November 2014: The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Development Assistance Committee (OECD-DAC) has presented a set of statistics that capture an integrated and comprehensive picture of both bilateral and multilateral climate-related external development finance flows, which play an important role in supporting developing countries in their transition to low-carbon, climate-resilient and sustainable development pathways.

This integration, the first time OECD has presented both bilateral and multilateral flows, is expected to increase transparency, avoid double counting, improve information coverage and provide consistency across recipient partner countries using standardized definitions and measurements.

The statistics show that total bilateral and multilateral climate-related external development finance to developing countries equaled approximately US$37 billion in 2013. Bilateral climate-related official development assistance (ODA) totaled US$22 billion and other bilateral official flows targeting climate-activities and renewables totaled US$1 billion. Multilateral climate-related finance amounted to around US$14 billion. Of the US$37 billion, around US$23 billion (61%) went to mitigation, US$9.6 billion (26%) to adaptation and US$4.8 billion (13%) to activities addressing both adaptation and mitigation. More bilateral development finance than multilateral finance went to adaptation.

The energy, transport and water sectors receive over two-thirds of climate-related development finance, according to the statistics. Asia is the largest recipient of climate-related development finance flows at around 40%, and Africa is the second largest recipient at 30%.

Since 1998, the DAC has monitored development finance targeting Rio Convention objectives. Data are reported by DAC members, collected through the “Creditor Reporting System” (a statistical open-access database that makes information on external development finance flows publicly available) and identified by using “Rio markers,” which enable monitoring of external development finance for environmental purposes. Donors are requested to indicate whether or not each aid activity targets environmental objectives.

The four Rio markers: cover biodiversity, desertification and climate change mitigation and adaptation; indicate the degree to which environmental considerations are mainstreamed into development; and enable an approximate quantification of finance flows targeting Rio Convention objectives. A fifth policy marker includes a broader ‘environment’ marker introduced in 1992. [Website on External Development Finance Targeting Environmental Objectives] [Climate-related development finance in 2013]