Participation in the ideas competition of the Country Call is open to German and international grant recipients as well as to implementing organisations of the German Federal Government.

The IKI finances climate, adaptation and biodiversity projects exclusively in ODA1 -eligible countries. The aim is to fund projects that pursue holistic approaches across multiple levels and, above all, demonstrate how to practically implement climate action, adaptation and biodiversity conservation on the ground (including policy advice, capacity building, technological cooperation, investment, and local implementation in particular).

This country call addresses the present challenges in climate action, adaptation, and biodiversity conservation in the IKI priority country of Colombia. For these challenges the below-mentioned thematic priorities with the respective objectives are defined. For these, project outlines can be submitted.

Objective and Purpose

• Through the Country Calls, the IKI primarily funds large-volume projects to accelerate the transformation towards a sustainable, biodiversity-friendly, and low-emission economic and supply structure. In particular, the following overarching goals are pursued:
• The legal framework at the national and sub-national level in IKI priority countries is designed to strengthen emission reduction, adaptation and biodiversity conservation as well as the implementation of this across sectors.
  
• The governments of IKI priority countries have appropriately increased the ambition of climate and biodiversity contributions in NDCs, NAPs, NBSAPs, and/or long-term strategies (LTSs).
• The IKI makes medium-term contributions to both direct and indirect emission reductions in IKI priority countries.
• People affected by climate change in IKI priority countries are supported in their adaptation to the impacts of climate change.
• Ecosystems in IKI priority countries, including coasts and marine areas, are subject to improved conservation practices and sustainable use.
• The IKI leverages its invested funds to finance climate and biodiversity measures from the public and private sector.
• Considering the aforementioned overarching goals, the projects address specific obstacles in implementing the NDCs, NAPs, and NBSAPs of the priority countries.

Thematic Priorities

• Thematic priority 1: Roll-out of renewable energies and economic diversification for a just coal phase-out
• The envisioned project should contribute to the following overarching goal: An accelerated and socially just phase-out of the coal infrastructure, resulting in GHG reductions from the energy sector, as well as a just transition towards a renewable-based energy matrix with substantial socio-economic benefits for local communities (including capacity development) with a focus on economic diversification and re-industrialisation that drive the implementation of sustainable energy projects over time.

The envisioned project should work toward the following objectives:

• Develop and finance the implementation of concrete activities and pilots in prioritised areas (e.g. energy communities and business structures for community-led economic diversification and re-industrialisation projects, labour re-skilling and re-training, projects to replace coal with climate neutral and biodiversity friendly energy sources in the industrial sector).
• Facilitate access to finance and the mobilisation of public and private capital for JET and the upscaling of renewable energies by supporting the development of the appropriate financial frameworks and innovative financial instruments, a pipeline of renewable energy projects focusing on energy communities, the subsidies and incentives to leverage private sector investments and the market infrastructure and building or strengthening local capabilities.
• Enable the roll-out of energy communities, as a key socially supported model for renewable energy deployment, by strengthening local and institutional capabilities, creating technological tools (e.g. big data analysis, web applications, etc.) and engaging with public, private and/or community-based actors.
• Develop capacities, reskill, upskill, raise awareness, and generate local buy-in and acceptance of renewable energies and the coal phase-out among relevant stakeholders and prioritised communities for ambitious climate action and climate finance (e.g., energy communities, transitioning to new sustainable livelihoods, measurement, reporting and verification/MRV) through new study opportunities and certified courses.
• Analyse, strengthen and further develop policy, regulatory and financial frameworks, participative science-based studies, pathways, roadmaps, business and financial models, innovative approaches for private sector collaboration around common challenges, and applied research on energy solutions.

Possible target groups/sectors 

• National and subnational government institutions
• Public and private companies operating coal infrastructure (e.g., mines, power plants, ports, end-use devices, etc.)
• Power system operators
• Direct and indirect employees linked to the steam coal value chain
• Industrial and energy companies, industry associations, chambers of commerce (technology providers and project developers)

Geographical focus 

• The envisioned project shall take a bilateral approach and be implemented in the following Colombian departments: Córdoba, Cesar, Guajira, Boyacá, Cundinamarca, and Norte de Santander.
• Thematic priority 2: Landscape scale restoration as an economic and multifunctional nature-based solution for peace
• The envisioned project should contribute to the following overarching goal: The peace process in Colombia is catalysed through functional landscapes, healthy and resilient ecosystems that provide communities, especially the most vulnerable, with necessary resources and critical ecosystem services for improved and healthy living conditions.

