Mobilizing International Climate Finance and Private Investments for Low-Carbon Development in Saint Lucia

The proposal seeks USD 762,359 over 18 months to address Saint Lucia's fiscal vulnerability and decreasing Official Development Assistance (ODA). It focuses on five workstreams: accessing the green bond market, developing a debt-for-climate swap roadmap, greening the local financial sector, increasing capacity for Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), and developing a concept note for a 'Green Affordable Housing' project. The project is implemented by the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) in collaboration with the Government of Saint Lucia.

• Saint Lucia faces significant fiscal constraints, with public debt at 71 percent of GDP as of December 2019, and an expected increase to 77 percent by 2024. This limits the government's ability to fund the US$ 241 million required for priority mitigation actions identified in its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) between 2017 and 2030.
• The country is experiencing a decline in international aid, with net Official Development Assistance (ODA) decreasing by 39% between 2015 and 2018, undermining the long-term sustainability of relying on grants and concessionary loans.
• Private sector investment is hindered by a lack of long-term affordable climate finance and limited government capacity to structure Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs). The government aims for the private sector to contribute approximately US$ 218 million in mitigation investments by 2030.
• Local financial institutions (LFIs) lack the capacity to assess the bankability of climate mitigation projects. The proposal aims to establish a Sustainable Banking Roundtable for 11 LFIs to integrate environmental and social (E&S) standards and develop green credit instruments.
• The proposal includes the development of a Green Bond Framework aligned with ICMA's Green Bond Principles to diversify debt holders and attract socially responsible investors, targeting sectors such as renewable energy, clean transport, and resilient infrastructure.
• A debt-for-climate swap strategy is proposed to alleviate fiscal vulnerability. Multilateral banks, specifically the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the World Bank, are identified as the most viable counterparts because they hold a significant share of Saint Lucia's external debt.
• The project will develop a web-based PPP Screening Toolkit to provide step-by-step guidance for public officials to assess project suitability based on criteria such as risk transfer, financial viability, and market appetite.
• A flagship 'Green Affordable Housing' project is being developed to address a shortfall of 11,000 to 14,000 homes. The project aims to provide resilient housing for 3,000 citizens, with an estimated total cost of USD 60 million and a GCF funding request of USD 16,655,641.

APA

Green Climate Fund (2021). Mobilizing International Climate Finance and Private Investments for Low-Carbon Development in Saint Lucia. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/building-institutional-capacity-government-saint-lucia-saint-lucia-gggi.pdf

Chicago

Green Climate Fund. Mobilizing International Climate Finance and Private Investments for Low-Carbon Development in Saint Lucia. 2021. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/building-institutional-capacity-government-saint-lucia-saint-lucia-gggi.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Green Climate Fund |title=Mobilizing International Climate Finance and Private Investments for Low-Carbon Development in Saint Lucia |date=19 October 2021 |url=https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/building-institutional-capacity-government-saint-lucia-saint-lucia-gggi.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{greenclimatefund2021mobilizing, author = {{Green Climate Fund}}, title = {{Mobilizing International Climate Finance and Private Investments for Low-Carbon Development in Saint Lucia}}, institution = {Green Climate Fund}, year = {2021}, month = oct, url = {https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/building-institutional-capacity-government-saint-lucia-saint-lucia-gggi.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }