Engagement of Project Preparation Facility Fund (PPF) Manager Contract duration -24 months contract

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

(CONSULTING SERVICES - FIRMS SELECTION)

IMPLEMENTING AGENCY: COMMON MARKET FOR EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA ( COMESA)

NAME OF PROGRAM: ACCELERATING SUSTAINABLE AND CLEAN ENERGY ACCESS TRANSFORMATION (ASCENT) PROGRAM

PROJECT ID : P180547

ASSIGNMENT TITLE: ENGAGEMENT OF PROJECT PREPARATION FACILITY FUND (PPF) MANAGER

REFERENCE NO. ZM-COMESA -474527-CS-CDS

• INTRODUCATION

The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) received a grant from the World Bank towards the implementation of the Accelerating Sustainable and Clean Energy Access Transformation (ASCENT) program and intends to apply part of the proceeds towards consultancy services.

The consulting services (“the Services”) include engagement of a Project Preparation Facility Fund (PPF) Manager who will manage application-based allocation of grants and specialized consulting services to Distributed Renewable Energy (DRE) and clean cooking projects from the private and public sectors, as well as corresponding administrative tasks (contracting, monitoring, reporting, etc.). The PPF manager will also have an important role in the detailed design of the PPF, in the adapting of the design throughout the project to meet the needs of the DRE market and establishing partnerships with key industry stakeholders.

2.0 SERVICES AND IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS OF THE PPF

The PPF will provide support to the DRE and clean cooking sectors including women-owned and youth owned investable businesses through five mechanisms listed below. These PPF mechanisms are expected to play a critical role in

(i) accelerating access to finance and reducing the time it takes for companies to reach financial close, (ii) equipping companies with tools and intelligence to expand into new areas/markets, (iii) enhancing companies’ business performance, and (iv) developing a pipeline of investable businesses with solid returns/ impact.

• 2.1 Publicly available resources: e.g. geospatial mapping and planning platforms, country briefs containing useful information for DRE and clean cooking companies considering expansion to new markets, in-depth market assessments for specific technologies in unserved and underserved markets, supporting matchmaking between potential suppliers and distributors (particularly for nascent markets and nascent product categories, such as productive-use equipment). The production of these resources will be driven by unmet market needs. As part of this mechanism, the PPF will also provide “pre-application support”, to companies intending on presenting applications to the PPF. This support may include tailored guidance, capacity-building, and awareness training during the facility launch activities in the form of webinars, workshops or other suitable formats.

• 2.2 Roster of experts (consultants) providing on-demand specialized project preparation and business development services: the facility will have a roster of consultants to deliver specialized services[1] deemed critical to unlocking finance for companies (especially equity and debt). Such services may include feasibility studies or other investment-grade studies, support to digitize companies’ operations, support to improve companies’ credit risk management, legal services to support transactions, producing financial reporting and ESG requirements of potential investors, or preparing carbon finance projects. The roster of experts will include consultants that understand the challenges facing and the ability to work with women-owned and youth-owned businesses. Companies benefiting from the roster of experts will be responsible for the final outputs in each case, with the consultants supporting them through the process. The roster of experts and list of services will be updated periodically based on feedback from the sector, which the PPF manager will be responsible to collect and process.

• 2.3. Grants for project preparation and business development: for specific activities not covered by the roster of consultants, grants will be made available for companies to use for eligible activities that are critical for them to be able to raise equity and debt. Such activities may include conducting feasibility studies ,the integration of software, testing a new product or technology, or hiring a staff member that is critical to unlocking investment. Requests for grants that are supported by investors or financial advisors to companies (ie grants for purposes which will help mobilize or advance investment) will be prioritized. The disbursement of the grants will be milestone-based.

