In the context
of the EU initiatives, EU-Africa Strategy, Team Europe initiative and Global
Gateway, Landell Mills is contracted to deliver the
Regional Technical Assistance Facility (RTAF), known as the Africa RISE
programme. The RTAF is a demand-driven facility that supports the EU’s
partnership with Africa on sustainable investments and jobs in 25 countries
in Eastern and Southern Africa, and the Indian Ocean region. The facility
delivers technical assistance covering seven sectors: public policies;
statistics and indicators; financiers/risk takers; legal, institutional and
procedural issues; private sector, employment creation and labour standards
(labour market and employment – formal and non-formal); and trade.
Specifically,
the facility provides technical assistance to strengthen access to finance
and implementation of dedicated financial instruments and supports
inclusive and sustainable growth, job creation and decent work. The
Facility also promotes macro-economic policy and regulatory reform to
create a business environment that encourages investment and trade, enhances
the capacity of the private sector and promotes inclusive public-private
dialogue leading to improved economic and social development.
The facility
operates in a flexible and adaptive way - in line with its demand-led nature -
and coordinates closely with DG INTPA, EU Delegations, national and regional
stakeholders, and other projects (e.g., SWITCH to Green Facility, Investment
Climate Reform (ICR) Facility, SOCIEUX+, Trade, Private Sector Development and
Engagement (TPSD II) Facility, Digital for Development (D4D) Hub etc.).
Example areas of support include:
promoting
and strengthening inclusive public-private dialogue, private sector engagement
and social dialogue; strengthening structured political and policy dialogue;
strengthening the capacity of regional bodies and national administrations to
design and implement legal, regulatory, administrative and institutional
reforms that promote regional and continental economic/trade integration,
economic stability, conducive business environments, and attracting investment
within the overall strategy of promoting sustainable and inclusive economic and
social growth; contributing
to market analysis and market system development activities; analysing
national/regional value chains and support their development; strengthening
capacity and productivity of MSMEs; promoting women and young innovative
entrepreneurship; identifying skills and sectors for high quality job
generation; informing strategies to support informal and formal firms in their
growth process by supporting increase access to finance, higher participation
in local, national, regional and global markets, use of digital resources,
improve support services with a clear goal of generating decent jobs; generating
knowledge, studies and communication services.
Results
to be achieved include:
Building
the capacity of private organisations or interest groups and public sector
representatives to engage in public-private dialogue and partnerships. Establishing
and strengthening inclusive public-private dialogue and private sector
engagement. Strengthening
structured political and policy dialogue through the Sustainable Business for
Africa Platform at country, regional and sector level – between the EU and
private sector (from Europe and EA-SA-IO region). Strengthening
and supporting policy and political dialogue between the EU and Partners’
countries and Regional organisations, with in particular a support to all
Commission Directorates General sectoral dialogues. Strengthening
the capacity of regional bodies and national administrations to design and
implement legal, regulatory, administrative and institutional reforms that
promote increased revenue mobilisation, trade, economic stability, regional
integration, well-functioning financial markets, efficient and fair labour
markets, conducive business environments, decent work, formalization of the
economy and attractive investments. Strengthening
the capacity and expertise of public and private actors at country and regional
level to develop value chains with the highest potential for green and inclusive
growth and decent job creation, including a strong focus on women, youth and
persons with disabilities or marginalised groups to foster economic empowerment
and/or pro-poor/smallholders impact. Improving
the capacity of government, civil society organisations, specialised agencies
and laboratories as well as of private sector actors to address the issues of
social, labour and environmental sustainability as well as transparency,
traceability, and certifications schemes and labs accreditation processes
related to key value chains, including by strengthening quality infrastructure.
Enhancing
the capacity of people, in particular women and young entrepreneurs to set up
businesses and access financial services and the labour market through
facilitating their access to vocational training, information (legal,
administrative, technical), credit, incubators/business angels’ mechanisms,
targeted support on tax regimes, land acquisition, quality and access to public
services (including e-services), judicial redress and anti-corruption
mechanism. Enhancing
knowledge and use of investment support financial instruments proposed by
donors and development finance institutions, in particular the EU and EU Member
States, to facilitate the financing of investments projects contributing to
energy transition and green deal policies, circular economy, infrastructures,
renewable energy, access to finance for SMEs, sustainable agriculture and
agribusiness, sustainable cities and digital economy. Increasing
the capacity for expertise and conducting relevant studies (gender and other
analyses, feasibility studies, impact assessments, evaluations, mappings and
data collection) relating to markets, value-chains, investments, innovation and
trade; and strengthened knowledge creation and management as well as to engage
in other relevant activities and exchanges. Strengthening
public and private sector capacities to design policies or adopt measures and
strategies in the field of productivity, strategic use of public procurement
and development of e-procurement, social economy, cooperatives, formalisation,
competitiveness, innovation, industrialisation, resilience, business and Human
rights, and Labour standards. Providing
analysis and designing plans in order to address the multidimensional impacts
of the Covid-19 outbreak, and set up recovery measures.