidate projects should:
- Be designed to achieve measurable climate outcomes in terms of direct or facilitated greenhouse gas emission reductions;
- Have a minimum total financing need of $5M;
- Have an already proven concept, at least pre-feasibility stage, with distinct elements of scalability (especially if below $10m);
- Have a business model that will generate commercially viable returns in the long-term (although some element of concessional financing may be required initially);
- Demonstrate positive social impacts and contribute to furthering gender equality and social inclusion.
How to apply
- CFA Nigeria is open for applications from climate projects seeking support in accessing finance until February 17, 2023.
For More Information:
Visit the Official Webpage of the Climate Finance Accelerator Programme 2023