Waste Finance Programme and technical assistance for global south municipalities

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Many C40 members in the global South have limited public budgets. These cities therefore look to private financing and/or international development funding to develop new waste infrastructure. There is a need for in-depth understanding of the financial implications of developing new waste infrastructure, particularly if done by the private sector. Financing the initial construction of infrastructure must be coupled with an adequate increase in municipal budgets for waste operations, otherwise there is a significant risk of insufficient funding to cover the cost of running new infrastructure. 

Waste infrastructure has financial implications that differ fundamentally from other infrastructure. In sectors like buildings, roads, etc. most of the funding is required at the beginning to finance the cost of construction, but when it comes to waste infrastructure, the vast majority of costs occur during its 15-20-year operating period. These operating costs must be funded through user tariffs, fees, and other revenue streams to guarantee the financial sustainability of the infrastructure throughout its lifetime.  

The Waste Finance Programme provides capacity building support to participating cities by bringing together representatives from waste and finance departments, to promote better collaboration and mutual understanding of the financial implications of a city’s waste management ambitions. 

The Programme offers webinars, in-person events, trainings and tools to recipients with a limited budget, and provides technical assistance to projects with a high potential.    

Objectives

To help cities develop financially sustainable waste infrastructure, that reflect their waste management ambitions and are realistically sustainable from a municipal budget perspective. 


What we're doing

C40 and the CCAC provide capacity building support and technical assistance to cities to increase their understanding of waste finance issues and are helping cities prepare projects that appeal to private sector and other investors. Read coverage of our work

Participating cities werer from the following countries: Brazil, Cambodia, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Montenegro, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Serbia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Vietnam 


Why we're doing this work

While there are multiple challenges related to project preparation, particularly with regards to the financial specificities of constructing waste infrastructure, the biggest challenge appears to be the funding of operations. The construction of necessary large-scale waste infrastructure inevitably requires putting in place, or increasing, user fees and tariffs. This is an important challenge because the residents of many low-income areas in global South cities can’t pay the required fees. Increasing taxes  and fee levies can also be an unpopular political decision for mayors.


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