The role of the Green Climate Fund in scaling up finance for climate action and resilience

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) serves as the largest dedicated climate fund for developing countries, accounting for two-thirds of all multilateral climate finance last year. The GCF focuses on bridging the adaptation finance gap, where only one-fifth of global climate funds are currently allocated. To scale action, the GCF employs a strategy involving the translation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) into investment plans, piloting innovative technologies and business models, utilizing blended finance to crowd-in private investment, and strengthening the capacity of domestic financial institutions. Key initiatives include the Global Sub-national Climate Fund and partnerships to de-risk investments in adaptation technologies and coral reef protection.

• There is a significant imbalance in global climate finance allocation, with adaptation and resilience receiving only one-fifth of mobilised funds, despite adaptation costs expected to reach $500 billion per year by 2050.
• The GCF is the largest dedicated climate fund for developing countries and provided two-thirds of all multilateral climate finance in the previous year; it allocates half of its resources to adaptation, with over two-thirds of that funding targeting the poorest and most vulnerable nations.
• The GCF uses a variety of financial instruments—including grants, concessional debt, guarantees, and equity—to leverage private finance, with $8.4 billion in GCF investments leveraging nearly $22 billion in additional public and private funds.
• Blended finance has historically failed to reach the most vulnerable regions and sectors; between 2012 and 2018, only 5.3% of the USD 205.1 billion in private sector funds mobilised by official development finance went to Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and other Low Income Countries (LICs).
• The GCF implements four primary levers to scale finance: translating NDCs into investment plans (e.g., in Saint Lucia), piloting innovative technology and business models (with two-thirds of projects supporting technology transfer), using blended finance to crowd-in private capital (such as the Global Sub-national Climate Fund), and strengthening domestic financial institutions (such as the Development Bank of Southern Africa).

APA

Green Climate Fund (2021). The role of the Green Climate Fund in scaling up finance for climate action and resilience. https://www.greenclimate.fund/about/news-and-updates/role-green-climate-fund-scaling-finance-climate-action-and-resilience

Chicago

Green Climate Fund. The role of the Green Climate Fund in scaling up finance for climate action and resilience. 2021. https://www.greenclimate.fund/about/news-and-updates/role-green-climate-fund-scaling-finance-climate-action-and-resilience.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Green Climate Fund |title=The role of the Green Climate Fund in scaling up finance for climate action and resilience |date=18 May 2021 |url=https://www.greenclimate.fund/about/news-and-updates/role-green-climate-fund-scaling-finance-climate-action-and-resilience |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{greenclimatefund2021role, author = {{Green Climate Fund}}, title = {{The role of the Green Climate Fund in scaling up finance for climate action and resilience}}, publisher = {Green Climate Fund}, year = {2021}, month = may, url = {https://www.greenclimate.fund/about/news-and-updates/role-green-climate-fund-scaling-finance-climate-action-and-resilience}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }