6 new projects selected for the nature conservation in Africa

The PPI selection committee was held on the beginning of November to study the new proposals submitted to it following 2 calls for proposals and to select the best ones.

The sixth phase of the PPI is currently being implemented with the main objective of strengthening the contribution of the civil society in West and Central Africa to the conservation of biodiversity and the fight against climate change through the financing of local projects. During this phase, 4 calls for proposals are planned: one on the theme of NBS, concerning 5 countries; two restricted, open to CSOs “historical partners” who have already benefited from the PPI (one for the Atlantic coast of West Africa region and one for West and Central Africa regions); and one open to all CSOs “new partners” who have never benefited from the PPI (open to the 3 regions). At the same time, two grants for CSO networks; as well as an “emergency fund” grant intended only for beneficiaries of PPI 5 and 6 will also be available to CSOs. In total, around 50 projects will be funded in the three major regions for an amount of € 1.8 million.

Call for proposals « Nature Based Solutions (NBS) » 

The call for proposals on the theme of NBS, co-funded by the EDF Group Foundation, was sent on March 16, 2021 to a short list of 63 historical partners of the PPI in 5 countries (Benin, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal and Togo) and was accompanied by an informational webinar on the concept of NBS hosted by the French Committee of IUCN. On May 16, 2021, 14 concept notes were received. 4 projects were shortlisted and were invited to submit a full proposal before September 12, 2021. Each CSO was supported by the “capacity building” coordinators (Thomas Bacha, Aurélien Garreau and Damien Martin) for the writing of the proposals as well as by the CF-IUCN ‘Ecosystem Management’ team. 

Call for proposals « West African Atlantic Façade (FA) »

The FA call for proposals, co-funded by the MAVA Foundation, was sent on June 16, 2021 to a shortlist of 12 historical partners of the PPI in 3 countries (Cape Verde, Guinea and Senegal). On July 7, 2021, 11 concept notes were received. 6 projects were shortlisted and were invited to submit a full proposal before October 10, 2021. Each CSO was supported by Aurélien Garreau, the “capacity building” coordinator of this area for the writing of the proposals.

The selection committee, which brings together experts from the French IUCN Committee, met on November 9, 2021 and evaluated the applications submitted under the two calls for proposals described above. The proposals were analyzed beforehand by 3 independent evaluators.

At the end of this selection committee, 2 ‘SFN’ projects and 4 ‘FA’ projects were selected in 3 African countries (Benin, Cape Verde and Senegal) for a total amount awarded of 440,000 euros (complete list of selected projects available here). Through these grants, the organizations selected will have the common objective of implementing local biodiversity conservation projects through concrete actions in the field. To do this, they will be supported by the French IUCN Committee which, beyond the funding provided, will also provide additional support to strengthen their capacities.