SDG 13: Climate Action | SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure | SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals
Institutions: Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change | Ministry of Finance
Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs)—including AIIB and NDB—have reported that their collective global climate finance reached a record $137 billion in 2024, marking a 10% increase from the previous year. The majority of this funding, $85.1 billion, was directed towards low- and middle-income economies, where climate finance has more than doubled over the past five years. Furthermore, MDBs significantly boosted the mobilization of private finance for climate action, which jumped 33% globally to reach $134 billion in 2024.
At COP30 in Belém, Brazil, MDBs reaffirmed their commitment to accelerate action on adaptation and resilience. They are focusing on harmonizing their work to simplify financing processes and deliver greater impact, supporting clients with climate planning and country-led platforms. MDBs are tracking their goals to provide $120 billion annually in climate finance for low- and middle-income countries by 2030, including $42 billion for adaptation, while mobilizing an additional $65 billion from the private sector. The current data shows MDBs are on track to meet these ambitious targets.
The record climate finance figures and the joint call at COP30 demonstrate the MDB system’s collective scale-up and effectiveness in mobilizing capital for the global climate agenda, reinforcing their central role in the architecture of development finance. This policy signal is crucial for low- and middle-income countries as it confirms that MDBs are moving toward the massive $1.3 trillion annual goal agreed upon at COP29. The emphasis on harmonizing financing processes and launching new frameworks for nature and biodiversity reflects a policy intent to simplify access to capital and accelerate project delivery on the ground.
What is Climate Mitigation versus Adaptation Finance? → Climate Mitigation finance refers to funding for projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions (like renewable energy or clean transport), while Climate Adaptation finance refers to funding for projects that increase resilience to climate impacts already occurring (like drought-resistant agriculture or coastal protection).
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: What specific policy reforms must AIIB and NDB undertake to ensure the adaptation finance component of their lending meets the urgent and growing needs of their most climate-vulnerable member nations?
Follow the full news here: Multilateral development banks hit record $137 billion in climate finance to drive sustainable development worldwide
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