Cirkulär ekonomi genom hållbar avfallshantering och sysselsättning Circular Economy through sustainable waste management and employment - Sustainable waste management, youth and employment Den tyska stiftelsen Hanns-Seidel Foundation har ansökt om Sida finansiering om cirka 58 miljoner kronor för att genomföra projektet "Cirkulär ekonomi genom hållbar avfallshantering och kompetensutveckling" i Kenya under perioden 2018-2021.

Insatsen syftar till att bidra till en övergång till en cirkulär ekonomi i fast avfallshanteringssektorn i Kenya genom att 1) styra olika så kallade affärsmodeller för cirkulär ekonomi för olika värdekedjans olika steg: insamling, sortering, förbehandling och återvinning av avfall, 2) förbättra i avfallssektorn genom kompetensutveckling och träningstillfällen, 3) stärka hälso-, säkerhets- och miljöstandarderna för sektorn, och 4) stödja en gynnsam politisk och lagstiftande miljö.

För närvarande utgör Sida-bidraget huvuddelen av projektbudgeten, men de företag som upphandlas för att genomföra piloterna förväntas också att ge motpartsfinansiering antingen kontant eller in kind’ om cirka 5o0 000 € eller 5  MSEK. Hanns-Seidel Foundation kommer att vidarebefordra cirka 2/3 av medlen till pilotprojekten, som väljs ut i en konkurrensutsatt anbudsprocess. Under uppstartsfasen kommer ytterligare kenyanska partner att identifieras för att genomföra olika projektkomponenter.

Projektet innehåller en 6-månaders uppstartsfas för att analysera avfallssektorn och relevanta aktörer på djupet. Under uppstartsfasen kommer en inceptions-studie att genomföras, med utgångspunkt i en marknadssystemansats, samt andra analyser vilka kommer informera en revidering av projektdokument, resultatramverk och budget. Hanns-Seidel Foundation has applied to Sida for funding of approximately 58 Million SEK to carry out the project "Circular Economy through Sustainable Waste Management and Skills Development" in Kenya during the period 2018-2021.

The intervention aims at contributing to a shift towards a circular economy in the solid waste management sector in Kenya by 1)  piloting different so called circular economy business models for the different steps of the waste value chain: collection, sorting, pre-processing and recycling of waste, 2) improving employeability in the waste sector through skills development, 3) strengthening health, safety and environmental standards for the sector, and 4) supporting an enabling political and legislative environment.

At the moment the Sida contribution is the major part of the project budget, however, the companies implementing the pilots are foreseen to also provide counterpart funding either in cash or in kind amounting to approx. 500 000 € or 5 MSEK. Hanns-Seidel Foundation will forward approximately 2/3 of the funds to waste companies, based on a competitive tender process, for the implementation of the pilots. During the inception phase additional Kenyan partners will be identified for the other components.

The project will include a 6-months inception phase to analyse the sector and the market system related to waste in depth, During the inception phase an inception study will be undertaken, applying a Market System Development (MSD) approach, as well as other analyses that will inform a revision of project document, results framework and budget. The overall objective of the intervention is to contribute to transforming traditional waste material flows in urban and peri-urban areas of Kenya into circular economy models for waste management, supported by strengthened skills development, improved health, safety and environmental standards, raised awareness as well as adjustments of the supporting policy and legal framework.
The log frame is made up of 5 project results, with baselines and indicators, in support of the overall objective:
0. To continuously improve circular economy business models for sustainable scaling - preparations and learning1. To support circular economy business models in Kenyan waste management - 'proof of concept' pilot projects.2. To improve employability and created employment opportunities in waste management sector in selected project areas.3. Health, safety and environmental standards for workers and local communities, specifically women and youth, are improved.4. To contribute to an enabling political environment for circular economy business models.
The possibility of applying a results-based financing model to the pilot projects was discussed during the appraisal phase. Nevertheless, it was concluded that the part of the sector that the project is targeting is still not mature enough and that the companies likely to carry out the pilots do not have the possibility to access commercial funds to initiate the projects.
The overall objective and results proposed provide a good start, yet there is a need to sharpen and fine-tune the same and introduce a market system development approach to the whole project cycle. Therefore, during the six-month inception phase the project objective and results and supporting activities will be revised and fine-tuned on the basis of the outcome of the inception study that will use the market system development (MSD) approach to analyse the waste sector and value chain. By applying a 'MSD lens' in the inception study, it will become clear if the proposed activities and results in the current project document are appropriate in order to address market failures, opportunities, policies, legislation, skills development, stakeholder engagement, etc. In other words, the study will support HSF in testing if the project results, activities and the entire project set-up presented in the draft project proposal are valid. While the  current project document will serve as a good basis for the inception study, as a result of the inception phase the project is likely to change and the inception report (that include the revised project document, revised log frame and budget and other analyses) will inform the decision of Sweden to continue the project or not.