THE STATE OF GLOBAL AIR QUALITY FUNDING 2023

The report finds that dedicated outdoor air quality funding is critically low, representing less than 1% of total international development commitments. While there is a significant pool of funding with air quality co-benefits, the report argues for more explicit intentionality in project design. It highlights a geographic concentration of funds in Asia and a lack of investment in Africa. The document also notes a positive trend where funding for air quality projects exceeded fossil fuel-prolonging projects for the first time in 2021.

• International development funding explicitly targeting outdoor air quality is extremely low, averaging less than 1% of total commitments. Between 2015 and 2021, only $17.3 billion was committed to these projects, which translates to an average of $2.5 billion per year.
• Funding for outdoor air quality is highly concentrated in Asia, with 86% of total funds ($12 billion) between 2017 and 2021 going to just five countries: China (37%), Philippines (20%), Bangladesh (17%), Mongolia (6%), and Pakistan (6%).
• African countries are significantly underfunded despite high pollution levels, receiving only 5% (or $0.76 billion) of all outdoor air quality funding between 2017 and 2021.
• There is a substantial gap in funding for air quality monitoring and modelling, which received only $0.08 billion, or 0.5% of the total committed between 2017 and 2021.
• A larger volume of funding delivers air quality improvements as a co-benefit rather than a primary objective. Between 2015 and 2021, $101 billion was committed to projects with outdoor air quality co-benefits, which is nearly six times the amount of dedicated funding.
• There is a strong link between air quality and climate funding, with 67% of outdoor air quality funding ($11.6 billion) between 2015 and 2021 directed toward projects that simultaneously addressed climate change, primarily in the transport sector.
• Funding for fossil fuel-prolonging projects has declined since 2019. In 2021, for the first time, international development funding for outdoor air quality projects ($2.3 billion) exceeded funding for fossil fuel-prolonging projects ($1.5 billion).
• The majority of outdoor air quality funding (92% or $12.9 billion) is provided via loans, with only 8% coming from grants. Only about a third of these loans are low-cost or concessional.
• Many innovative financial instruments—such as green sukuks, sustainability-linked bonds, and securitization—remain largely untapped for dedicated air quality projects, despite their potential to mobilize private capital.

APA

Strinati, C., Stout, S., Connolly, J., Faucheux, L., & Tsitati, G. (2023). THE STATE OF GLOBAL AIR QUALITY FUNDING 2023. Climate Policy Initiative. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/The-State-of-Global-Air-Quality-Funding-2023.pdf

Chicago

Strinati, Costanza, Sean Stout, Jake Connolly, Léa Faucheux, and George Tsitati. THE STATE OF GLOBAL AIR QUALITY FUNDING 2023. Climate Policy Initiative, 2023. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/The-State-of-Global-Air-Quality-Funding-2023.pdf.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{strinati2023state, author = {Strinati, Costanza and Stout, Sean and Connolly, Jake and Faucheux, Léa and Tsitati, George}, title = {{THE STATE OF GLOBAL AIR QUALITY FUNDING 2023}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2023}, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/The-State-of-Global-Air-Quality-Funding-2023.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }