Mind the gap: Building bankable NDC pipelines in emerging markets

Multilateral development banks (MDBs), development finance institutions (DFIs) and institutional investors are awash with capital but starved of ready-to-finance projects. In many emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs), the early stages of project preparation remain under-funded and under-resourced, leaving NDC ambitions stranded.

This interactive session unpacks why pipelines stall, showcases diverse solutions—from stand-alone Project-Preparation Facilities (PPFs, such as GCF’s PPF) to fund-embedded PPFs (Like Technical Assistance Facilities or DevCos)—and invites participants to co-design country-driven models that deliver bankable, investment-grade deals. Delegates leave with a diagnostic checklist, three case-study playbooks and clear asks for development partners to turn pipeline projects into investment portfolios.

Objectives: 

• Diagnose the pipeline-development financing gap in EMDEs — why does early-stage project preparation remain underfunded despite the existence of many PPFs and technical assistance (TA) facilities? What are the structural, institutional, or political barriers to mobilizing early-stage finance?
• Explore successful PPF and TA models from multilateral, private-sector and country platforms and explore how these models can strengthen national capacities—such as national development banks, utilities, and project planning units (PPUs) etc.—to develop and manage robust project pipelines given the sheer volume of NDC projects that will be needed and the limited availability of concessional finance.
• Co-create ideas for practical solutions to unlock early-stage project development finance, including inputs that can inform best practices, country platform design, and recommendations for COP processes or investment roadmaps.