-African Initiative for Combating Desertification [AI-CD]-
1. Approach’s Outline and Feature
This approach involves supporting concerned countries for access to finance by guiding, facilitating and matching assistance but not direct financing under a regional cooperation framework. The approach was organized through trial and error within the framework of the African Initiative for Combating Desertification to Strengthen Resilience to Climate Change in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa (AI-CD), in which the Secretariat team assumed a guiding/facilitating role while respecting the initiatives and ownerships of member countries.
- Assistance for Project Development and Application: Developing and refining Project Concept Notes (PCNs), facilitating matching meetings between the Focal Points of participating countries and International Technical and Financial Partners (ITFPs) and bringing their PCNs to formal funding applications.
- Matching with the Private Sector: Providing matching opportunities of Focal Points with private companies’ products and technologies that may be useful to address desertification (e.g. organizing product exhibitions and presentations at various events)
- Building networks and knowledge-sharing efforts underpinning project development and application: Organization of annual regional forums, high-level events at international conferences, in-country workshops and a Knowledge-Sharing Webinar and creation of Short Films to present their challenges and efforts in combating desertification to ITFPs.
Keywords
Access to Finance, Regional Cooperation Framework, Facilitation, Matching, Ownership
2. Description of the project this approach derived from
2-1. Introduction
The Sahel and the Horn of Africa regions face mounting development challenges. Most of the region is desert or arid and thought to be degraded. The region has also been affected by frequent and severe droughts in recent years, which will likely be exacerbated by the recent climate change. As locals on a low income in the region heavily depend on natural resources, persistent drought has further worsened their livelihoods. Poverty in the region could result in growing insecurity and fuel the number of refugees and the risk of terrorism.
Addressing desertification properly and consolidating ways to mitigate climate change are key to helping nations in the region develop sustainably while contributing to local and global peace and stability. Despite the importance and urgency, droughts and desertification have not been given sufficient international attention and adequate finance to address these issues remains pending.
Against this backdrop, the Government of Kenya, the Government of Senegal, JICA and the UNCCD with partner African countries and development partners officially announced the launch of the African Initiative for Combating Desertification to Strengthen Resilience to Climate Change in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa (AI-CD) at TICAD VI in Nairobi in August 2016.
2-2. Details of the measures taken
- AI-CD aimed ‘help ensure nations and communities can consolidate climate change by promoting measures to combat desertification in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa’.
- Participating countries (*Regional Hub countries).
- Horn of Africa: Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya*, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan
- Sahel: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal*
- AI-CD comprised three pillars:
- Improving access to finance
- Assistance for project development and applications
- Secretariat assisted the participating countries to develop and refine their Project Concept Notes (PCNs)
- Secretariat coordinated and had a series of preparatory meetings with International Technical and Financial Partners (ITFPs)
- Secretariat facilitated matching meetings between the Focal Points of participating countries and ITFPs
- Secretariat assisted the participating countries to bring their PCNs to formal application to funding schemes and facilitated dialog with ITFPs to integrate PCNs into ITFP’s existing projects or programs.
- Information sharing on funding opportunities and assistance for project applications
- The Secretariat circulated information on funding opportunities (i.e. open and competitive calls by development partners)
- Based on the Focal Points’ requests, the Secretariat supported some NGOs in their countries to refine their application. Three NGOs applied and one was selected.
- Matching with the Private Sector
- The Secretariat provided, as technical support, matching opportunities for Focal Points with private companies’ products and technologies that may be useful to address desertification (i.e. organization of exhibitions, presentation of products and technologies at different events, etc.)
- Elaboration of Access to Finance Guidebook
- The Secretariat developed an Access to Finance Guidebook to assist Focal Points in acquiring basic information on funding opportunities, including relevant financial schemes ranging from financial mechanisms for environmental conventions (e.g. GEF, GCF), the Multilateral Development Banks (e.g. WB, AfDB) and others.
- Assistance for project development and applications
- Improving access to finance
(Source : experts de projet de la JICA)
- Building networks
- The Secretariat assisted the participating countries to organize annual regional forums, high-level events at international conferences and in-country workshops, which underpinned the “Access to Finance activities” by building networks with international and in-country cross-sectoral stakeholders.
- Knowledge-sharing
- The Secretariat assisted the participating countries to share their knowledge which supported “Access to Finance activities” by attracting attention from stakeholders using visual information and SNS tools and providing opportunities to learn from best practices collected by partner organizations.
- The Secretariat assisted the participating countries to create Short Films to present their challenges and efforts in combating desertification to ITFPs.
