About P4G
Q.1 What is the mission of P4G?
A.1 P4G brings together governments, businesses and civic society organizations in innovative public-private partnerships to advance solutions to humanity’s greatest needs within the following sectors: food and agriculture, water, energy, cities and circular economy.
Q.2 Who are the P4G partners?
A.2 P4G works in partnership with countries and global organizations addressing sustainability issues. P4G’s initial partner countries include: Chile, Denmark, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mexico, South Korea, and Vietnam. Partner organizations include: the Global Green Growth Institute, C40 Cities, the World Economic Forum, and hosting partner World Resources Institute. Other countries and partners are expected to join P4G in 2018.
Q.3 How will P4G accomplish its mission?
A.3 P4G works with its partners at the global, regional and national levels to identify public-private partnerships that present solutions to humanity’s greatest needs as related to food, water, energy and sustainable development. P4G then offers facilitation and/or co-funding support and recognition to these partnerships to help prove the validity of a business model, launch a pilot or accelerate growth to create a sustainable venture. We also convene government, business and civil society leaders at events such as our biennial summit, meetings, workshops and webinars and share knowledge through publications and on our website.
Q.4 What is a P4G partnership?
A.4 A P4G partnership should result in systems-level changes that can be scaled and replicated with a focus on one or more of the following areas: food/agriculture, water, energy, healthy cities and the circular economy. Partnerships applying to P4G grants must meet one or more of the following characteristics:
- They build business alliances with communities and government.
- They rely on joint financing and innovative platforms.
- They develop agreed common standards for reporting data.
- They help develop access to capital markets through coalitions.
- They offer solutions that are ready for large-scale investment in developing or emerging economies (ODA/DAC countries).
Q.5 How is the organization funded?
A.5 The Danish government has provided initial funding for P4G through a five-year grant.
Q.6 How much is P4G funded?
A.6 The initial funding from the Danish government is for US$33 million over five years, which covers annual funding for the Partnership Fund and operational support.
Q.7 Is P4G seeking other funders?
A.7 Yes. P4G welcomes additional funding partners to support furthered co-funding of breakthrough partnerships that support sustainable growth in developing and emerging countries.
Q.8 What is the connection between P4G and the World Resources Institute?
A.8 The World Resources Institute (WRI) acts as the hosting partner for the P4G Global Hub, which serves as both the secretariat and implementing agency for the P4G initiative. The Global Hub is located at WRI’s Washington, D.C. office. While P4G benefits from the expertise and global reach of the WRI team, it is prohibited from providing any direct funding to WRI for its programs.
Q.9 How is P4G different from its predecessor 3GF?
A.9 The Global Green Growth Forum (3GF) helped lay the groundwork for P4G by bringing together leading businesses, investors, organizations and key public institutions to plan for long‐term global and inclusive green growth. P4G is different because it moves past the planning stage and is working to incubate and accelerate public-private partnerships that offer the most potential impact for sustainable development. P4G does this by providing facilitation, co-funding and recognition.
Q.10 What is P4G's unique value-add, given there are many other partnering initiatives?
A.10 P4G will advance partnerships which create systematic change that can be scaled and replicated to drive sustainable economic growth. Our partnerships will promote innovative approaches to solve important challenges in five major categories of sustainability: food/agriculture, water, energy, healthy cities and the circular economy. It is solely dedicated to this mission for at least the next five years with plans to continue this ideally to 2030. The national platforms provide a strong place-based foundation for the development of a pipeline of P4G partnerships.
Q.11 What is the governance structure of P4G?
A.11 P4G is governed by a board of directors, which consists of government ministers, CEOs and other leaders from institutions committed to pursuing sustainable development. Ian de Cruz serves as P4G’s Global Director and leads the initiative’s Global Hub, which is based in Washington, D.C. and serves as the implementing agency and secretariat for the P4G initiative. Each P4G country partner is engaged at the government level and establishes a national platform to direct P4G outreach activities in that country.
Q.12 How were the country members selected?
