Jessica and the Northwest Evergreen Fund

The Joint European Support for Sustainable Investment in City Areas (JESSICA) initiative was launched by the European Commission and European Investment Bank (EIB) in collaboration with the Council of Europe Development Bank in order to promote sustainable investment, growth and jobs in urban areas. The Northwest Urban Investment Fund (NWUIF) is the JESSICA holding fund for the Northwest of England.

The EIB launched a tender process for the selection of two Urban Development Funds to receive resources from NWUIF. The Northwest Evergreen Fund was selected as the UDF for the Northwest of England excluding the Merseyside sub-regional area. The role of the UDF will be to facilitate the disbursement of EU Structural Funds in the Northwest by making repayable investments in public-private partnerships or other urban regeneration projects.

The Fund is now undertaking the process of identifying and investing in and leading the negotiation and structuring of financial investments in viable Urban Projects which fit within the agreed investment strategy of the UDF.