- The Secretariat assisted the Sahel Regional Hub (i.e. Senegal) to organize a Knowledge-Sharing Webinar in collaboration with the Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS).
- The Secretariat assisted the participating countries to share their knowledge on websites and with SNS tools.
- The Secretariat assisted the participating countries to share their knowledge which supported “Access to Finance activities” by attracting attention from stakeholders using visual information and SNS tools and providing opportunities to learn from best practices collected by partner organizations.
attending an AI-CD high-level event
(Source: JICA Project Experts)
(Perspectives on sustainability)
- Respecting the initiatives and ownership of the member countries by the Secretariat adopting a guiding/facilitating role was the key principle of AI-CD that encouraged member countries to act on their own initiative.
- Rather than direct financial support for PCNs, the Secretariat played a “Go-Between” function of Focal Points and ITFPs to facilitate project development and application.
3. Analysis of the approach
3-1. Impact
- Member countries’ ownership and regional hub countries’ strong leadership were fostered.
- Networks within the region and between international partners at both political and working levels were consolidated and newly developed.
- Engagement of domestic cross-sectoral stakeholders to engage in dialog and seek collaboration was enhanced.
- PCNs were developed by all member countries allowing concrete discussions and consultations to be concluded with ITFPs for project formulation.
- One country submitted the PCNs to partner organizations to find funding.
- One case of success in access to finance: Following circulation of information on funding opportunities (i.e. open and competitive calls by development organizations) by the Secretariat, Focal Points of some member countries voluntarily informed and encouraged NGOs in their own countries to apply for the fund and requested that the Secretariat support efforts to refine their application. Eventually, one NGO managed to obtain funding.
- Matching with the private sector spawned concrete actions
- Products and technologies that may be useful to address desertification were introduced and discussed in the AI-CD online training program. One of the participants from the relevant ministries of the member countries found the potential of a product presented and began to consider incorporating it into programs in his/her country.
- Following a series of preparatory meetings with cross-sectoral stakeholders, several actors started small-scale on-the-ground tests of a product introduced by the Secretariat in a member country aiming to boost relevant international initiatives such as the Great Green Wall Initiative.
- The research institute which collaborated in said on-the-ground test stressed that collaboration with researchers was the key to testing as well as validating new technologies and disseminating them, regionally as well as throughout a single country. Meanwhile, the agency related to the Great Green Wall emphasized that investment decisions concerning the introduction of new technologies would need to be made on an evidence-based and cost-effective basis and underlined the importance of promoting the dissemination of technology in a scheme that will develop autonomously by involving local beneficiaries.
3-2. Lessons learned
- PCNs are useful tools to seek funding opportunities: A series of matching meetings of Focal Points with ITFPs were organized to discuss the Focal Points’ PCNs and explore possible collaboration. Some member countries highlighted the fact that assistance in developing and refining PCNs, sharing information on funding opportunities and matching partners were useful when formulating projects and applying for funds. Other member countries suggested that similar to the support provided for holding country workshops, small-scale financial support for implementing micro-projects based on PCNs would be preferable, as it would be a stepping stone to obtaining larger funding later on. In addition, requests were made for capacity-building support to elaborate proposals for ITFPs.
- Contacts with ITFPs on the occasion of their Country Strategies renewal: ITFPs prepare Country Strategies which identify the objectives and development results for relevant countries and under which projects are developed. The Country Strategy is usually renewed every four to six years, which is optimal timing for Focal Points to initiate contacts with ITFPs and seek the potential for their PCNs to be incorporated into ITFP’s project formulation under the new strategy.
4. Relevant information
| NbS Approach Category | 4-2.30 |
| Title of the project the approach derived from | African Initiative for Combating Desertification to Strengthen Resilience to Climate Change in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa (AI-CD) |
| Country | Horn of Africa – Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya*, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan Sahel – Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal* (*) Regional hub of each region |
| Biome | Savanna, Desert/Semi-desert |
| Implementing term | 2016/August – 2022/August |
| Implementing organizations | Government of Kenya, Government of Senegal, JICA, United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) |
| Supporting organizations | Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) |
| Report/Tool/Guideline | •AI-CD Website •Policy Guidelines Horn of Africa Region Guideline on Effective Measures for Combating Desertification for Achieving Sustainable Development in the Horn of Africa Measures for Combating Desertification: Case Studies from Horn of Africa Sahel Region Knowledge and Policy Brief •Short Film Nigeria Mali Short Version Long Version |
| Contributors of this article | Takuya Shiraishi/Oriental Consultants Global |