Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) Green Fund

Enriched – · Found: 2026-03-13 16:41

South Africa-based catalytic finance fund for green economy projects including waste management and plastic waste value chains. Provides up to R25m for project preparation and R70m for investment funding. Supports NGOs, SMEs, municipalities, and research institutions in circular economy transitions.

Source: https://www.dbsa.org/solutions/climate-financing/green-fund

Funding Details

Funder

Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) / South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment (DFFE)

Funding Goal

Facilitating the transition to a green economy in South Africa through catalytic finance for innovative green programmes, including waste management, material recovery facilities, solid waste programmes within municipalities, waste pelletisation, energy transition, and youth skills development in a green economy context.

Funding Amount

Up to R25 million for project preparation/feasibility/technical support; up to R70 million for investment funding. Funding is partial — remainder co-funded by other stakeholders. (up to 70.000.000 €)

How to Apply

Contact DBSA directly through https://www.dbsa.org/contact-us. The fund has been managed by DBSA since 2012 under a MoA with DFFE. Assets and operational management transferred to DBSA from 1 April 2020.

Target Region

South Africa

Contact

DBSA contact: https://www.dbsa.org/contact-us

Last Checked

2026-03-13 17:25

Application Checklist

Eligibility

• Project must be located in South Africa
• NGOs, SMEs, private companies, municipalities and research institutions are all eligible

Project Scope

• Project must fall within Green Fund focus areas: low-carbon transition, waste management, biogas, or green youth development
• Project must support South Africa's NDC and/or SDG targets
• Demonstrate scalability (potential to catalyze similar projects) and measurable development impact

Constraints

• Co-funding required — Green Fund only provides partial project funding
• Funding tenure: up to 15 years for investment projects

Summary

The DBSA Green Fund is a catalytic finance facility managed by the Development Bank of Southern Africa since 2012, supporting South Africa's transition to a green economy. Funded with an initial R1.1 billion from National Treasury, the fund provides both project preparation support (up to R25 million) and investment funding (up to R70 million) for green economy projects that market forces would not adequately support. The fund's focus areas include: supporting a just transition to a low-carbon economy (renewable energy, green building, hydrogen), aligning with government's waste management agenda including national solid waste programmes, material recovery facilities, waste pelletisation and wastewater treatment, promoting biogas technologies in SMEs, and supporting youth development within a green economy context. Eligible applicants are broad: private companies, SMEs, municipalities, provincial governments, SOEs, NGOs, research institutions, and universities. Projects must be in South Africa, support NDC/SDG targets, and demonstrate scalability, development impact, and co-funding. Tenure for project funding can be up to 15 years. For organizations working on plastic waste value chains, the fund's explicit support for material recovery facilities and solid waste management makes it relevant, particularly for organizations with operations in South Africa seeking blended or catalytic finance for waste-to-value infrastructure.

Historical Context

The Green Fund was established with an initial R1.1 billion allocation from South Africa's National Treasury through DFFE. Managed by DBSA since 2012. Assets and operational management transferred fully to DBSA on 1 April 2020. DFFE retains representation on the Strategic Steering Committee.

Sources

• https://www.dbsa.org/solutions/climate-financing/green-fund

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