US lawmakers call on World Bank to boost funding for climate initiatives
livemint.comWorld Bank President Ajay Banga to increase investment in climate projects. "We are heartened to see that you recognise the urgency of this problem and hope that the bank will lead a coordinated and robust response to these challenges," the lawmakers said in a letter to Banga on Wednesday.
The letter was signed by senators Martin Heinrich, Brian Schatz, Peter Welch, Sheldon Whitehouse and Edward Markey along with Congressman Katie Porter. "It is imperative that the World Bank increases investment in projects that advance climate adaptation and mitigation goals, provide clear and transparent metrics on what projects the bank funds to meet these goals, and efficiently leverage private resources to expand the reach of these climate efforts," the letter said.
The lawmakers urged Banga to leverage the new Country Climate and Development Reports to guide lending decisions and prioritise mitigation and adaptation actions while integrating climate change, resilience and development priorities. "We also encourage the bank to build upon the range of successful climate projects over recent years like the expansion of the Indian solar industry, the development of climate-smart agriculture in Uruguay and the efforts to expand electrification in parts of Kenya," they said.
With increased climate funding, the bank can expand this work, provide leadership globally and look to examples in other multilateral institutions, like the IMF's Resilience and Sustainability Trust, to supercharge these efforts, they said. Historically, the wealthiest nations bear the responsibility for most atmospheric carbon emissions and it makes no sense to overburden poor and climate-vulnerable nations with unpayable debts as part of the solution, the
. Read more on livemint.com
