81321944-Estudios de factibilidad de proyectos de movilidad urbana sostenible en ciudades del Ecuador

The services to be provided under this contract are designed to support the consolidation of sustainable urban mobility in Ecuador through the development of bankable projects, the creation of innovative financing instruments, and the strengthening of institutional capacities at both national and local levels. The contractor will be responsible for guiding the process that takes selected mobility initiatives in intermediate cities from the conceptual stage toward bankability, ensuring their technical, financial, institutional, social, and environmental feasibility so that they can be presented to financial institutions for funding. This work will be undertaken in close coordination with GIZ, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT), the Banco de Desarrollo del Ecuador (BDE), municipalities, private financial institutions, and civil society actors.

The first stream of work focuses on transforming five urban mobility concept projects into bankable initiatives, based on the Avoid-Shift-Improve (E-C-M) framework promoted by the project. These projects, drawn from the current portfolio in cities such as Ambato, Ibarra, Loja, Riobamba, and Rumiñahui, may include electrification of public transport routes, integrated cycling networks, low-emission zones, and multimodal platforms, among others. The contractor will refine and complete all pre-feasibility components, including technical design, demand modeling, cost-benefit and financial structuring, legal and regulatory analysis, risk assessment, environmental and social safeguards, and institutional arrangements. Each project must be matured to the level where it can enter the evaluation pipelines of national or international financiers. In parallel, the contractor will identify and develop a pipeline of additional projects under private sector initiative, such as the electrification of logistics fleets, sustainable mobility plans for enterprises, or last-mile e-mobility solutions, thereby broadening the scope of investment opportunities.

To ensure financing readiness, the contractor will prepare a comprehensive guide to funding opportunities for sustainable urban mobility projects in Ecuador, mapping public and private instruments, identifying incentives and constraints, and analyzing the alignment of national policies such as the PNMUS with financial sector practices. Based on this analysis, the contractor will design two sets of technical guidelines to integrate national mobility and climate policies into the financing offers of banks and development institutions. In addition, three innovative financial instruments will be developed in collaboration with stakeholders, potentially including revolving funds, leasing schemes, guarantee mechanisms, pay-as-you-save models, blended finance structures, or green bonds. These instruments must be validated technically, legally, and operationally with the banking sector to ensure feasibility and relevance for the Ecuadorian market. The contractor will facilitate regular workshops with ministries, municipalities, financial institutions, and private actors to build consensus, obtain feedback, and promote adoption of the instruments and guidelines.

A second stream of work will address the strengthening of institutional capacities in the design, structuring, and financing of bankable mobility projects. The contractor will establish a training plan targeting municipal government, public and private banks, transport companies, and private sector stakeholders. Capacity development will be delivered through a blended approach that combines online courses hosted on the knowledge management platform of the project, interactive workshops, mentoring, and peer-to-peer exchanges. Training materials will include manuals, guidelines, toolkits, case studies, videos, and infographics, all designed to ensure accessibility and pedagogical quality. Specific mentoring will be provided to three additional projects, beyond the five prioritized for bankability, to foster a wider culture of project preparation and financing readiness. The contractor will also facilitate exchanges between cities and financial institutions, document good practices, and systematize lessons learned to be integrated into a national platform for knowledge management.

Throughout the implementation of the contract, the contractor will adhere to strict standards of coordination, reporting, and knowledge integration with GIZ. This includes preparing inception and progress reports, maintaining regular exchanges with advisors, organizing technical workshops, and ensuring that all deliverables follow good practices in document management, gender equality, environmental protection, and respect for human rights. Special emphasis will be placed on maintaining gender equality in both project preparation and training activities, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and environmental impacts in the execution of the contract, and ensuring inclusive participation of vulnerable groups.

Therefore, the works and services provided will deliver five full bankable MUS projects and technical dossiers for sustainable mobility projects, a validated set of financing guidelines and instruments, a national guide on financing opportunities, a portfolio of private initiative projects, a comprehensive training program hosted on the project"s virtual platform, and a systematization of lessons learned for replication. The combination of these outputs will enable intermediate cities in Ecuador to access sustainable financing, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, modernize their mobility systems, and position the country as a regional leader in sustainable urban mobility.