The Role of Technical Assistance in Mobilizing Climate Finance: Insights from GIZ Programs

This research paper examines how technical assistance, specifically through five programs managed by the German agency GIZ, mobilizes public and private climate finance. It distinguishes between direct mobilization (co-financing) and indirect mobilization (creating conducive policy environments and markets) and highlights the challenges in quantifying the latter due to time lags and interacting variables.

• Technical assistance mobilizes climate finance through two primary channels: direct mobilization, where initial funding attracts co-financing from donors, governments, or the private sector, and indirect mobilization, which involves building capacity, institutions, and policy environments to address gaps in knowledge, regulation, risk, and viability.
• The analysis of GIZ programs identifies five specific types of technical assistance that have successfully mobilized finance: institutional capacity-building, program coordination, provision of data, support for funding applications and project development, and policy advice.
• A review of five GIZ case studies involving over 50 expert interviews found that €43 million in technical assistance funding across four programs mobilized between €37 million and €233 million in public finance and up to €412 million in private finance, representing a mobilization ratio of €0.9 to €15 for every €1 managed.
• Quantifying the indirect mobilization effect of technical assistance is difficult and uncertain because of the substantial time lag between the intervention and the actual mobilization of finance, as well as the interaction with other actors and factors.
• Critical success factors for mobilizing finance through technical assistance include a provider's long-term engagement, solid in-country presence, extensive outreach, work with existing institutions, and joint efforts with financial assistance initiatives.

APA

Climate Policy Initiative (2015). The Role of Technical Assistance in Mobilizing Climate Finance: Insights from GIZ Programs. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/the-role-of-technical-assistance-in-mobilizing-climate-finance-insights-from-giz-programs-2/

Chicago

Climate Policy Initiative. The Role of Technical Assistance in Mobilizing Climate Finance: Insights from GIZ Programs. 2015. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/the-role-of-technical-assistance-in-mobilizing-climate-finance-insights-from-giz-programs-2/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Policy Initiative |title=The Role of Technical Assistance in Mobilizing Climate Finance: Insights from GIZ Programs |date=6 October 2015 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/the-role-of-technical-assistance-in-mobilizing-climate-finance-insights-from-giz-programs-2/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climatepolicyinitiative2015role, author = {{Climate Policy Initiative}}, title = {{The Role of Technical Assistance in Mobilizing Climate Finance: Insights from GIZ Programs}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2015}, month = oct, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/publication/the-role-of-technical-assistance-in-mobilizing-climate-finance-insights-from-giz-programs-2/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }