27 February 2014: During the month of February, the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the GEF and the Adaptation Fund announced funding for climate-related projects or published reports on climate finance.
On new project funding, on 7 February, the World Bank approved a grant in support of climate change adaptation measures for coastal communities in Samoa. The US$14.6 million program will: assist 45,000 Samoans in coastal communities in adapting to climate change and climate variability; protect coastal infrastructure; and increase awareness about climate change impacts and adaptation activities among communities, civil society and government.
Also on 7 February, the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) reported that the German Ministry for Economic Development and Cooperation (BMZ) through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ) made a 500,000 Euro contribution to boost ESCAP’s efforts to strengthen early warning systems for natural disasters in the Indian Ocean and southeast Asian countries, including regional collaboration and capacity building.
On 20 February, IFAD reported that it will provide a loan of US$16.1 million and a grant of US$500,000 to the Republic of Moldova to finance the Inclusive Rural Economic and Climate Resilience Programme. The Danish International Development Association (DANIDA), the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) and the Government of Moldova will co-finance the $46.3 million project. The project aims to raise the incomes of poor rural people by increasing investments in the rural economy, and to strengthen the resilience of the agricultural sector to frequent climatic and economic shocks.
On 26 February, the Adaptation Fund approved financing for US$17 million worth of projects in Cuba, Seychelles and Uzbekistan, all of which will be implemented by the UN Development Programme (UNDP).
On recent climate finance publications, on 30 January, the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR), a World Bank-managed fund supported by 21 donor partners, the EU, the World Bank and the UN, released its annual report covering the period July 2012-July 2013. The report indicates that during the fiscal year, GFDRR helped over 80 developing countries to better identify, prepare for, and recover from natural disasters. The report showcases the Facility’s work toward a goal of helping over one billion people in 34 developing countries to better cope with and adapt to the effects of natural hazards and climate change.
On 25 February 2014, EBRD and IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, released a report titled ‘Pilot Climate Change Adaptation Study: Turkey,’ which lays out a series of priority actions for Turkish businesses. The study’s objective is to help companies manage the risks and opportunities associated with climate change, with the aim of enabling them to identify measures that make business sense and to prepare for the changes ahead.
NEFCO has published its 2013 Operational Review of its climate finance activities, which highlights that carbon finance forms the mainstay of NEFCO’s climate finance activities. It indicates that in 2013, NEFCO welcomed a new instrument , the NEFCO Norwegian Carbon Procurement Facility for Vulnerable CDM Projects (NorCaP), which seeks to deliver Kyoto II compliance units for the Norwegian Government while ensuring the viability of existing projects. The Review also outlines operations under the NEFCO Carbon Fund (NeCF) and reports good progress for the Nordic Partnership Initiative’s solid waste NAMA programme in Peru. [Publication: NEFCO 2013 Operational Review] [ESCAP Press release on the GIZ Contribution] [World Bank Press Release: Samoa] [EBRD Press Release: Turkey] [Publication: Climate Risk Case Study Pilot Climate Change Adaptation Market Study: Turkey] [IFAD Press Release: Moldova] [Adaptation Fund Press Release] [World Bank Press Release: GFDRR] [Publication: GFDRR Annual Report 2013: Inroads to Resilience]
The SDG Knowledge Hub publishes monthly climate finance updates that focus on news and reports on projects and other finance-related developments by MDBs and key climate finance-related institutions. Past Climate Finance Updates can be found under the tag: Finance Update: Climate Change. Climate finance news and developments relating to renewable energy and energy efficiency are published in monthly Sustainable Energy Finance Updates, which can be found under the tag: Finance Update: Sustainable Energy