coral reef

Investing in Coral Reefs and the Blue Economy

The Joint Programme (JP) seeks to create a blended finance facility and build capacity to mobilise private and public investment capital for initiatives that have a positive impact on Fijian coral reefs and the communities that rely on them. The JP will construct a pipeline of bankable projects providing a blend of technical assistance, performance grants and concessional capital for de-risking. Projects will leverage finance from private investors and other financing facilities.

Expected results include:

  1. Private sector investment in a US$10M blended finance facility for effective management of 30 Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMAs) in Fiji. The JP will accelerate the short-term investment readiness of a pipeline of 10 LMMA projects ($3.1M target) and bring the wider pipeline to market ($10M target). Business model include reef-first businesses such as eco-tourism, visitor centers, sustainable fisheries and blue carbon credits.
  2. Private sector investment in a $14M blended finance facility for sanitary landfill project before replicating the approach to other landfill projects in the country.
  3. Private sector investment in an eco-fertilizer factory before replicating the approach to other five reef-first SME projects in the pipeline.
  4. Established and operational gender-responsive Technical Assistance Facility (TAF) for blue economy SMEs and financial instruments. The TAF will:
    • Bring expertise during the pre-investment and post-investment life cycle of the Blue Economy SMEs
    • Aggregate and pool investments and other financial instruments, reducing transaction costs and reducing risk profile
    • Work with Government to improve regulatory framework
    • Fundraise development and private finance
  5. Leveraged a total of $50M in public and private investments in reef-first SMEs and financial instruments.
  6. Measurement and verification of positive economic and environmental impacts to vulnerable coastal communities (>70,000 beneficiaries) and coral reefs, of which 50% will be women and youth.


Announcement:

Call for proposals: Building Back Blue - Blue Accelerator Grant Scheme Fiji 2022

Impact

START DATE

March 2021

END DATE

December 2025

STATUS

Ongoing

PROJECT OFFICE

Fiji

IMPLEMENTING PARTNER

United Nations Development Programme

DONORS

MPTF-Global Fund Coral Reefs

MPTF-Joint SDG Fund

TOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS

$1,407,470

DELIVERY IN PREVIOUS YEARS

2021$66,885

2022$227,367

2023$226,483

Full Project information