COP26: UK to provide £3bn to fund green technology

The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has announced a funding package at COP26 today of £3 billion over five years, aimed at supporting the rollout of green technology in developing countries.

On the opening day of the Cop26 summit in Glasgow, the Prime Minister emphasised the importance of providing climate finance to the developing world if the gathering is to succeed in its efforts to cut global emissions.

The funding kickstarts the UK’s new Clean Green Initiative (CGI), which will help to scale up public and private investment in quality, sustainable infrastructure globally. Officials said Britain’s new clean green initiative would represent a doubling of UK support compared with the previous five-year period, with funding for projects such as drought-resistant agriculture and sustainable forestry.

Mr Johnson said: “I want to see the UK’s green industrial revolution go global.

“The pace of change on clean technology and infrastructure is incredible, but no country should be left behind in the race to save our planet.

“The climate has often been a silent victim of economic growth and progress – but the opposite should now be true.

“Through the clean green initiative, we can help to build back better and greener from the pandemic and put the world on the path to a more sustainable future.”

Further funding to help transform green projects 

The UK aid-backed Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) will also commit more than £210m in new investment to back transformational green projects in developing countries. The financing will go to schemes including electric vehicle manufacturing in India, green bonds in Vietnam and solar power in Burkina Faso, Pakistan, Nepal and Chad – projects which are expected to mobilise more than £470m in additional private sector finance.

Richard Smith, partner at Sandstone Law: “This announcement is welcome and timely.  Saving the planet from climate change is not just about what the wealthiest nations can achieve within their own economies.  It is a global problem and we now need to see the rich countries, especially those who have made the greatest contribution to global warming over the last 150 years from their industrial carbon outputs, to help the developing countries play their part.”

In addition, a new ‘Room to Run’ guarantee to the African Development Bank (AfDB) is expected to unlock up to £1.45bn worth of new financing for projects across the continent, half of which will help countries adapt to the impacts of climate change.

The UK will also provide an ‘India Green Guarantee’ to the World Bank, to unlock an additional £750m for cleaner infrastructure in sectors such as clean energy, transport and urban development.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: “Developing countries need the right form of investment to help drive clean growth, while dealing with the impacts of climate change.

“The opportunities are clear and this new initiative will enable us to seize them, working closely with our allies to deliver honest and responsible investment and cleaner and more reliable infrastructure in the developing world.”