• 2.4. Grants to industry associations and investors providing project preparation and business development services: In addition to companies, other stakeholders (such as industry associations and financiers) can apply for grants to deliver project preparation and business development services to companies, provided these are complementary to the PPF facility and targeted to ASCENT eligible companies in eligible countries. Grants to investors and lenders may also be used to cover their own core transactions and due diligence related costs, provided this facilitates investment in ASCENT eligible companies in eligible countries. The disbursement of the grants will be milestone-based.

• 2.5. Support to national agencies and cross-border solutions: the same consulting services from the roster of experts and grant mechanisms established to support the private sector will also be put to the service of the other two components of the PPF (ie, support to national agencies and to cross-border solutions). This mechanism will also be application based. It will be further developed in close coordination with the “Advisory support to governments” window under the COMESA Regional Energy Access Acceleration Platform.

The expected start date of the agreement is September 2025 for a period of 24 months ensuring full consistency with the Terms of Reference (TORs)

The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for this assignment are attached to this Request for Expressions of Interest (REOI).

3.0 SHORTLISTING CRITERIA

The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa now invites eligible consulting firms (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services. The shortlisting criteria is as follows;

• The firm’s core business ( Submit company profile)

• Experience of the firm ( Not less than 10 years)

• Evidence of having undertaken similar assignments in the COMESA region or in Africa in the last ten (10 No.) years. (Name, scope and cost of previous comparable similar assignments and client contact details -email, physical address and details of the contact person.

• Firms technical and Managerial capacity to manage the assignment

• Eligibility (Firm/s must not be debarred or sanctioned by the World Bank)

The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” Fifth Edition of September 2023.

Consultants may associate with other firms to enhance their qualifications but should indicate clearly whether the association is in the form of a joint venture and/or a sub-consultancy. In the case of a joint venture, all the partners in the joint venture shall be jointly and severally liable for the entire contract, if selected.

A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Quality Cost Based selection (QCBS) method set out in the Procurement Regulations Fifth Edition of September 2023.

Further information can be obtained at the address below during office hours from 09:00 to 16:00 hours Monday to Thursday, on Fridays from 0900 to 12:30 hours Zambian time except for weekends and Public Holidays. Address: Head of Procurement, COMESA Secretariat, Ben Bella Road, Lusaka, Zambia. Email address: [email protected] copy [email protected]

4.0 SUBMISSION

Expressions of interest must be submitted written to the following email address;

[email protected] copy to [email protected]

ASSIGNMENT TITLE: ENGAGEMENT OF PROJECT PREPARATION FACILITY FUND (PPF) MANAGER. REFERENCE NO. ZM-COMESA -474527-CS-CDS

ATT: Mr. Silver Mwesigwa

Head of Procurement

COMESA Secretariat

Ben Bella Road

P.O Box 30051

LUSAKA 10101

Zambia

Telephone: +260 211 2297226/29; Web: http://www.comesa.int Facsimile: +260 211 227318;

CLOSING DATE FOR SUBMISSION

The Closing date for receipt of Expression of Interest is 9th May 2025 at 10:00 hours Zambian time

NB: Physical submission of EOIs shall not be accepted.

TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR

CONSULTANCY SERVICES FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF THE PROJECT PREPARATION FACILITY MANAGER (PPF )

1.0 BACKGROUND

The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) was established in 1994 as “as an organization of free independent sovereign states that have agreed to cooperate in developing their natural and human resources for the good of all their people.” COMESA sums up its current strategy as “economic prosperity through regional integration.” Recognizing the critical importance of sustainable, reliable, and affordable energy for competitiveness and greater economic integration of countries in the Eastern and Southern Africa region, COMESA has been increasing its involvement in the energy sector. Through its energy program, whose main thrust is to promote regional cooperation in energy development, trade, and capacity building, COMESA supports its member countries in (i) harmonization of energy policy and regulatory frameworks, (ii) regionwide energy planning, and (iii) facilitation of trade in energy services through regional energy trade and development of a wider distributed renewable energy (DRE) market.

The Accelerating Sustainable and Clean Energy Access Transformati