A.12 The initial country platforms were countries that had been involved in the former Global Green Growth Forum (3GF): a Danish-led collaboration of countries, partner organizations, and leading companies working on sustainability issues. These are: Chile, Denmark, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mexico, South Korea and Vietnam. We expect other countries to join P4G partners in the months ahead.
Q.13 What does it mean to be a country member?
A.13 Participating countries agree to set up a country platform with the collaborative involvement of government ministries at a senior level, business organizations and leaders and civil society organizations to identify and support public-private partnerships. They sponsor convenings, share knowledge, make connections and pursue funding opportunities to grow the partnerships in their countries. Each country also gains access to the global P4G network, where they benefit from cross-border collaborations and convenings, such as the P4G Summit being held in Copenhagen in October 2018.
Q.14 Can other countries become members? If so, how?
A.14 Yes. P4G expects to welcome additional country partners who are committed to advancing the goals of P4G, in collaboration with the private sector. Interested countries should contact P4G’s global director, Ian de Cruz.
Q.15 What is the role of partner organizations?
A.15 P4G partner organizations contribute valuable expertise, resources and contacts to help identify and support public-private partnerships throughout the world. Our initial partner organizations are the Global Green Growth Institute, C40 Cities, the World Economic Forum and the hosting partner World Resources Institute. We expect to work with our leading organizations to bring additional knowledge in areas such as financing, green technology and sustainable development.
About the P4G Facilitation, Funding and Recognition
Q.16 How does P4G support partnerships?
A.16 P4G supports partners in three key ways. First, we provide facilitation support to partnerships to help them evolve their business model; connect them to organizations and people that can provide expertise; and share knowledge to support their growth. Second, we provide co-funding to partnerships to help partners incubate and accelerate breakthrough solutions that address one or more of our focus areas: food/agriculture, water, energy, healthy cities and the circular economy. And third, we publicly recognize P4G partnerships at high-profile events and media promotion to bring valuable visibility to their work and business models.
Q.17 How does a partnership apply for P4G facilitation support?
A.17 Public-private partnerships that meet the P4G criteria can apply on the P4G website: P4Gpartnerships.org. Our next partnership facilitation application period will open in November 2018. P4G will not be accepting applications for facilitation until that time.
Q.18 How can partnerships apply for funding?
A.18 Partnerships should complete a short online concept questionnaire on the P4G website, P4Gpartnerships.org. The deadline for this first step of the application process is March 30, 2018. We expect to open another funding application round in November 2018.
Q.19 What are the requirements for qualifying for funding?
A.19 The full set of criteria and requirements are in the P4G Partnerships Guidelines on our website at http://www.p4gpartnerships.org/#are-you-a-do-er.
Q.20 How will P4G funding partnerships be selected?
A.20 A set of qualifying criteria will be evaluated for each concept note; these criteria are listed here: http://www.p4gpartnerships.org/#are-you-a-do-er.
An independent technical adviser will conduct the evaluation and scoring along with the P4G Global Hub and strategic input from the P4G board of directors. Amounts over $100,00 and up to $1 million will require approval from the P4G Board of Directors.
Q.21 What is the total amount of available funding in 2018?
A.21 Up to US $4 million. We expect to select between 5 to 10 partnerships for P4G funding in 2018. The size of the funds will vary between up to under $100,000 for those partnerships seeking to validate a sustainability business concept to under $1 million for those partnerships that need support to pilot or grow a sustainability venture.
Q.22 When will partnerships selected for funding be notified and when can they expect to receive funds?
A.22 P4G will be notifying partnerships in May that will be asked to prepare a full proposal for consideration for final funding. P4G will notify partnerships selected for $100K funding and under (via an accelerated process) prior to July 31st. P4G expects to directly notify partnerships selected for final funding (over $100K and up to $1million) in September 2018 and make a public announcement at the P4G Summit, October 19-20, 2018.
Q.23 Will preference be given to funding requests from P4G partner countries?
