Background
NetZeroCities, through Special Grant Agreement 2 (SGA2) Task 1.6, ‘Sub-European Peer-to-Peer Collaboration’, is actively working to provide tailored support in various national contexts. The aim is to provide additional support to cities, foster communities of practice between cities in each country, i.e. to strengthen city-to-city collaboration spaces at national level and thus help to reinforce national platforms. To achieve this, NZC has developed a country-specific support framework tailored to the unique characteristics and needs of each context.
In Belgium, four public authorities are engaged in the EU Mission for Climate Neutral and Smart Cities: La Louvière, Leuven, Antwerp, and Brussels-Capital Region. Antwerp and Leuven have been awarded the EU Mission Label for their Climate City Contracts. The four cities are advancing climate action across different priority areas: built environment through a fossil-free district living-lab approach, district heating, residential renovation and renewable energy, sustainable mobility, multi-level governance and citizen participation, among others. As part of the Mission, Antwerp, Brussels-Capital Region and Leuven are engaged in the NetZeroCities Pilot Cities Programme, and Leuven has additionally accessed NetZeroCities finance services.
As regional authorities have substantial legislative powers in Belgium, especially regarding urban, energy and climate policies, most of the cooperation regarding climate actions between cities is organized at regional level. In Wallonia, the Region has supported local climate planning since 2012 through the POLLEC Programme (Politique Locale Énergie Climat – Local Energy and Climate Policy), which supports the Walloon municipalities for the development and implementation of the Action Plans for Sustainable Energy and Climate in the framework of the Covenant of Mayors. Other initiatives include the Cities Platform for Walloon cities, and the activities carried out by the Union of the Cities and Towns of Wallonia. In Brussels Capital Region, Innoviris animates a group of 17 municipalities involved in climate actions, with the support of Brulocalis and Brussels Environment. In Flanders, the Flemish Local Energy and Climate Pact (LEKP in Flemish) is a program supporting the objectives of the Covenant of Mayors 2030 and provides technical and financial support to local authorities. VVSG, The Association of Flemish Cities and Municipalities, has been mandated by the Flemish Region to animate this program. Other relevant initiatives supporting the achievement of climate neutrality by local authorities include the Flemish Cities Knowledge Centre, an inter-local association of 13 Flemish cities, or the 100 Neighbourhoods Platform. The Flemish Cities Knowledge Centre is also involved in the CapaCITIES 2.0 initiative, supporting cities in the dialogue with national and regional authorities aimed at strengthening efforts toward climate neutrality.
To strengthen national engagement and city-to-city collaboration, NetZeroCities has started a collaboration with a national supplier for the period October 2025 to October 2026, to provide expert support. The local partner has been working to shape and strengthen a National Mission Ecosystem in Belgium, aligned with the EU Mission for 100 Climate Neutral and Smart Cities.
It is therefore essential to continue strengthening and structuring collaboration on climate neutrality in Belgium, especially amongst the Mission cities, Mission-Minded Cities and other interested cities across the three regions. This will support key stakeholders to work together to identify, articulate and promote shared policy needs and priorities within a multi-level governance framework, while strengthening dialogue and coordination with regional, national and European actors. The active involvement and mobilization of national-level stakeholders is critical to ensuring impact.
To consolidate ongoing efforts, this assignment is designed to establish a structured and continuous engagement process building on the work delivered between October 2025 and October 2026. The assignment will start on the 15th of November 2026 and end on the 31st of October 2027, for a total duration of 11.5 months. These services, which will be contracted through this tender, are to be delivered by an individual or organization with deep expertise in the Belgian national context and experience in convening stakeholders from local, regional and national governments. This approach ensures targeted support that directly addresses the objectives outlined in this RfP.
Finally, as part of this specific support, each country has a NetZeroCities partner responsible for coordinating the work. In the case of Belgium, this role is fulfilled by Energy Cities. A strong coordination between the selected provider, Energy Cities, the City Advisors for Belgium and the NetZeroCities team is requested alongside the whole contracting period.
Scope
In the context of the efforts of Belgian cities within the EU Mission for 100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, and specifically the opportunity identified to provide additional support to the community of cities working toward the mission’s objectives within the Belgium’s national ecosystem, NetZeroCities / Climate KIC is requesting a quotation for services from an organization or individual able to operate within this national context. The role involves supporting teams from NetZeroCities, as relevant, to take charge of and facilitate the process described below.
Climate KIC is looking to procure an expert supplier to foster collaboration between cities, national and regional authorities, and different stakeholders within Belgium including Antwerp, Brussels-Capital Region, Leuven, La Louvière, and other Mission-Minded Cities, with the aim of strengthening existing local, regional and national climate neutrality efforts.
The following is a general description of the services and actions to be provided by the awarded supplier, followed in subsequent sections with detailed information:
1. Coordination support aimed at establishing coherent collaboration processes for Belgian cities, building on existing national and regional initiatives and collaboration structure. This shall include regular coordination meetings, feedback loops, documentation of the collaboration process, and the establishment or strengthening of links between participating cities, regional authorities, national authorities and other relevant stakeholders. The supplier shall support participating cities in identifying common challenges, exchanging practices, and developing shared priorities related to climate-neutrality implementation.
2. Organization of two in-person “EU Cities Mission events” bringing together at least 40 participants per event, from cities, ministries/agencies, regional authorities, private sector, academia/research and civil society, while coordinating with Energy Cities and NetZeroCities partners. Each event will involve representatives of at least 10 Belgian cities (min. 2 per region) and at least 5 regional or national stakeholders to support cities, promote co-implementation of projects and enhance collaboration between cities, national and regional authorities, and other stakeholders. The events shall bring together the Belgian Mission Ecosystem supporting cities in achieving climate neutrality, raise awareness of the EU Mission for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, facilitate exchanges on implementation challenges and solutions, and strengthen cooperation between local, regional and national actors.
The services will also encourage the participation of CapaCITIES 2.0 partners or similar initiatives in this event. As part of the organization of the two EU Cities Mission events, the supplier will support and coordinate the integration, where relevant, of complementary NetZeroCities activities, including Better Funding Dialogues (BFD) and City-Industry Dialogues (CID), in coordination with the NetZeroCities partners. The supplier shall ensure that these activities are complementary to, and do not duplicate, existing Belgian or NetZeroCities initiatives.
The BFD aim is to enhance financial flows to cities, mobilize private stakeholders, and drive systemic change in financing structures to achieve climate neutrality. The CID aim is to bring together Mission Cities, industry, investors, National Platforms and public authorities around specific implementation challenges and opportunities.
3. Establishment or reinforcement of a Belgian community of practice involving representatives from at least 10 Belgian cities, building where possible on existing collaboration initiatives and frameworks. This will be done through delivering at least 3 community sessions within a structured capacity-building programme.
4. Support cities in at least 3 meetings with national and regional stakeholders aimed at strengthening the Belgian Mission Ecosystem and multi-level collaboration. The supplier shall support cities before and during these meetings, through stakeholder coordination, preparation of agenda inputs, development of common narratives and policy propositions, articulation of cities’ needs and identification of required support or services. Relevant findings and needs emerging from the community-of-practice and capacity-building activities shall be fed into these discussions.
The supplier is expected to play an active support role in conducting the necessary groundwork, including stakeholder outreach, coordination, and preparation, to deliver the EU Cities Mission events. This support is also intended to catalyse longer-term cooperation between national authorities, cities, private sector actors, and financial institutions. The events won’t be designed as standalone activities, but act as key milestones of a broader, structured multi-stakeholder engagement process. The supplier will be expected to design and implement preparatory activities at national and local levels to identify and address key challenges, opportunities, and priorities related to the selected thematic focus.
The supplier is asked to strategically leverage existing events and platforms (e.g. sectoral fairs, national conferences) to organise complementary sessions or engagement moments, to maximise participation and cost-efficiency.
Presentations and technical support will take place predominantly in Belgium; therefore, presenters must be fluent in French and Flemish. The collaboration and interaction with NetZeroCities partners will be in English.
This targeted support is intended as seed funding with the primary objective of maximizing impact by strengthening collaborative networks within each country. Therefore, this initiative also aims to encourage the continuity of funding once the support described in this procurement is completed.
The selected supplier is expected to engage collaboratively with experts from the NetZeroCities consortium, as well as to create synergies with the cities and key stakeholders of the national ecosystem. It is expected to build a strong basis for a constructive and sustainable multi-level dialogue involving national and regional stakeholders, cities, policy makers, research centres etc. NetZeroCities representatives (who are resourced already and do not have to be represented in a financial offer) and Mission Cities are to be engaged on a day-to-day basis where needed, on baseline briefings, the overarching strategic approach within which this assignment takes place, as well as for sharing good practices/learning from other Mission and Mission-Minded cities, where relevant.
Timeline and additional information
Interested parties are invited to submit their proposals by 21 October 2026 (23:59 CEST Time) to [CESF@netzerocities.eu]. Proposals should include and address all specific requirements related to the request which can be found below.
