Union Cabinet approves CITIIS 2.0, will support climate action goals

The Union Cabinet has approved the City Investments to Innovate, Integrate and Sustain 2.0 (CITIIS 2.0) programme. The programme will be executed by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in partnership with the French Development Agency (AFD), Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau (KfW), the European Union (EU), and National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA). 

The government press release informed that the programme will run for a period of four years, starting from 2023 until 2027.

The programme is aimed at supporting selected projects that promote a circular economy with a special focus on integrated waste management at the city level. The project will focus on taking climate-oriented reform actions at the state level and spreading knowledge and expertise at the national level.

The financial support for CITIIS 2.0 will come in the form of a Rs 1,760 crore loan from AFD and KfW. The technical assistance will be provided by the European Union (EU).

The project will involve three components:

1. 12 city-level projects will be identified through a competitive process.

2. Capacity-development activities will be conducted in the state of Odisha.

3. Promoting integrated urban management at the national level through activities undertaken by NIUA.

The CITIIS 2.0 will act as a force multiplier to the climate actions being taken by the government. It is expected to contribute towards India's Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) and Conference of the Parties (COP26) commitments.