World Bank’s finance commitments reach $32b
THE World Bank’s climate finance commitments reached $32 billion last year — a record figure well above the target set at COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland.
World Bank Group president David Malpass highlighted this at the COP27 Climate Finance Event in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, last week.
He said while they have dramatically increased climate finance, they were looking forward to new ideas.
“I welcome and solicit your input on ways to increase our resources and commitment capacity,” Mr Malpass said in a statement.
“We are approaching the climate crisis with action and impact.”
Mr Malpass said he recently visited the Komati coal power plant in South Africa that was decommissioned and repurposed for renewable energy, with substantial attention on the social transition.
“The financing comes from multiple sources, including loans from IBRD (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development) and Canada and a grant from our ESMAP (Energy Sector Management Assistance Program) trust fund.
Developing complex projects such as this takes a long time, as will implementation.
“That helps explain the key role played by the World Bank Group working with Eskom, the South African federal and local governments, and the JET-P (Just Energy Transition Partnership) partners as part of the country platform.
“With most parts of the world increasing their GHG (greenhouse gases) emissions, the Komati repurposing is a hopeful sign, and the World Bank is proud to lead this successful approach to reducing GHG emissions.
“We published the South Africa Country Climate and Development Report or CCDR last week, which shows how the pathway chosen for Komati makes sense for both the people and the planet.
“We have now published CCDRs for more than 20 countries, showing pathways to integrate climate and development.
“This was a major deliverable of Glasgow, and they show clear pathways to climate action and impact.
“Climate action such as the Komati project provides a key global public good and demonstrates that it can be done. We want to dramatically increase the number and size of projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”