Climate change initiative gets more funds

The nation’s environment and climate change initiatives secured additional financing window as the state-run Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP)completed accreditation from the Green Climate Fund (GCF).

DBP president and CEO Emmanuel Herbosa said the lender was among the ten foreign institutions approved by the United Nations-backed GCF for financial support to finance climate mitigation programs in line with the Paris Agreement and Kyoto Protocol.

“We are honored to be in the select roster of international and national commercial banks; multilateral, regional, and national development finance institutions; and civil society organizations, among others, that are working together for the implementation of climate change mitigation and adaptation projects on a global scale,” Herbosa said.

The bank is in talks with potential development partners who can work with the DBP in formulating and implementing responsive projects centered on green energy, energy efficiency, waste management, and disaster resiliency projects, among others.

“We envision GCF as an additional source of highly-concessional loans or even grants to expand the reach and to scale up DBP’s environmental and climate-related programs and advocacies,” he said.

“This includes complementing the programs of other government and non-government agencies in line with the Build Back Better strategy and whole-of-government approach,” he added.

Under the mechanism, the GCF may be tapped by accredited entities and delivery partners, which work directly with developing countries for project design and implementation.

In addition, GCF provides financial support through a combination of grants, concessional debt, guarantees, or equity instruments to leverage blended finance and crowd-in private investment for climate action in developing countries.