Climate financing of the world's largest multilateral development banks (MDBs) in developing countries and emerging economies rose to an all-time high of $43.1 billion in 2018 with an increase of 22% compared to the previous year, according to the Joint Report on Multilateral Development Banks' Climate Finance on Wednesday.
The report combined data from the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Inter-American Development Bank Group (IDBG), the World Bank Group (WBG) as well as the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB).
According to the data, the financing of the banks for the fight against the climate change was $35.2 billion in 2017.
The report also showed that the financing in 2018 represented 60% increase since the adoption of the Paris Agreement in 2015 which aims to limit the increase in global temperatures to well below 2°C, pursuing efforts for 1.5°C.
The MDBs' financing in 2018 included $30.2 billion for climate change mitigation investments that aim to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions and slow down global warming, according to the report.
The remaining $12.9 billion was devoted to adaptation efforts to help address mounting impacts of climate change, including worsening droughts and more extreme weather events from extreme flooding to rising sea levels.
Thus, since 2011 when the MDBs initiated joint reporting, the banks have committed almost $237 billion in climate finance for developing and emerging economies, the report underlined.
The regions of Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and South and East Asia were the top three to invest MDB climate finance, the report showed.
By Nuran Erkul Kaya
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr