CLIMA CAPITAL PARTNERS
WE CREATE CLIMATE FINANCE SOLUTIONS
TO HELP CLIENTS THRIVE IN AN
EVER-CHANGING GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT
WHAT WE DO
We advise, and create economic value for the local economies of our partners through robust climate finance solutions, managing risks, and mitigating climate risks. We believe that value comes from thinking sustainably, leveraging local knowledge, and bringing new technologies to create a lasting impact on communities.
We understand climate change, technology, markets, finance, and collaboration. We utilize this knowledge to provide technical assistance and practical implementation for the following:
We structure investment funds, financing facilities, and project financing.
We assess and evaluate markets, and their risks, and develop tailored strategies for those markets.
We help provide access to public financing and provide sectoral-focused pragmatic solutions.
GLOBAL THEMES
We operate across various markets offering a diverse array of capabilities, all focused on improving how public and private sector players collaborate on climate issues, and investment opportunities.
INDUSTRIES
We work across of variety of industries and provide a wide range of expertise to complement specific sector needs. These are the pillars of our work, and where we provide the most value for our clients.
Renewable Energy
Solar, Wind, Biomass, Geothermal
Resource Efficiency
Green Buildings, Resource Efficiency, Retrofitting, Innovative Technologies
Waste Management
Agri-Waste, Food-Waste, E-Waste, Residential, Water Treatment
Supply Chain Risk Adaptation
Resource Maximization, Optimization, Insurance
Clean-Tech Applications
Technology Investment, Blended Solutions, Supply-Chain Optimization
Forestry
Sustainable Management, Investment, Resilience
TEAM
We leverage decades of investment experience in business and project development with a clear focus on climate. Our team is uniquely focused on collaboration and learning, creating opportunities and synergies to address the complex challenges our clients face in emerging markets.
Joumana Asso Managing Director
Joumana Asso has over 25 years of investment and advisory experience in emerging markets, including 11 years executing project and corporate finance deals in the heavy industry and impact investing in clean technology start-ups (Private Equity) at the International Finance Corporation (1999-2009), and 18 years in managing investment funds at the World Bank’s Climate Investment Funds (2009-2015), and Clima Capital Partners (2016-present).
Prior to founding Clima Capital Partners, Joumana contributed to setting up the private sector function, and managed the overall private sector portfolio and mandate of the Climate Investment Funds (2009-2015), drafting investment criteria and operational guidelines and engagement with the private sector. She also coordinated and managed operations of the Clean Technology Fund’s pipeline, cashflow, relations with the MDBs and drafting key operational guidelines and investment criteria (2009-2011). In this capacity, Joumana structured blended finance vehicles targeting various industries and segments of the market, tailored to the risk profile associated with each of segment.
Joumana has served as a Senior Advisor to the Green Climate Fund’s Private Sector Facility in 2016-2018, where she developed two strategic proposals for the Board and formulated innovative financial mechanism to de-risk climate related investments and mobilize private investment in climate mitigation and adaptation.
Joumana is a climate finance expert with in-depth knowledge and experience in greening the financial sector and structuring climate finance lending programs, using blended finance structures and integrating risk management tools. She has led development of national climate finance strategies in Africa and the Middle East and numerous NDCs’ investment plans using unique approaches to financial mechanism and structuring anchored in the sectoral context and specificities of countries. In the past three years, she has structured about EUR500 mm in green lending products for financial institutions.
Joumana holds an MBA from HEC Montreal and a DESS in Environmental Studies from the University of Montreal. She has executed investment transactions and climate finance advisory across the globe, including Sub Sahara and Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, China, India, the Balkans, and Europe and North America. She speaks French, English, and Arabic.
Hiro Tsubota Managing Director
Hiro has over 32 years of investment and advisory experience, including 24 years at the World Bank and eight years in investment banking in Europe and Japan. Expert in banking, structured finance, derivatives, and debt management, with a portfolio of projects, spread globally in Asia, Africa, and Europe.
Prior to joining Clima Capital Partners, he managed a broad range of financial sector development and public finance management projects. He was a lead expert on capital market development, and managed and contributed to developing diagnostic frameworks, such as the G20 Local Currency Bond Market Diagnostic Framework (2013). He also played a corporate role in numerous initiatives at the World Bank on financial innovations, including climate finance products such as green bonds.
In the sustainable finance area, he played a key corporate role at the World Bank to establish a framework for finance for development, focusing on how debt finance can be deployed in a sustainable manner as well as how scarce public sector resources could be best deployed and help leverage private-sector investments. He also led the preparation of internal background papers to determine the Bank’s position on climate finance instruments, such as green bonds, sustainability bonds, debt-for-nature swaps, and various forms of guarantees. At the country level, he advised governments on the deployment of these instruments. Since joining Clima Capital Partners earlier at the beginning of this year, he also provided technical leadership and quality assurance in completing the FSD Africa project on Green Bonds in the SADC Region, NDC-related work, and led multiple engagements in green banking in middle-income countries.
Prior to joining the World Bank, Hiro was an investment banker advising governments, including subnational governments in Germany and Japan on bond issuance and financial risk management.
He holds an MBA from INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France, graduated in economics from Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan, and studied economics at the University of Economics, Vienna, Austria. He is fluent in English, German, and Japanese, and has a working knowledge of French.
Pierre Guislain Advisory Board Member
Since 2020, Pierre Guislain is an independent advisor focusing on private sector, infrastructure, digital development and financial inclusion issues, with a special emphasis on Africa. He also advises several startups, mostly on strategy.
From 2016 to 2019, Pierre was Vice-President at the African Development Bank in charge of Private Sector, Infrastructure and Industrialisation. His areas of responsibility also included financial sector development, urban development, information and communication technologies, and trade development and facilitation. He was responsible for implementing the Bank's priority to "Industrialise Africa" and for co-steering the "Integrate Africa" priority. His responsibilities included the management of the Bank's private sector investment window, with investments in the order of USD 1.5 to 2 billion per annum, mostly loans to private companies, lines of credit to commercial banks for onlending to private companies and selected equity investments (including through private equity funds).
From 2014 to 2016, Pierre was Senior Director at the World Bank in charge of the Transport and Information and Communication Technologies Global Practice. In this capacity he managed teams (about 300 staff) responsible for the World Bank's overall lending (around USD 5 billion annually) and analytical work in these sectors. This included initiatives to promote development corridors, green, safe and inclusive mobility and digital development.
From 2006 to 2014, Pierre served as Director of the Investment Climate Department, a joint department of the International Finance Corporation, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency and World Bank. In this capacity, he advised governments on improving their business environment and unlocking investment opportunities through streamlined regulations and policies fostering private sector activity and investment, including taxation, trade, competition policy and dispute settlement. Pierre also managed the FIAS multidonor partnership that supported advisory work in these areas. Between 2012 and 2014 he was IFC's Co-Director for Fragile and Conflict Affected countries, responsible for boosting IFC's investment and advisory work in this group of countries.
Pierre held various other positions in the World Bank Group between 1983 and 2005, including manager of the global Information and Communication Technologies division (2001-2005), manager of the joint World Bank - European Commission Private Participation in Mediterranean Infrastructure program (1997-2001), among other positions.
Pierre is a Belgian national. He is the author of publications on private sector development, foreign direct investment, ICT, infrastructure reform and privatisation. He holds a master's degree in Public Affairs (Economics and Public Policy) from Princeton University, a Graduate Degree in Belgian Law and International Law, and a bachelor's degree in Philosophy from the Université Catholique de Louvain.
Fady M. Zeidan Advisory Board Member
Mr Fady M. Zeidan has over 30-year track record in international finance and development and most recently in global health and financing.
He is the former General Counsel and Head of Legal and Governance at the Global Fund (Geneva) and the former Deputy General Counsel at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private arm of the World Bank Group. At the IFC, Mr Zeidan has led a large team of lawyers that spanned Washington DC, Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America to support investment and advisory operations, in structuring and drafting legal agreements in project finance, corporate finance, and for setting up funds and asset management vehicles.
Mr Zeidan has also led corporate initiatives to develop innovative approaches including in blended climate structuring and to mobilize private and public resources to increase the IFC’s capital and institutional impact in its client countries.
He previously worked at the International Monetary Fund and was also in private practice in Beirut, Paris and New York. He holds degrees from Harvard Law School, Université de Droit, d'Économie et des Sciences Sociales de Paris II, and Université Saint Joseph in Beirut. He is fluent in French, English, Arabic and has working knowledge of Spanish.
Dave Gibson Lead Expert, Sustainability, ESG and Climate Risks
David Gibson has over 30 years experience in developing countries and emerging markets, with an extensive background in sustainability strategies and practical management solutions across a variety of sectors, including forestry, biomaterials, and infrastructure, with a particular focus on climate-related investments. His career highlights deep experience in applying environment and social management systems (ESMS) and leveraging sustainability (ESG) standards. At the International Finance Corporation (IFC), part of the World Bank Group, he played a pivotal role in managing investments linked to forestry and climate change, helping to co-author the IFC's Performance Standard 6 on Biodiversity Conservation. He also developed the GeoDesk Service platform and GEOIFC App, which incorporates geospatial ESG risk analytics into daily appraisal and supervision cycles. Dave also held extended senior positions as USAID's Senior Regional Natural Resources Officer in both Africa and Latin America and he directed Chemonics International's Global Environmental Practice. His proficiency extends to significant familiarity with climate regulations, voluntary climate disclosure standards, and the EU taxonomy, providing a comprehensive suite of skills tailored to addressing climate risks in banking, infrastructure, and land management.
Dave has an MS in Forest Resource Planning & Management from Yale School of the Environemnt and BS in Wildlife & Fisheries Biology, Habitat Management, Forest Planning, and Geospatial Analytics from Colorado State University. Dave speaks French, English and Spanish.
Benoit Martimort Senior Advisor
Benoit has over 25 years of experience working on science-policy interfaces for research organizations and think tanks in Canada and France to promote the implementation of multilateral environmental agreements.
He accompanies public and private institutions through coaching, training, facilitation, and consulting on strategic changes and positioning to increase their impact and improve the integration of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in their visions, actions, and operations. Since 2019, Benoit is the international affairs advisor for the United Nations Science-Policy-Business Forum for the Environment.
Benoit has led the communication, outreach, and the development policy function at the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI) in Paris. He also created and directed the International Affairs Department of the Institute for Development Research (IDR) in Marseille, where he positioned French and African scientific and research teams in major international environmental negotiations (climate change, desertification, biodiversity, human settlement) and multilateral funds, including climate funds.
Prior to that, Benoit managed numerous projects at the Observatoire de l’écopolitique (Canada), where he supported Francophone countries in the implementation of multilateral environmental agreements.
He taught international governance of sustainable development at Sciences Po (Paris), Agroparitech, and IAMM, and in Canada at the University of UQAM. He was an advisor to Laurence Tubiana, director of the Sustainable Development Chair at Sciences Po, between 2010 and 2017.
Benoit holds a Master in Engineering Science (Université de Perpignan Via Domitia, France), a graduate degree in Environment and Prevention (University of Montreal, Canada), a master’s degree in Environmental Science (UQAM, Canada) and had completed the academic part of political science Ph.D. program at UQAM. He is also a certified coach and facilitator in collective intelligence. He is trained in NLP and non-violent communication. He is fluent in English and French.
Younès Molato Senior Advisor
Younès has 17 years of investment banking experience in Europe, North and West Africa, including more than 10 years originating and executing corporate finance transactions with a focus on energy infrastructure, consumer, and healthcare (over €20 billion in total value). He was based in France, Spain, and now Morocco.
