Capacity Building

Experience has shown that the full engagement of developing countries in market mechanisms for greenhouse gas emission reductions and sequestration will only take place in the presence of local environments that support project identification, preparation, consideration and/or approval. Consistent with its mission to catalyze the emergence and growth of market mechanisms for climate change mitigation and sustainable development, the World Bank, in parallel with its carbon funds, has established a consolidated capacity building and technical assistance program, called Carbon Finance-Assist (CF-Assist), to enhance capacity and expertise of host countries to engage in the greenhouse gas market, allow full participation in the flexible mechanisms defined under the Kyoto Protocol, and to benefit from the sustainable development gains associated with such projects.

CF-Assist was proposed in 2004 and formally launched in mid-2005; the actual implementation started in early 2006. The World Bank Institute has been entrusted to manage this program that trains and educates people who will be crucial catalysts in their countries to promote the deployment of clean technologies. In the early days of the carbon market, lack of knowledge and experience in most developing countries and economies in transition was a key problem. It prevented these countries from being an effective player in the emerging market and expanding its reach. As a response, CF-Assist designed and implemented capacity building programs since 2006, focusing on strengthening regulatory institutions, helping put procedures in place and assisting in project portfolio development, in addition to creating professional expertise through training.  A lot has been achieved in this regard as a result of CF-Assist and similar capacity building programs of other agencies (e.g. CD4CDM of UNEP), and several countries in Asia and Latin America have successfully established the conditions needed for utilizing carbon finance - however, considerable effort is still needed in some countries and regions, especially in Sub Saharan Africa and Central Asia, which have not benefited much during the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol. 

However, as the global debate now moves towards a new regulatory regime replacing Kyoto Protocol after 2012, capacity building needs are evolving as well: new instruments and concepts such as programmatic and sector-specific approaches have emerged or are under discussion, and the need to scale up the activities has grown significantly.

For more information, please visit the CF Assist web site.