WASHINGTON, May 7, 2012 – Two regional and five national investment plans were endorsed by the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) at the CIF Governance Committee Meetings held in Washington, D.C. from 30 April to 4 May 2012. This provides access to over $372 million in grants and concessional loans for countries to address climate change challenges.
The Trust Fund Committee of the Clean Technology Fund (one of the four CIF programs) endorsed Chile’s investment plan for $200 million, putting the country on track to develop energy efficiency initiatives and large-scale solar grid-connected systems using concentrated solar power and photovoltaic technologies.
Vice Minister of Energy for Chile, Sergio del Campo Fayet, presented the investment plan. “Chile’s market is at a critical point where renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies are just becoming commercial,” he said. “The CTF will provide key catalytic resources to reduce targeted risk, cost, and capacity barriers and attract private investment”.
The CTF committee also endorsed a process for managing projects arising from new investment plans, which will enable Nigeria, India, and Chile to receive the first tranche of CTF funding to begin development of projects.
The Forest Investment Plan (FIP) sub-committee endorsed Brazil’s investment plan for $70 million. The Brazil Investment Plan (IP) will seek to promote sustainable land use and forest management improvement in the Cerrado, the second largest biome in Brazil and South America, contributing to reducing pressure on the remaining forests, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing CO2 sequestration.
Brazil’s Secretary for Climate Change in the Ministry of the Environment, Carlos Klink, indicated that the plan will also allow “access to new credit lines and markets”. Mercedes Busamachi, Director of the Brazilian Ministry of Science and Technology for Policies and Thematic Programs, added “The FIP represents important contributions to the national climate change policy by focusing on the second largest biome in Brazil, the Cerrado. Our plan builds upon the synergies with existing programs and on the capacity of different federal agencies, ministries, states, municipalities, and the private sector.”
The sub-committee for the Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR) endorsed two regional strategic programs for the Pacific and Caribbean regions. PPCR Regional Programs are executed through a number of national programs together with a regional program to support the sharing of information and lessons learned from country pilots with other countries in the region.
The PPCR committee endorsed $10 million for the Caribbean region to enhance hydromet and climate information services, implement adaptation measures in key sectors, and synchronize the strategic programs for climate resilience of six PPCR pilot countries: Dominica, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Lucia and St. Vincent, and the Grenadines and $10.6 million for the Pacific region to strengthen integration and implementation of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction measures in 14 Pacific Island Countries.
Mark Bynoe, Environmental Resource Economist at the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre, said the regional program allows for economies of scale to enhance the efforts of island nations with resource constraints. It will use regional institutions to maximize data and information inputs to inform planning for island nations that face common threats from climate variability and change.
Three national strategic programs for climate resilience were also endorsed under the PPCR: $14 million for the Kingdom of Tonga to facilitate capacity building, establish national climate financing and small grants schemes, and improve resilience of coastal ecosystems and critical infrastructure; $16 million for Dominica to develop climate financing schemes and boost resilience in agriculture and community welfare.
Yemen’s investment plan for $50 million was also approved. This will help upgrade hydromet and climate information services and build resilience in the water sector, rural agriculture and coastal zones.
Other issues discussed during the week-long meeting centered around operational improvements with the adoption of a new communications strategy and new measures to enhance country coordination and stakeholder engagement, improve private and public sector engagement, and refine the CIF result frameworks.
The $7 billion Climate Investment Funds are a global partnership of the African Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, InterAmerican Development Bank, and the World Bank Group.