To this end, the envisioned project should work toward the following objectives: 

• Detailed components outlined in Colombia’s National Restoration Strategy catalyse the peace process in Colombia toward transitioning to functional landscapes and resilient ecosystems. These provide essential resources and critical ecosystem services, especially to vulnerable communities, improving their well-being and living conditions. Stakeholder engagement, landscape-scale approaches, and comprehensive collaboration among government agencies, local communities, NGOs, and private sector entities reflect a holistic approach to sustainable development that integrates ecological, social, economic, and cultural dimensions.
• Biodiversity-supportive economies, community conservation processes, and the restoration of functional landscapes (such as through NbS) developed in the project align with Colombia’s national climate and biodiversity objectives.
• The project can also work towards the following specific objectives: 
• Consolidating conservation, restoration, and sustainable use of biodiversity to improve the living conditions of indigenous peoples and local communities through holistic and sustainable long-term approaches (e.g., farmer reserves, forest landscape restoration approaches, etc.).
• Utilizing participatory approaches to develop and support community and biodiversity supportive economies, such as sustainable and diverse productive systems, ecotourism, sustainable and biodiversity-promoting agroforestry practices, integrated agriculture, non-timber forest products, sustainable aquaculture and mariculture. This includes community-based conservation, restoration, and management through bio economies that support biodiversity and offer viable economic opportunities. This includes early involvement of relevant groups, particularly vulnerable or affected groups, such as women, girls, rural populations, farmers, indigenous groups, Afro-Colombians, conflict victims, and ex-combatants, in decision-making processes.
• Strengthening organizational, technical, legal, and financial capacities of grassroots organizations to drive restoration and biodiversity economies.
• Prioritizing water management and protection of watersheds guided by the National Development Plan, as well as protection and restoration of natural infrastructure in land use or management plans.
• Adapting, developing, and implementing NbS measures to restore ecological integrity across protected areas and buffer zones, strategic ecosystems, and biodiversity corridors.

Potential contributions of the project to gender equality: 

• All IKI projects must have at least a gender perspective. It is particularly positive that explicit gender justice objectives are pursued in the project context and visible in the results chain at the product and (if applicable) outcome levels.
• The project should actively promote the participation of all genders, especially girls and women, in all project activities and adapt formats to the needs and capacities of participants. To achieve gender mainstreaming, the project should include activities that foster women’s leadership experience, their networking, (self-)empowerment, conflict management, and strategic communication.
• Women, girls, and other marginalised groups have disproportionately suffered from past and present armed conflicts in Colombia. Project activities should be tailored with a gender-responsive or – transformative approach and develop practical tools to reduce increased economic and social vulnerabilities and adapt to the special needs and burdens of women with multiple social roles.
• Possible target groups/sectors of the project 
• National and subnational governments
• Community-based organisations and their representatives
• Research institutions, think tanks, and universities
• Public and private stakeholders for biodiversity financing
• Vulnerable communities and marginalised groups
• Indigenous peoples and local communities (traditional knowledge)

Geographical focus 

The envisioned project is expected to take a bilateral approach, targeting deforestation hotspots strategic ecoregions, and protected areas within the Colombian Massif (Macizo Colombiano) in the southwest of Colombia.

Funding Information

The funding volume provided by the IKI is a minimum of 20 million to a maximum of 25 million EUR per project. The specifications on the funding volumes as defined in the thematic priorities apply. Exceeding or falling short of the permissible funding volume will lead to the exclusion of the project outline.

Duration 

The maximum duration of funding is eight years. A minimum duration is not specified.

Eligibility Criteria

• The following organisations are welcome to apply:
  
• Non-governmental organisations,
• Universities and research institutions,
• International intergovernmental organisations and institutions (such as development banks),
• Organisations and programmes of the United Nations
• Private sector companies.
• Governments of the partner countries are not eligible to apply for IKI funding.
• Organisations against which the EU has imposed sanctions are excluded form IKI-funding. In particular, the following are excluded from funding:
• persons, organisations, or bodies specifically mentioned in the legal acts imposing these sanctions
• companies owned or controlled by persons, organisations, or bodies subject to EU sanctions
• companies operating in sectors subject to EU sanctions insofar as the aid would undermine the objectives of the sanctions in question
• As an applicant or a recipient of funding, the implementing organisation undertakes to comply with all applicable EU and UN sanctions regimes. If the applicable sanction regulations are violated, the full grant can be reclaimed.

Source:  https://www.international-climate-initiative.com/en/find-funding/country-call/country-call-colombia-2024/