Makindye Ssabagabo Local government in Uganda was elevated to Municipal status in 2016 and this raised the expectations of the community who anticipated immediate quality services. The entity identified the critical projects for implementation but was resource-constrained and opportunities under TAP have seen critical project concepts fine-tuned but above all TAP has been a platform to interact with potential funders.

As a project developer and manager in the city of Bukavu (DR.Congo), one thing I could not realize is that I was having limited knowledge about the needs and requirements of funders.

The prospects of Makindye Municipality in Uganda to access climate funding for its Rail project were boasted after the project was showcased at the Darling Cities Event 2020.

Listening to the pitches [of local governments’ climate projects] has been very insightful for us, as we focus on early-stage project preparation. On the one hand, we got insights into a number of projects presented by very different actors with their own points of view on project preparation. On the other hand, we got a better understanding of the difficulties these diverse actors encounter, which we can take into account when developing trainings or providing support to municipalities.

The exposure and feedback we received from the financial experts were very constructive in helping us to develop our project proposal even further.

We learned a lot about challenges on the ground and discussed ways to improve the overall planning process. A key factor is early-stage community engagement and the usage and implementation of social and environmental safeguards.