Multilateral Development Bank Efforts to Mainstream Climate Adaptation

This report evaluates the progress of four Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs)—the African Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the World Bank—in mainstreaming climate adaptation finance. Based on case studies from Kenya, Nepal, and Peru, the document examines how these institutions scale up funding, incorporate climate risk screening, and align their portfolios with national priorities such as National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

• The African Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, and World Bank have increased global adaptation finance flows over the last ten years. However, at the country level in Kenya, Nepal, and Peru, while financing is generally increasing, clear trends are difficult to identify.
• Climate risk screening and vulnerability assessments have become standard for most MDBs, leading to more projects being assessed during design and implementation. This upfront funding for risk assessment, especially for large infrastructure, likely increases the proportion of project budgets tagged as having adaptation co-benefits.
• MDBs are starting to use national documents, specifically National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and nationally determined contributions (NDCs), to inform their project identification and programming at the country level.
• Between 2013 and 2020, the World Bank provided USD 1,197.8 million in adaptation-related financing to Nepal, which was significantly higher than the USD 453.6 million provided for projects with mitigation co-benefits.
• Challenges to scaling up adaptation finance include a lack of transparency regarding project-level finance allocations and a need for finance ministries to better understand the economic benefits of adaptation and integrate it into national budgets and development strategies.

APA

Donaldson,, D. M. (2023). Multilateral Development Bank Efforts to Mainstream Climate Adaptation. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/multilateral-development-bank-efforts-mainstream-climate-adaptation

Chicago

Donaldson,, Deborah Murphy,Julia. Multilateral Development Bank Efforts to Mainstream Climate Adaptation. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2023. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/multilateral-development-bank-efforts-mainstream-climate-adaptation.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Donaldson, |first1=Deborah Murphy,Julia |title=Multilateral Development Bank Efforts to Mainstream Climate Adaptation |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=21 March 2023 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/multilateral-development-bank-efforts-mainstream-climate-adaptation |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{donaldson2023multilateral, author = {Donaldson,, Deborah Murphy,Julia}, title = {{Multilateral Development Bank Efforts to Mainstream Climate Adaptation}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2023}, month = mar, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/multilateral-development-bank-efforts-mainstream-climate-adaptation}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }