BUILD ME – boosting ambitions to achieve a climate-neutral building standard in the MENA region

The building sector in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has a great potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions by means of energy-efficient and climate-friendly construction. The project consequently supported pilot projects and policy dialogues that fostered the partner countries’ ambitions to achieve climate-neutral building standards. The focus was on the introduction of an energy classification system for buildings, aimed at facilitating access to finance for buildings that meet a higher energy efficiency level. Technical support was given to building projects, which then received funding from international financial institutions like the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) or regional financial institutions. Furthermore, advice on building regulations (EEBC - energy efficiency building codes) and support on the incorporation of building energy efficiency into the national strategies (e.g., NDCs, NEEAPs) was given to the national authorities.

Project data

Countries: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia
IKI funding: 5,712,129.30 €
Duration: 10/2016 till 09/2025
Status: completed
Implementing organisation: Guidehouse Germany GmbH
Political Partner: Ministry of Energy - Algeria

Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources - Jordan

Ministry of Energy and Water - Lebanon

Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development

Ministry of Housing, Utilities and Urban Communities (MoHUUC) - Egypt

Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy – Tunisia
Implementing Partner: Housing and Building Research Center (HBRC) - Egypt

Lebanese Center for Energy Conservation (LCEC)

L’Agence Nationale pour la Promotion et la Rationalisation de l’Utilisation de l’Energie (APRUE) - Algeria

National Agency for Energy Management (ANME) - Tunisia

National Agency for the Development of Renewable Energies and Energy Efficiency (ADEREE) - Morocco
Online: http://www.buildings-mena.com/

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State of implementation/results

Project completed.
During the first project phase (2016-2018) an extensive analysis and research on the building sector in the MENA region were conducted. Barriers toward a low-carbon building sector were identified. The generated outputs and recommendations are available on the project website.
The focus of the second project phase (2019-2022) was on Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan.
- The project curated a database for best practice examples and a Building Typology Database that contains information on typical construction practices in new and existing buildings in the MENA region, technical building systems and energy requirements.
- The Building Energy Performance (BEP) tool was launched. It calculates the energy demand, potential energy savings as well as the cost-effectiveness of energy efficiency measures. For an easy utilization of the tool, a detailed manual as well as a video is available.
- Moreover, 15 selected pilot projects across Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan were provided with technical assistance for integrating energy efficiency measures, accompanied by publications of the learning experiences from the technical support of the pilot projects, an Analysis of the National Energy Efficiency Action plans (NEEAP) and building codes in the partner countries.
The third project phase (2022-2025) aimed to support national authorities in the target countries on increasing investments in energy-efficient buildings by international and national banks and improving the political framework for more ambitious GHG savings in the building sector. This was achieved through the use of the BEP tool by financial institutions and the national classification system for evaluating bankable projects in target countries as well as increasing the level of ambition of political framework conditions through the formulation of building-specific goals in national strategies and energy building guidelines in the target countries. The following specific sub-goals have been achieved:
- At COP28, Egypt and Lebanon signed the adoption and recognition of one of the first Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) schemes for buildings in the MENA region. The EPCs were developed as part of the BUILD_ME project and will play an important role in promoting transparency regarding the energy consumption of the building sector (www.buildings-mena.com/…).
- The Building Energy Performance (BEP) Tool 2.0 (BEP 2.0) was released, a major upgrade to improve energy performance assessments and simplify the energy performance certificate (EPC) process. The EBRD recognised the BUILD_ME BEP Tool in June 2024 as a tool for assessing energy savings and qualifying green building projects.
- Local interest groups in the target countries were trained on the topic low-energy buildings in online seminars and in national/regional workshops. Moreover, various trainings on the BEP tool and classification system were carried out. Training materials and presentations can be found on the BUILD_ME website (www.buildings-mena.com).
The published video of the final BUILD_ME regional conference offers a detailed insight into the course of the project from its inception to the vision for the future (www.youtube.com/…).

Latest Update:
12/2025