A.23 No. P4G’s staff, board and appointed outside experts will review and select those partnerships that best represent the criteria established for funding. We expect that some partnerships may involve organizations in the P4G partner countries or be intended to support sustainable development in one or more P4G partnerships. The value of being a P4G country partner is in the collaboration and knowledge-sharing between other country partners, partner organizations and sustainability experts. Being a partner is not directly related to the P4G Partnership Fund.
Q.24 Are the funds for one year only or can they be renewed for multiple years?
A.24 As a general rule, it is expected that the funding will be for a maximum of 2 years. In certain cases, if no activities and drawdown on the funds are undertaken within the first six months, the funding may be considered inactive and subject to cancellation and recovery of any funds transferred.
Q.25 Will all P4G partnerships that receive funds also receive public recognition?
A.25 Yes. P4G will publicly promote every partnership it funds.
Q.26 Can an organization submit more than one funding application?
A.26 Yes, however, each specific partnership may only apply for funding once.
Q.27 Will funding requests for 2018 only be accepted until March 30, 2018?
A.27 Yes. However, P4G expects to issue a new round for funding applications in November 2018. Available funding following this second application round will be provided in 2019.
Q.28 Can a funding applicant revise its submission?
A.28 Yes. An applicant should resubmit the application online and add “Revised” to title of the submission. Revisions will only be accepted prior to the application deadline.
Q.29 In what language should the application for funding be submitted?
A.29 Applications should be submitted in English.
Q.30 What is the distinction between start-up and scale-up partnerships?
A.30 Start-up: Promising early stage partnerships (emerging partnerships) that need support to consolidate the partnership or test the feasibility of innovative approaches.
Scale-up: Partnerships that are already engaged in promising business-driven green growth innovations but need support to scale up and accelerate their impact.
Q.31 Which countries are eligible?
A.31 There is no requirement to where the partners should be located (they can be located in any country). The requirement is focused on the intended outcomes of the partnership which should be for the benefit of a country that is within the OECD -DAC list. If the partnership activities are multi-country, regional or international (including in non-OECD-DAC countries) then the eligibility of the partnerships will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Q.32 Does P4G have a preference for partnerships that focus on least developed countries rather than those in lower middle-income countries?
A.32 Currently, there are no differences in scoring for partnerships that focus on least developed vs. lower middle-income countries.
Q.33 What type of partners are required in a partnership?
A.33 The partnership should consist of both commercial and non-commercial partners (public sector bodies, civil society, business member organizations, trade unions or others that operate on a non-profit basis).
Q.34 Is there a required minimum number of partners?
A.34 The minimum number of partners in a partnership is two. The partnership should consist of at least a commercial and non-commercial partner.
Q.35 Can a single institution apply for funding?
A.35 No. Only partnerships consisting of both commercial and non-commercial partners are eligible.
Q.36 Is a public sector/government institution required in a partnership?
A.36 The requirement is for a partnership to consist of commercial and non-commercial partners. To meet the requirement, the non-commercial partner can be a public sector/government institution or civil society, business member organizations, trade unions or others that operate on a non-profit basis.
Q.37 Can a partner also be the beneficiary of the partnership?
A.37 Yes. There is no formal requirement as to whether the partners in a partnership are or not also beneficiaries.
Q.38 Do you consider a municipally owned entity a non-commercial partner?
A.38 Yes. However, as a public institution, a municipality or a municipally owned entity cannot be the administrative partner.
Q.39 Are publicly owned utilities considered a non-commercial partner?
A.39 Yes. However, as a public institution, a publicly owned utility cannot be the administrative partner.
Q.40 Can an association be considered a partnership?
A.40 No. An association would be considered a single organization. Note, an association can apply as the non-commercial partner.
Q.41 Can members from the same association form individual partnerships to apply for funding?
A.41 Yes.
Q.42 Should all partners be legally-registered entities?
A.42 No. There is no requirement for all partners to be legally-registered entities. However, some of the partners should be legally registered to be considered a commercial or non-commercial partner.
The administrative partner must be a legally-registered entity.
