What We Do

The fund provides support for enabling reforms and capacity building that can be linked to potential or current transactions. Technical assistance can be provided by AP3F at any stage in a project cycle:

Creating enabling environment for the project

Capacity development and policy reform, linked to potential projects that are being prepared or soon will be, includes advising client countries on enabling reforms such as legislation and regulation frameworks, and possible use of guarantees or incentive schemes, appropriate PPP project selection criteria, application design and planning support, staff training, and market and/or stakeholder awareness.

Conducting feasibility studies and assessing commercial viability for the project

Due diligence and early stage project preparation includes but not limited to studies, specification and reports, dealing with the following aspects: technical, economic and financial, legal and regulatory, insurance, climate/environmental, geotechnical, social, safeguards, institutional and governance, anticorruption and integrity, risk identification and risk mitigation, project management, and transaction structuring.

Assisting on tender process to bring private sector participation into the project

AP3F support for preparation and structuring of concession-type projects are provided on a cost-recoverable basis (to be paid by the successful concessionaire) so as to provide greater sustainability to the Facility. Such projects should involve substantial capital expenditure sufficient to absorb project preparation costs without compromising their commercial viability.

Monitoring and evaluation of projects post implementation; and project restructurings

Project monitoring and restructuring includes (a) monitoring and evaluation of projects supported by AP3F and where requested by DMC agencies; and (b) project restructuring – with the exception of project restructuring caused by a public sector default or political risk event.

Disagreements over PPP risk allocation can lead to negative outcomes in tendering, negotiation, construction and operation phases. The Infrastructure Referee Program provides a “third party opinion” to public and private parties to help them resolve such kinds of disagreements. The AP3F funds qualified consultants, called “Infrastructure Referees,” who are tasked with conducting due diligence on both parties’ positions, studies, data, and documents, and deliver their recommendation to both parties with the objective of achieving a clear and balanced risk allocation. The solution(s) proposed by the Infrastructure Referees will be impartial and fully independent.

The benefits derived from the program are (a) it surgically targets critical bankability challenges seen occurring over large number of PPP transactions before financial close, and (b) channels resources to address potentially contentious contractual disputes.