The World Bank has announced a 10% increase in its climate financing, marking a significant boost in global efforts to combat climate change.
On Thursday, the World Bank declared that it had provided a record $42.6 billion in finance for climate change in the most recent fiscal year, a 10% increase over the previous year.
To reform the eighty-year-old Washington-based institution, the development lender has sought to increase its climate financing commitment under new president Ajay Banga, who came over last year.
The bank committed in December to increase the percentage of its yearly financing allocated to climate change adaptation from 35 per cent to 45 per cent beginning in the July-starting fiscal year 2025.
However, it nearly met that goal this fiscal year, revealing in a statement on Thursday that climate funding accounted for about 44% of the $97 billion in overall financing provided by the World Bank Group.
As per the AFP, the World Bank official said that the number also includes the lending alongside other financial tools like subsidies and deposit.
That financing assisted in “supporting efforts to end poverty on a livable planet, investing in cleaner energy, more resilient communities, and stronger economies,” the Bank said, adding: “There is more to do.”
The largest contributors were the International Development Association, the bank’s concessional lending arm, and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, which together delivered $31 billion, the World Bank said.
