World Bank backs RE in developing countries

World Bank Group intends to help developing countries add 30 GW of renewable energy to the world’s energy capacity by 2020, the organization revealed in its new Climate Change Action Plan.

The initiative is among number of ambitious targets laid out in the World Bank Group’s new Climate Change Action Plan, approved last week, with the aim to accelerate efforts to tackle climate change over the next five years and help developing countries deliver on their national climate plans submitted for the historic climate agreement reached at COP21 in Paris in December last year.

Jim Yong Kim, World Bank Group President, said: “We are moving urgently to help countries make major transitions to increase sources of renewable energy, decrease high-carbon energy sources, develop green transport systems, and build sustainable, livable cities for growing urban populations. Developing countries want our help to implement their national climate plans, and we’ll do all we can to help them.”

To maximize impact, the Action Plan is focused on helping countries shape national policies and leverage private sector investment.

The International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, announced plans to expand its climate investments from the current $2.2 billion a year to a goal of $3.5 billion a year, and lead on leveraging an additional $13 billion a year in private sector financing by 2020, according to the World Bank.

As well its own financing, the World Bank also intends to mobilize $25 billion in commercial financing for clean energy over the next five years, while continuing to deepen its work to help countries put a price on carbon pollution and create incentives for public and private sector decision makers to make the right climate choices, World Bank states.

When it comes to renewable energy in developing countries, the most recent report from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) states that the fastest growth in renewable generation capacity came from developing countries in 2015.

Furthermore, the annual report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) stated that, for the first time, the developing world investments in renewables topped those of developed nations in 2015 with 19% increase compared to 2014.