Deadline: 15-Feb-23
The Infrastructure for Resilient Island States (IRIS) call for proposals is open to all 58 Small Island Developing States (SIDS) national government ministries or agencies with a mandate in disaster/climate resilience and/or infrastructure planning, financing or implementation (one or more sectors).
In 2022, IRIS organized a series of regional consultations with SIDS representatives to understand their infrastructure priorities, the climate and disaster risks they are exposed to and challenges and opportunities they face to build resilient infrastructure. Based on the outcomes of these consultations, this call for proposal has been designed to cater to the needs of SIDS towards building resilient infrastructure systems.
The first funding cycle of IRIS, formally announced at COP27, aims to equip relevant government agencies in SIDS with needed technical support and knowledge products related to infrastructure resilience. Funded activities will enhance informed decision-making, locally relevant technical knowledge and fit-for-purpose processes and tools for resilient infrastructure in SIDS.
During and after the implementation of the proposed institutional and technical strengthening initiatives of this first funding cycle, the IRIS Programme Management Unit (IRIS-PMU) team will document, evaluate and disseminate results to promote good practices, identify replicable interventions and advocate for the programme scale-up.
Themes
The call for proposal will support disaster and climate resilience projects that focus on developing mechanisms (for example: institutional, policy, decision support systems) that will ensure infrastructure assets in SIDS are planned, designed, built and managed effectively. The actions supported by this call are broadly classified into four themes, namely:
- Risk-informed policy and planning
- Implementation readiness
- Access to finance
- Inclusion mainstreaming
Sectors
Project proposals which are submitted for funding should identify one or more of the following sectors for resilience building.:
- Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and Multi-Hazard Early Warning Systems (MHEWS): ICT is a core component for the social well-being and economic performance of SIDS, given that many sectors such as health, transport, tourism, and education rely heavily on information and communication technologies. ICT is also an integral aspect of MHEWS to manage data and deliver information at the local, national and regional level, for anticipatory and early action to mitigate the impacts of hazards.
- Power systems: The delivery of electricity has proved to improve the quality of life through continued water supply and waste management systems, building operations, street lighting, as well as support to a wide variety of businesses including tourism.
- Transport sector: Mobility is a critical component of public infrastructure, enabling the movement of goods, services and individuals within a territory. It facilitates communities’ access to core services such as health, education, security and justice.
- Housing: Residential buildings stock in SIDS are at an increasing risk from climate change and disasters. The repetitive cycle of cyclonic events and massive financial losses incurred by the homeowners can be minimized through resilient housing initiatives.
- Water, Waste and Wastewater Management: The limited availability of potable water is usually threatened by the improper management of waste and wastewater. Given the state of climate change and sea-water intrusion, management of water, waste and wastewater will be critical to the sustainable development of island nations.
- Coastal Infrastructure: Traditionally and culturally, people living in islands have strong ties with their coastal marine areas. Sea-level rise and heavy storms can result in erosion and flooding of coastal areas as well as loss of natural habitat. The impacts of climate change are likely to continue to erode shorelines and damage property and infrastructure. Higher water levels threaten coastal structures and property, groundwater reservoirs, wastewater systems, and other resources of social and economic concern. Therefore, building resilience in coastal infrastructure will be critical for the economic development and livelihood of people in SIDS.
- Social Infrastructure: It is the foundation for the successful delivery of education during pre-disaster scenario and health services during and post a disaster. Strengthening of schools and health infrastructure will play a key role in safeguarding vulnerable people, minimizing the loss of life and leading to safe recovery.
- Tourism: This sector significantly contributes to the gross domestic product (GDP) of several island nations. Also, much of the country governments and private sectors are in the process of investing to promote tourism. Therefore, building resilience of tourist infrastructure will be essential for socio-economic development.
Funding Information
- Depending on the scale of implementation and extent of the impact, a single country project can range from $150,000 to $500,000 and a regional multi-country project (at least 3 SIDS) can range up to $750,000.
- The maximum duration of the proposed project implementation is 24 months.
Expected Outcomes
In line with IRIS outcomes, the proposed actions for this call for proposals are expected to contribute to one or more of the following:
- Improve resilience of SIDS infrastructure to climate change and disaster risks
- Strengthen knowledge and partnerships for integrating resilience in SIDS infrastructure
- Promote gender equality and disability inclusion through resilient SIDS infrastructure
Eligibility Criteria
- The call for proposal is open to all 58 SIDS irrespective of their membership status.
- Sub-national institutions, academia, civil society organisations and regional/international organisations may be presented as implementing partners for one or more components of the proposed action.
- Countries can also submit a joint EoI for multi-country/regional proposals.
General Criteria
- The projects proposed under this call for proposal should cater to the following general criteria:
- Projects under this call should help country governments in SIDS to achieve their long-term vision on disaster and climate resilience.
- Projects should provide support to the respective governments in piloting initiatives that could showcase models of infrastructure resilience building that could be replicated or scaled up across geographies.
- Projects should also help to reinforce adaptive capacity, strengthen resilience and reduce vulnerability, in line with the SAMOA pathway including but not limited to the commitments made at United Nations conferences and summits on sustainable development.
- Projects should ensure that infrastructure assets are built, managed, and maintained to be resilient to a level that appropriately reflects the climate and disaster risks, design life and importance, and wherever possible, promote further community resilience.
- Proposed projects by respective country governments can also be towards building resilience within an ongoing infrastructure initiative and the proposed intervention through this project can be at the stage of ideation, design, implementation, learning or evaluation.
- Proposals can be aligned to infrastructure resilience projects that have a potential for strengthening partnerships or increasing co-financing options.
- The current call for proposals is expected to be part of a periodic initiative by IRIS to SIDS in enhancing their infrastructure resilience. Therefore, the piloting and learning that emerges from this support can also be used to inform the subsequent calls for proposals by IRIS.
For more information, visit IRIS.