23 September 2019: The Green Climate Fund (GCF), UN Development Programme (UNDP), International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) launched the ‘Climate Investment Platform’ (CIP) to scale up climate action and catalyze the flow of capital to clean energy initiatives. The CIP will present its progress at the 25th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 25) to the UNFCCC in December 2019.

By 2025, the Platform aims to directly mobilize USD 1 trillion in clean energy investment in 20 least developed countries (LDCs). The Platform addresses four building blocks, or “tracks,” along the climate finance value chain: supporting governments to scale up their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), including specification of ambitious energy targets; establishing clean energy policies and regulations; financial de-risking of energy prices; and supporting access to capital markets to connect clean energy investors with projects. Together, these four tracks aim to promote a comprehensive framework to deliver system-wide transformation that addresses both mitigation and adaptation. The CIP’s first service line focuses on the global transition to clean energy, recognizing that energy accounts for two-thirds of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The CIP will accelerate system-wide change and deliver co-benefits across the SDGs.

IRENA Director-General Francesco La Camera said renewable energy and energy efficiency “can deliver 90% of the emissions reductions needed under the Paris Agreement on climate change, but investment and deployment must increase significantly.” La Camera said the CIP combines the strengths of the respective organizations to “deliver tailored, proactive policy and investment support to set the energy transformation on a climate-safe path.” GCF Executive Director, Yannick Glemarec, said the CIF “will simplify access to climate finance.”

Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), Rachel Kyte, said the CIP will help “bridge the gap between supply and demand to accelerate capital and scale up climate-resilient investments,” which will enable countries to increase their climate ambition. UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said the CIP will “accelerate system-wide change and deliver co-benefits across the SDGs – from employment and economic growth to reduced inequalities and improved health.”

The CIP plans to launch additional services on adaptation, land use, and cities and infrastructure in the first quarter of 2020.

The Platform was launched ahead of the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit. [IRENA Press Release] [UNDP Press Release] [Climate Action Summit Press Release] [CIP Platform]