Before joining MCF, a regional corporate finance and investment advisory firm, to lead its activities in Morocco and West Africa, Younès established and developed BNP Paribas’ Corporate and Institutional Banking Corporate franchise in North and West Africa through a regional office based in Morocco. Collaborating with top management and board members, he advised the bank’s key corporate clients in the region, managing €20 billion in equivalent credit facilities for investment and flow banking transactions.
Younes has advised on structuring transactions using debt, guarantees, equity, quasi-equity/mezzanine in renewable energy, and a range of infrastructure projects. His in-depth knowledge of the banking sector and financial instruments provide insights into a full range of structuring techniques that can be used to de-risk investments and mobilize funding in key climate-related areas that otherwise are underserved by mainstream banking products.
Younès holds a master’s degree from ESSEC Business School – Paris, a bachelor’s from ISCAE Business School, and attended sustainability certification programs from Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership and Tsinghua University. Younès speaks French, English, Arabic, and Spanish.
Andrea Bacher Senior Climate Investment Funds and Strategy Expert
Trained in economics, sustainability management, law, and communication, Andrea has over 15 years of experience in international projects development and management, corporate strategy, public policy, stakeholder engagement, partnerships, and capacity building with a focus on climate change, energy, corporate sustainability management, sustainable green and blue economy finance, circular economy, and gender.
She has worked with international organizations and the private sector, including the International Chamber of Commerce, the United Nations, the World Bank, the German Development Agency (GIZ), and private companies and sector associations worldwide.
Andrea also led and coordinated the global private sector for multiple major UN conferences, such as the UN Climate Change Conference in 2015 (COP21) and the UN Summits on Sustainable Development (2012, 2015). Andrea has served as the global focal point for the private sector to the United Nations Climate Negotiations (UNFCCC, 7 years), as private sector observer to the Green Climate Fund (5 year) and the Climate Investment Funds (5 years),and was a member of the steering committee of UNEP’s International Resource Panel (6 years).
She holds a LLM in International Business Law from the Queen Mary University London, a LLM in French and European Law from the Sorbonne University Paris, a Master’s degree in Sustainable Development Management from the École des Hautes Études Commerciales de Paris (HEC Paris), and a diploma in Business Economics and Journalism from the University of Applied Sciences of Central Switzerland. Andrea is fluent in French, German and English.
Angy Akke Del Pino PROJECT MANAGER AND CLIMATE FINANCE EXPERT
Akke Del Pino is a project manager and climate finance expert with a deep understanding of international climate change policy. Her career began with a focus on greenhouse gas (GHG) emission projections, carbon footprints, and mitigation strategies which laid the foundation for her work on climate finance today.
Angy has been managing complex projects involving investment funds and financial institutions. She has been instrumental in building national level capacities to engage with the Green Climate Fund and multilateral and bilateral agencies, to increase access to climate finance. She has excellent knowledge of the Paris Agreement and national NDCs and has contributed to developing Investment Plans and national climate finance strategies, that are crucial for guiding countries in meeting their climate targets under the Paris Agreement, Angy has developed full capacity building programs and Knowledge Management products such as toolkits and national guides, and has designed training workshops for banks and real sector companies on climate finance. She conducts rigorous market Analysis and stakeholder engagement and she excels in market scoping and sectoral gap analysis to assess risks, barriers to climate finance, and opportunities. Her stakeholder mapping efforts have supported resource mobilization for climate adaptation and mitigation projects, involving both public and private sectors.
Angy holds a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Sciences from the Autonoma University of Madrid and is fluent in French, English, Spanish, and Arabic. Her career reflects a commitment to addressing climate change through strategic policy development, finance mobilization, and capacity building initiatives on a global scale.
Riccardo Stanco Climate Finance Advisory and Investment Analyst
Riccardo has over five years of work experience in financial consultancy in Europe, Africa, and Asia. He is specialized in climate finance and has worked on the design of climate finance facilities, financing of renewable energy projects, climate impact modeling, and the design of eligibility and monitoring and verification frameworks. He acts as a financial analyst as well, with excellent financial modeling skills.
