29 August 2018: The World Bank has launched a Sustainable Development Bond series to raise awareness on opportunities to support the SDGs on water, sanitation and marine protection. The bond series is part of the World Bank’s strategy to engage investors on SDG implementation.

The bond series aims to raise at least US$3 billion in support of conservation and sustainable use of fresh and salt water resources, in line with SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation) and SDG 14 (life below water). The World Bank’s work on conservation and sustainable use of water focuses on two lenses: sustainable water management to ensure access to safe water and water security; and sustainable use of marine resources and the ocean.

World Bank Sustainable Development Bonds are “an important contributor in the journey towards sustainable capital markets.”

The World Bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Kristalina Georgieva, explained that the bond series aims to address degraded ocean resources and lack of access to safe water. She said the bond series will remind investors and markets that “we must protect our water and marine resources today for the generations of tomorrow.” The World Bank’s Vice President and Treasurer, Arunma Oteh, emphasized that World Bank Sustainable Development Bonds are “an important contributor in the journey towards sustainable capital markets” and that this series will be critical in achieving clean water and healthy oceans.

The bond series on supporting SDG 6 and SDG 14 follows earlier World Bank Sustainable Development Bond series that focused on health and nutrition (SDGs 3 and 2, respectively) and gender (SDG 5). [World Bank Press Release]