The Europe and Central Asia region Capacity Development Trust Fund (ECAPDEV) is a multi-donor trust fund that supports improvements in the quality and speed of project preparation, as well as capacity building for project implementation in low-income countries of the region.
Through its 10 rounds, ECAPDEV has to date allocated funding to 46 grants, totaling $19 million, contributing to the preparation of 30 investment projects in Albania, Armenia, the Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan with a total of $2.6 billion in World Bank Group and Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development financing.
The project preparation grants financed by ECAPDEV help client countries with weak implementing capacity to prepare better quality projects and improve organizational effectiveness, increase knowledge, skills and innovation, develop new partnerships and leverage funding. ECAPDEV projects were prepared 5 months faster than similar projects that did not receive the grants.
Over 1,000 government counterparts in the focus countries have been trained in critical skills needed for project implementation, including on financial management, procurement, safeguards, contract management, strategic communication and monitoring and evaluation.
The initial pledge of ECAPDEV resources ($23 million) came from the Government of Russia in 2012.