Riccardo has managed complex projects and large mandates with multilateral development banks, bilateral agencies, commercial banks, and national governments in Europe and Africa.
He holds an M.Sc. and B.Sc. in Economics and Business Economics from the Erasmus University in The Netherlands. He speaks Dutch and English.
Crystal Wong Jee Yong Capital Market and Policy Expert
Crystal Wong is an experienced sustainability and capital markets practitioner with a background in regulation, legal practice, and development. She was called to the Bar of England and Wales and was admitted to the Malaysian Bar as an Advocate and Solicitor.
Previously, she served as a capital markets regulator, specializing in climate finance and investment management development, particularly within Malaysia and the broader ASEAN region. Her expertise extends to the formulation of policy papers, guidelines, and regulations aimed at enhancing the depth and breadth of the capital markets.
With a deep understanding of economic and government policies, she has actively participated in national-level climate action initiatives and policy design endeavors. She has worked closely with ministries, government agencies, regulators, financial institutions, and various stakeholders to ensure effective policy development and implementation nationally and regionally. She has experience in developing disclosure and reporting requirements, formulating policy documents for bond market development, and integrating sustainability considerations into the investment and due diligence processes of private markets.
Crystal holds an LL.B from the University of Leeds and completed her Bar Professional Training Course at City, University of London. Fluent in English, Mandarin Chinese, Bahasa Malay, and Cantonese dialects, Crystal brings a diverse skill set to her professional pursuits.
Santiago Navarro Analyst, Market Strategy and Development
Santiago has over three years of experience focused on biodiversity and climate finance frameworks for sustainable development. As an analyst at Clima Capital Partners, he contributes to market scoping, intelligence, analysis, and development of tools to address economic, social, and political barriers to climate finance, sustainable investing, and NDC implementation in developing countries across regions. His engagements include the development of national climate finance policies and strategies in Africa and the Middle East, climate cost-benefit analysis, economic analysis, and monitoring and evaluation of climate-related projects.
Prior to joining Clima Capital Partners, he worked as a research analyst at Dynamic Planet, a boutique consultancy that advises and invests in natural capital investment funds, eco-enterprises, and high-impact partnership development. Santiago has also worked as a research analyst at the Inter-American Development Bank, where he focused on the health and long-term care needs of aging populations in El Salvador and Chile. He holds a B.A. in Environmental Economics from Middlebury College (USA) and speaks English, Spanish, and Italian.
Dmytro Kuchirka Analyst
Dmytro Kuchirka is a financal analyst with experience in alternative energy, humanitarian aid, and biotech across the US, Europe, and Ukraine. He excels in financial modeling, market research, and project management in complex, cross-cultural environments.
Dmytro worked as a financial analyst in the alternative energy sector where he analyzed green energy transition projects and developed FDI proposals, facilitating a partnership with the International Finance Corporation. In a biotech start-up, he created financial forecasts, budgets and presentations for senior leadership. He negotiated medical supply contracts and optimized logistics for a humanitarian fund. Additionally, he established a project for highly specialized surgical care to wounded servicemen. He later joined Harvard Kennedy School to analyze the socio-economic impact of the regional instability globally and provide insights to the executive leaders participating in one of the Harvard Executive programs.
Dmytro holds a Master’s in Finance and a Bachelor’s in Economics and International Relations from Syracuse University. He speaks Chinese, English, Spanish, Ukrainian, and Russian.
Felix Hechl Analyst
Felix has experience in international development finance, having worked with a real estate developer that partnered with both the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) on various projects. Additionally, he has a strong background in investment banking and corporate finance, gained through his work at UniCredit. Felix is certified in Applied Responsible Investment by PRI and is fluent in English and German, with advanced proficiency in French. He holds a BA in Economics from Wake Forest University and is currently pursuing an MBA at the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) in Lausanne, Switzerland.