The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has secured $108 million in funding from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for its climate change projects, shoring up the bank’s efforts to increase its climate financing for the Asia and Pacific region.
The new funding—comprising $71 million in grants and $37 million in concessional loans—was approved during the 21st meeting of the GCF board on 17-20 October in Manama, Bahrain, and will provide co-financing support to three ADB-financed projects in Kiribati, Pakistan, and Tonga.
“ADB has a bold plan that 75% of its projects will address climate mitigation and adaptation by 2030,” said ADB’s Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department Director General Mr. Woochong Um. “The funding from GCF will complement this effort and support the deployment of innovative technologies to address climate change challenges in Kiribati, Pakistan, and Tonga.”
In Kiribati, a $29 million GCF grant, combined with a $15 million grant from ADB and grant cofinancing from the World Bank, will provide the entire population of South Tarawa with climate resilient water supply through a seawater desalination plant. A new solar photovoltaic plant will largely offset the desalination plant’s demand for electricity. A rehabilitated and expanded water supply network will reduce leakages and ensure residents have access to clean water, while awareness-raising in the community will contribute to the project’s sustainability.
In Pakistan, GCF funding of $12 million in grant and $37 million in loan will supplement $442 million in loans from ADB, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and Agence Française de Développement to build a 30-kilometer fully segregated state-of-the-art “third generation” bus rapid transit system including bicycle lanes, a bike sharing system, last-mile connectivity with e-pedicabs, and improved pedestrian facilities directly benefiting 1.5 million residents of Karachi. The project includes the construction of a plant to produce biogas from cattle waste for use with zero greenhouse gas emission biomethane-hybrid buses.
In Tonga, a GCF grant of $29.9 million, combined with a $12.2 million grant from ADB, will enable a shift away from the traditional reliance on fossil fuels toward a greater emphasis on a climate-resilient battery energy storage system and renewable energy systems. It will also support the construction of a mini-grid system in the outer islands.
The assistance for these three projects is on top of the $265 million in grants and loans previously approved by GCF for six ADB projects in Asia and the Pacific.
Original source: ADB
Published on 22 October 2018
