**CLOSED** Call for EoI – Consultancy Services to Conduct an Institutional Gap Assessment and Develop an Action Plan for the Ministry of Economic Development (MED)

Background:

The Ministry of Economic Development is part of the Executive Branch of the Government of Belize and its mandate is to: be an integral partner in the economic and social development of Belize by providing efficient and timely advice on and coordinating development initiatives in order to improve the general well-being of all Belizeans; and to assume a leadership role in formulating and recommending national development policies, strategies and programmes to promote macroeconomic stability, sustainable socioeconomic development and the reduction of poverty. Additionally, MED is charged to promote, appraise, finance, and supervise projects which are designed to increase physical, human, and social capital in poor communities throughout Belize. The MED’s objective is to contribute towards the national sustainable goals of Belize through the implementation of projects and programmes, which focuses on improving the quality of life of communities through their active participation and provision of opportunities.

The resources of MED are used to execute programmes and projects which are sponsored by central and local government agencies, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s), community-based organizations (CBO’s) and private sector organizations. Over the years, MED has been identifying needs/programmes, soliciting funding from IFI’s, and executing projects in the many developmental themes in urban and rural areas. The MED coordinates and collaborates with other sector ministries in the execution of its mandate.

Given MED’s critical role, its accreditation to the GCF would further enhance the country’s capacity to access, manage, disburse, and monitor climate financing effectively and efficiently. For this purpose, the activities under this consultancy will aid MED to meet GCF accreditation standards, with the consideration of areas such as fiduciary criteria, environmental and social safeguards (ESS), and gender. The execution of a gap assessment and the development of an action plan will therefore recommend and guide the capacity of MED (technical and financial) to be well positioned to play an active role in facilitating climate financing investments and delivering gender-responsive climate finance directly towards building Belize’s climate resilience and contributing towards fulfilling the country’s national sustainable development goals.

Therefore, this consultancy will support the strengthening of MED’s institutional governance against the GCF accreditation standards to ensure the alignment of goals between both institutions and to lay the foundation towards achieving MED’s GCF accreditation as a Direct Access Entity (DAE).