GETTING TO $100 BILLION: CLIMATE FINANCE SCENARIOS AND PROJECTIONS TO 2020

The report examines the feasibility of reaching the $100 billion annual climate finance goal by 2020 through four scenarios of varying inclusivity. It finds that relying solely on developed country climate finance is insufficient, while a combination of public flows—including multilateral development bank (MDB) finance and climate-related official development assistance (ODA)—alongside leveraged private sector investment makes the target achievable even under low-growth projections. The analysis highlights a persistent imbalance, with mitigation finance projected to significantly outweigh adaptation finance across all scenarios.

• Scenario 1, which relies exclusively on developed country climate finance, will fail to reach the $100 billion target by 2020 unless it achieves an annual growth rate of 25 percent; under the high-growth projection, it only reaches $55 billion.
• Scenario 2, adding private sector finance leveraged by developed country climate finance, only meets the $100 billion target under a combination of high growth and high leverage, reaching $184 billion in 2020.
• Scenario 3, combining developed country climate finance, adjusted MDB climate finance, and leveraged private sector investment from both, can meet the $100 billion goal under medium-growth and medium-leverage projections, totaling $137 billion.
• Scenario 4, the most expansive set including developed country finance, MDB finance, private sector leverage, and adjusted climate-related ODA, can reach the $100 billion target even with low growth and low leverage, totaling $109 billion.
• Across all analyzed scenarios, there is a projected imbalance where mitigation finance is significantly higher than adaptation finance, reflecting ongoing concerns regarding the lack of adaptation funding.
• The analysis suggests that reaching the $100 billion goal likely requires a 'middle ground' approach: combining multiple sources—leveraged private sector investment, MDB climate finance, and climate-related ODA—with a steady increase in public flows.
• Developed country climate finance could be further increased through innovative sources, such as redirecting fossil fuel subsidies, carbon market revenues, financial transaction taxes, export credits, and debt relief.

APA

WESTPHAL, M. I., CANFIN, P., BALLESTEROS, A., & MORGAN, J. (2015). GETTING TO $100 BILLION: CLIMATE FINANCE SCENARIOS AND PROJECTIONS TO 2020. World Resources Institute. https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/getting-to-100-billion-final.pdf

Chicago

WESTPHAL, MICHAEL I., PASCAL CANFIN, ATHENA BALLESTEROS, and JENNIFER MORGAN. GETTING TO $100 BILLION: CLIMATE FINANCE SCENARIOS AND PROJECTIONS TO 2020. World Resources Institute, 2015. https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/getting-to-100-billion-final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=WESTPHAL |first1=MICHAEL I. |last2=CANFIN |first2=PASCAL |last3=BALLESTEROS |first3=ATHENA |last4=MORGAN |first4=JENNIFER |title=GETTING TO $100 BILLION: CLIMATE FINANCE SCENARIOS AND PROJECTIONS TO 2020 |publisher=World Resources Institute |date=May 2015 |url=https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/getting-to-100-billion-final.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{westphal2015getting, author = {WESTPHAL, MICHAEL I. and CANFIN, PASCAL and BALLESTEROS, ATHENA and MORGAN, JENNIFER}, title = {{GETTING TO \$100 BILLION: CLIMATE FINANCE SCENARIOS AND PROJECTIONS TO 2020}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2015}, month = may, url = {https://wriorg.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/getting-to-100-billion-final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }