The Cities Climate Finance Leadership Alliance (CCFLA) PPF Connector program supports collaboration and information sharing by project preparation facilities (PPFs) to improve the efficiency of the project preparation support ecosystem. Since 2023, the PPF Connector has offered project matchmaking services and partnership development support to PPFs, as well as information resources to PPFs, city networks, and other stakeholders.
This brief highlights lessons learned over the last 12 months through the PPF Connector program (September 2024 – September 2025). It follows the 2024 Partnership Assessment Brief published in October 2024, which covered the preceding year. It reflects over 125 conversations with more than 50 PPFs and other stakeholders, reviews of projects receiving technical assistance in CCFLA’s PPF Project Database, and outputs from Project Preparation Action Group meetings and two workshops on project preparation convened by CCFLA.
This brief focuses on learnings relevant to the international project preparation ecosystem, drawing on insights from the PPF Connector program. This brief intends to support the discussions within CCFLA, its Project Preparation Action Group, and broader project preparation and urban climate finance actors. It offers an updated framing of key issues and opportunities, serving as a starting point for deeper analysis in the future.
The learnings are organized into reflections on:
- Trends in the overall project preparation ecosystem for urban climate-related infrastructure.
- The primary challenges that must be overcome to scale support for cities to address climate and sustainable urbanization goals adequately.
- The successes and opportunities we see to drive systemic change to overcome the key challenges.