Small-Scale Initiatives Program (PPI)

Since 2006, FFEM’s Small-Scale Initiatives Program has been supporting African Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) by financing small-scale projects for biodiversity conservation and the fight against climate change.
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Afrique, femmes - PPI - concassage
Olivier Behra
The Small-Scale Initiatives Program (PPI) finances practical projects in the field that benefit local communities. Through its support for actions to protect the environment, it contributes to building the capacities and influence of African civil society on these environmental issues.

PPI is currently the only French cooperation tool that directly finances CSOs in countries in the South for specific conservation actions.

In this way, the program contributes to improving the governance of conservation processes and thereby enjoys major recognition in the African conservation community.

Over the past 10 years, PPI has financed 181 projects in Central and Western Africa, as well as in Madagascar and Mozambique, for a total amount of EUR 6.3m, i.e. an average of EUR 600 K a year. The average amount allocated is EUR 35 K per grant.

Local initiatives to preserve biodiversity and combat climate change.

Financing below EUR 50,000 for NGOs, based on 8 priority thematic areas.

  • Safeguard of endangered species
  • Fight against poaching
  • Resolution of conflicts between Humans and Wildlife
  • Conservation of ecosystems
  • Creation-Management of Protected Areas
  • Sustainable exploitation of natural resources and socioeconomic development
  • Fight against climate change
  • Environmental education
164
CSOs already beneficiaries of PPI financing
215
projects already financed between 2006 and 2017
437,110
hectares of protected areas created
10 YEARS OF SUPPORT FOR ACTIONS IN THE FIELD
10 years of action in the field
  • 437,110 ha of protected areas created
  • 52 development plans or protected area management plans developed
  • 74 inventories and protocols for monitoring species prepared
  • 11 emblematic mammal species whose safeguard has been improved (great apes, elephants, marine mammals...)
  • 3 composting units created: 3,000 tons of household waste recycled every year and 7,600 tCO2eq avoided in 2016, the equivalent of the emissions of a French village with over 1,000 inhabitants!
  • Over 70 CSOs supported
  • 75 projects to create marketing channels for natural products
  • 77% of CSO partners still in activity since the implementation of their PPI project
With a stronger African civil society, local development solutions are emerging

Support tailored to NGOs

Despite difficult institutional and financial contexts, over 50 CSOs have been supported and strengthened. Some have gradually become major actors in their respective countries: they today participate in national commissions, conduct advocacy actions towards political leaders, share their experience, etc.
PPI has also led to the creation of networks and alliances between actors in the same sector or region. These partnerships have sometimes been created at international level, leading to the creation of fruitful synergies between civil society actors from the North and South.

Stronger CSOs that benefit local communities

Projects eligible for PPI financing have income-generating activities which directly benefit local communities and their socioeconomic development.

Ecotourism, the development of commercial channels related to the sustainable exploitation of natural products and craft trades contribute to creating paid employment for local communities, which gives them greater empowerment: eco-guide, warden, beekeeper, breeder, cooperative manager, etc.

These activities sometimes replace harmful practices which threaten ecosystems and natural resources, such as poaching, deforestation and overexploitation. The economic impacts achieved are essential to maintaining the actions to get local communities to take responsibility for their environment and for sustainable development conducted during the PPI projects.
 

PPI5: the 5th phase of PPI is launched in 2016

This new phase, called PPI5, is continuing the PPI actions to strengthen the influence of civil society and decentralized authorities in West and Central Africa, in terms of biodiversity conservation and the fight against climate change via nature-based solutions.

In partnership with the French Committee of the IUCN and IUCN-PACO, it will involve implementing and managing projects for conservation and the fight against climate change by developing nature-based solutions initiated by CSOs and strengthening the technical, organizational and institutional capacities of CSOs.

The program is financed for 3 years, with a EUR 3m contribution from FFEM. New partners will be involved in this PPI5, in particular CEPF (Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund), the IUCN National Committee of the Netherlands and the MAVA Foundation.