The regional project "Implementing Regional and National Adaptation Priorities in Central and West Africa (PACO)" is financed by the International Climate Initiative (IKI) through the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUKN) and implemented by GIZ in Benin, Republic of Congo, Côte d"Ivoire, and Senegal. The project is carried out by a consortium comprising the African Development Bank (AfDB), Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), the Climate Commission of the Sahel Region (CCRS), and GIZ, in close collaboration with national ministries of environment, public and private actors, and civil society. PACO aims to strengthen climate resilience and adaptive capacities of governments, civil society, municipalities, and small and medium enterprises in the target countries. By supporting the implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and governance frameworks, the project seeks to protect livelihoods and enhance climate-resilient development in regions heavily dependent on the primary sector and therefore highly exposed to climate change impacts. To achieve this, PACO operates through four interlinked outputs: Regional Support and coordination: The Climate Commissions for the Sahel Region (CCRS) and the Congo Basin (CCBC) support and upscale climate resilience of their member states in line with international agendas. Climate Governance: The four target countries strengthen their national climate governance frameworks and adaptive capacities of key stakeholders. Sectoral approaches: Public and private investors implement transformative actions in priority sectors of the target countries' NAPs/NDCs to improve climate-resilient sectoral productivity. South-South collaboration: Key stakeholders engage in South-South collaboration and exchange experiences relevant to technology transfer. The present commission concentrates on activities under Outputs 3 and 4, with emphasis on the collaboration between GIZ and the two multilateral development banks-AfDB and IsDB. Under Output 3, the AfDB, through its Climate and Environment Finance Division, will select from five small-scale adaptation projects (20 in total), one per country (four in total) for demonstrating their Adaptation Benefits Mechanism (ABM). The ABM is a results-based financing approach developed by the AfDB to enhance the resilience of vulnerable communities and ecosystems. Officially recognized under the UNFCCC as the first non-market cooperative approach pursuant to Article 6.8 of the Paris Agreement, it provides a tool for mobilizing new adaptation finance and scaling successful measures across Africa. In parallel, the IsDB will update their pipeline of bankable climate adaptation projects in its member countries - Benin, Côte d"Ivoire, and Senegal - helping leverage public and private finance. Through cooperation with GIZ and other partners, the project targets mobilizing up to EUR 60 million in additional funds (including EUR 50 million from IsDB) for climate-resilient investments. Under Output 4, the IsDB, supported by GIZ, will implement a regional Reverse Linkage initiative to facilitate knowledge and technology transfer between countries. This includes establishing a Regional Centre of Excellence in West Africa to host reverse linkages, enabling member states to exchange expertise and best practices in adaptation and resilience. The Reverse Linkage mechanism, pioneered by IsDB, fosters technical cooperation among member countries to develop endogenous solutions. Through these coordinated efforts, the PACO project will contribute to scaling up climate adaptation action, improving institutional capacity, mobilizing finance, and fostering regional and international cooperation to enhance resilience in West and Central Africa.

10004007_1-Provision of Technical Expert Support on Climate Change Adaptation and Climate Finance in Central and West Africa

In this work package, the contractor in collaboration with the African Development Bank will identify and work with project applicants from the pool of projects generated by the national climate funds, financed by GIZ. The contractor and AfDB will identify small-scale high-impact highly replicable climate change adaptation demonstration projects, that are suitable for AfDB"s Adaptation Benefits Mechanism (ABM), seeking to mobilize higher amounts of funding than available through the PACO small grants from Output 3. The specific objective is to establish and implement four new and fully validated ABM-Projects, developed according to the ABM Activity Cycle, that will catalyse up to four million Euro of public or private money via the issuance of Certified Adaptation Benefits (CAB). The basis for the four ABM Projects to develop are the identified projects from Output 3 suitable for an ABM Activity. To obtain the CABs, issued by the AfDB and the goal of the activity, the contractor must in collaboration with AfDB, guide the ABM Activity Participants during the ABM Activity Cycle. Both the small-scale adaptation project, implemented by the project developer under Output 3 and financed by GIZ (responsibility of GIZ), and the demonstration of the ABM must be fully implemented within the project duration (responsibility of the contractor). The contractor will be responsible for undertaking all activities necessary to establish and demonstrate four ABM Activities, in Benin, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Republic of Congo, which will lead to the issuance of Certified Adaptation Benefits by the African Development Bank. The contractor accordingly will deliver advisory services, technical and process-related assistance, deliver basic studies, and develop ABM Methodologies during the ABM Activity Cycle to the four identified ABM Participants. The African Development Bank will provide guidance and advise on the ABM components. Promote and catalyse adaptation financing in Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, and Senegal This work package outlines the activities required to develop a pipeline of climate change adaptation projects using the IsDB's financial instruments in Benin, Côte d'Ivoire and Senegal in cooperation with relevant national stakeholders to leverage through catalysation additional adaptation finance (up to 50 Mio. EUR from public and private investors). The objective is (1) to build a strong pipeline of IsDB projects in the three countries that are adapted and/or with a main objective of addressing adaptation challenges in relevant sectors, building from PACO small grant projects (Output 3), and NAP/NDC investment plans developed or revised under Output 1, and (2) to facilitate capacity building to strengthen the institutional capacity of financial institutions. The contractor will be responsible, in coordination with IsDB and GIZ, for deploying a series of country-level consultation workshops to firm up and engage with relevant public and private actors for the strengthening of IsDB project pipelines in Benin, Ivory Coast and Senegal with high adaptation finance potential. In addition, the contractor will prepare and implement relevant studies, including gender, socio-economic and environmental analyses supporting the economic case for IsDB intervention in sectors relevant to the countries" NAPs and adaptation-related NDCs or based on existing NAP/NDC investment plans. Establishment of four Reverse Linkages and one centre of excellence in collaboration with IsDB This work package focuses on the establishment of four Reverse Linkages in the PACO program with four different host-institutions. Reverse linkages are a mechanism developed by the Islamic Development Bank to establish partnerships between institutions in countries in the global South. In each partnership an institution with proven knowledge, expertise, technology, and resources is the provider of knowledge; the recipient of knowledge can be a public, private, or third-sector organization. The institutions involved must be IsDB members; this limits PACO participation to Benin, Ivory Coast and Senegal, and to the CCRS , since the Republic of Congo is not a member of the IsDB. The contractor will support IsDB to conduct a stakeholder assessment in each of the three member countries to identify interest and needs among institutions in the three target countries in being the recipient organization in a reverse linkage relationship. Where this offers a good opportunity, the contractor will, with help and consent of the IsDB, identify knowledge-providing institutions (the "Resources-Centre") to work with the concerned institutions and will facilitate planning and establishing the partnerships. The resulting partnerships may offer a range of services to recipient countries, including training, coaching, advisory services, technology transfer, demo sites, and others. Once set up, the partnerships usually last for a period of three years, so the process will be carried out during the life of the PACO project. Furthermore, the contractor will help IsDB to identify and set up regional or national Centres of Excellence (institutions highly specialized and leading in technology, finance, etc.) to potentially host more Reverse Linkages and to facilitate the flow of information. The contractor will accordingly assess the capacity needs of the target countries, identify the centres of excellence, accomplish the installation of four Reverse Linkages and implement capacity development plans with the support of IsDB. If appropriate, the IsDB will establish a reverse linkage between CCRS and a centre of excellence in another IsDB member country, to help build Commission capacity. This possibility will be considered by the Commission and the Bank during the inception phase of the PACO project.