Canada is boosting its support for climate action, by joining the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)’s High-Impact Partnership for Climate Action (HIPCA).
HIPCA, launched at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021, is the EBRD’s first multi-donor partnership tackling climate change and environmental degradation. It builds on the Bank’s unique business model, which combines financing with policy engagement and technical assistance, and acts as a conduit to unlock the right market conditions, mobilise co-financing and draw in the private sector.
Its primary objectives are to unleash investments and solutions that reduce or prevent greenhouse gas emissions, strengthen resilience and reduce vulnerability to climate change, and protect the environment.
Canada joins Austria, Finland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain, the TaiwanICDF and the United Kingdom who also contribute to the partnership. Since its launch, HIPCA has supported over 35 projects across multiple sectors, such as energy, financial institutions and transport.
EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso said: “We are very grateful for this important contribution, and we welcome Canada to our High-Impact Partnership on Climate Action. The EBRD has set itself the ambitious target of achieving a green finance ratio of more than 50 per cent of our annual investment by 2025 and is fully aligning its activities with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Multi-donor partnerships, such as this one, play a critical role in achieving these targets and accelerating the green agenda.”
EBRD’s Director for Canada, Morocco, Tunisia and Jordan Sarah Fountain Smith said: “Canada’s international climate finance commitment over the period 2021-2026 builds on our long-time support for climate action in developing countries. A significant portion of this financing is implemented by multilateral development banks, such as the EBRD, which is pivotal to delivering on the collective US$ 100 billion climate finance commitment pledged by advanced economies. Through this contribution to the HIPCA, Canada is pleased to partner with the EBRD to help ensure our collective green future, and provide effective, accessible funding to those who need it most.”
Canada’s 2021-2026 commitment to climate finance builds on its long-time support for climate action in developing countries.