5 January 2009: The World Bank has provided an update on how the Development Marketplace projects have fared since winning the awards in November 2009, in Washington DC, US. The projects, each funded for up to $200,000, illustrate how least-developed and developing countries should confront climate change, by linking adaptation to development.
The Development Marketplace sponsors include the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Bank Group. The awards recognized 100 innovative, early-stage community projects from 47 countries in developing countries that aim to benefit poor people and their local environment, and have the potential to be scaled to other communities.
The World Bank has provided an update on three projects, including: a clean water project in Zimbabwe; the switching from making floor mats to high-end handbags in a Khmer villagers in Vietnam; and a rooftop rainwater harvesting project in a region plagued by drought in Rajasthan, India. [World Bank Press Release on Development Marketplace] [World Bank Press Release on Three Success Stories]