World Bank drops climate funding target, raising fears for Africa

The bank’s five-year Climate Change Action Plan expired on Tuesday. Last year it put 48 percent of its lending – worth $51 billion – into projects with climate benefits, surpassing its original 45 percent target.

More than one-third of that funding went to Africa.

The change followed pressure from the United States, the bank’s largest shareholder, despite European governments and many developing countries pushing to keep the 45 percent goal.

While that target has now been removed, the broader climate plan will now continue without an end date.

The bank’s climate work “is and will remain firmly client-driven, supporting them in delivering on their own ambitions”, World Bank president Ajay Banga wrote in an internal memo to staff.

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From spending to ‘results’

Speaking at the Hamburg Sustainability Conference on Tuesday, World Bank managing director Paschal Donohoe said the bank would now focus less on spending targets and more on the results projects deliver.

“By announcing the extension of this truly essential framework, we are now focusing on how we can ensure monitoring and report on the results achieved, rather than simply keeping track of the money spent,” Donohoe said.

Climate action is now an integral part of the World Bank’s work, a source familiar with the matter told RFI.

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Fears for Africa

However, several observers expressed concern over the decision to remove the 45 percent target.

“It is extremely concerning to see that this numerical target has not been renewed,” Selma Huart, an advocacy officer at the anti-poverty charity Oxfam, told RFI.

“The risk is that projects which worsen the climate crisis in Africa could be financed, while failing to protect the most vulnerable populations.

“The World Bank risks no longer helping African countries adapt to climate change at all, even though this is extremely necessary. Africa is one of the continents most affected by climate change today.”

In recent years, the World Bank’s climate plan has helped pay for electricity, sustainable transport and water projects in Madagascar, Tanzania and Niger.

(with newswires)