Q.43 Are there any requirements as to how the commercial partner should be constituted?
A.43 No, there are no requirements regarding the ownership structure or organizational set-up of the commercial partner.
Q.44 Is a partnership agreement or memorandum of understanding required for the concept note stage?
A.44 No. However, a partnership agreement or memorandum of understanding will be required at the detailed proposal stage and before receiving funding.
Q.45 Are start-up partnerships receiving funding this year eligible for scale-up funding in future calls for proposals?
A.45 Yes.
Q.46 What type of organization can be an administrative partner?
A.46 Where the partnership is not a legal entity, one of the partners should be the administrative partner and the signatory of the funding agreement, and assume overall responsibility on behalf of the partnership.
The administrative partner should be a non-commercial entity (NGO, business member organization or similar) but not an academic or public institution or multi-lateral organization – unless a waiver is given.
Q.47 How can we request a waiver?
A.47 Please contact the P4G team prior to submitting your concept note.
Q.48 Can a B-Corp be an administrative partner?
A.48 A B-Corp is considered a commercial entity so it is not eligible to be an administrative partner. B- Corps can participate as a partner in a partnership.
Q.49 Can a multilateral organization be an administrative partner?
A.49 No. Although a multilateral organization is considered a non-commercial entity, it is not eligible to be an administrative partner. Multilateral organizations can participate as a partner in a partnership.
Q.50 What amount is required for co-funding?
A.50 Start-up: The partnership is required to provide 25 percent of the current partnership’s budget as co-funding. For example, if the partnership’s budget (of eligible expenses and co-funding) to implement its activities is $80,000 then P4G funds can be $60,000 and the partnership will need to provide $20,000 as co-funding.
Scale-up: The partnership is required to provide 50 percent of the current partnership’s budget as co-funding. For example, if the partnership’s required budget (of eligible expenses and co-funding) to implement its activities is $2 million then P4G funds can be $1 million and the partnership will need to provide $1 million as co-funding.
Q.51 Are all partners in the partnership required to contribute co-funding to the partnership?
A.51 There is no formal requirement for what amount each partner in the partnership must contribute to the co-funding. However, if the partnership is applying for funding, then the partnership must demonstrate that they have the total co-funding required.
Q.53 What co-funding is eligible?
A.53 Eligible co-funding must be contributed in support of the partnership’s activities described in the application. The partnership will need to provide a letter of commitment or similar document explaining the nature and expected date to receive the co-funding. Eligible co-funding includes salary expenses of commercial and non-commercial partners, in-kind inputs and/or other donor funds.
About the P4G Summit/State of the Art Report
Q.54 What is the P4G Summit?
A.54 The P4G Summit is a high-level convening of business, government and civic leaders from around the world. Those in attendance will discuss and decide how to best accelerate public-private partnerships for the green economy. The Summit will showcase breakthrough partnerships that address advancements for sustainable food/agriculture, water, energy, healthy cities and the circular economy.
Q.55 When and where is the 2018 P4G Summit?
A.55 The first P4G Summit will take place in Copenhagen, October 19-20, 2018.
Q.56 Who can attend the P4G Summit?
A.56 The P4G Summit is an invitation-only event extended to CEOs, government leaders, heads of P4G partner organizations, media and others.
Q.57 Is there a cost associated with attending?
A.57 Invited attendees need only cover travel and accommodations.
Q.58 How often will the P4G Summit be held?
A.58 The P4G Summit will be held every two years.
Q.59 What is the State-of-the-Art Report?
A.59 P4G will produce periodic reports that provide valuable knowledge on the state of public-private partnerships in support of sustainable development in developing and emerging countries. As P4G partnerships are established, P4G will report on lessons learned to expand knowledge on partnerships to grow the green economy. Our first state-of-the-art report will be published in 2020.
P4G June 6, 2018
Vietnam launches its P4G national Platform on July 5, 2018. 
P4G in Kenya at the country’s national platform launch on July 27, 2018. 
The Republic of Korea launches their P4G National 