Leveraging Vanuatu’s National Green Energy Fund – Green Climate Fund (GCF) Funding Proposal Development for ESS-GESI

The rural areas of Vanuatu have very low electricity access and rely heavily on diesel, making it difficult for the country to reach its current climate goals. As energy demand increases on this small island developing state, assistance is required to support the national transition from fossil fuel to renewable energy. The aim of this assignment is to support the South Pacific Community (SPC) in partnership with the Government of Vanuatu to prepare a Green Climate Fund (GCF) project proposal aimed at accessing concessional off-grid renewable energy (RE) technology solutions for inhabitants in rural areas, mainly on outer and remote islands. This intervention should ultimately contribute to reducing carbon dioxide emissions and, in turn, help Vanuatu achieve its Nationally Determined Contribution targets.

The funding proposal package for a submission to GCF involves carrying out an environmental and social safeguard (ESS) assessment and a gender and social inclusion (GESI) assessment along with developing corresponding management plans. These documents will constitute key parts of the funding proposal to be approved. They also require being developed in a context-sensitive manner since the implementation of the management plans is a cornerstone of the evaluation procedures for an upcoming assignment. Supporting the national electrification effort, Econoler aims to ensure that ESS and GESI are integrated into the funding proposal to meet GCF and SPC standards. 

Econoler has been mandated to support SPC and the Government of Vanuatu in carrying out an ESS assessment and a GESI assessment along with developing corresponding management plans in the context of a GCF proposal for concessional off-grid RE. 

Under the mandate, Econoler is carrying out the following tasks: 

• Assess ESS in the selected implementation contexts;

• Assess GESI in the selected implementation contexts;

• Develop and conduct a desk review;

• Design and deploy primary data collection through interviews and analyze results;

• Develop an ESS screening report;

• Develop a GESI screening report;

• Develop a Gender Action Plan template;

• Respond to all queries from GCF, SPC, and the Independent Technical Advisory Panel.

The client will benefit from Econoler’s expertise in integrating ESS and GESI into climate finance proposals, ensuring alignment with GCF requirements. This will strengthen the quality and approval potential of the funding proposal while supporting effective and inclusive project implementation.