More World Bank ‘climate loans’ get the go ahead: the next few months of campaigning ahead of the Durban climate talks will be crucial

Kirsty Wright, climate justice campaigner.

This June, we launched our Climate Loan Sharks report to coincide with a meeting of one of the World Bank’s climate funds, the Pilot Programme for Climate Resilience (PPCR). The fund was set up by rich donor countries such as the UK to provide finance to developing countries to help them adapt to the impacts of climate change. However the fund actually locks these countries into deeper debt by giving out finance as loans, rather than grants, in the name of tackling the impacts of climate change these countries did nothing to cause.

Meeting outcomes

The meeting of the PPCR, which took place in South Africa, was set to decide new climate loans for Cambodia, Mozambique, Nepal, St Lucia and Zambia. At the meeting the proposals for all five countries were approved; meaning that in total over $400m of new debt will be created. These countries are all already debt burdened, with two having already qualified for partial debt cancellation, highlighting the absurdity of building up this debt once again. In total, for the 11 countries that have had funding approved by the PPCR so far, over $1 billion of the funds will be in the form of loans. 

Ahead of the meeting, civil society groups wrote to UK ministers Chris Huhne and Andrew Mitchell calling on them to stop giving climate loans via the World Bank. The idea of giving loans in this way was developed by the UK and is now being copied by other countries such as Spain. 

During the meeting, serious concerns were raised about these funds by country representatives at the meeting. Germany listed a string of issues, including concerns about community participation in the planning and implementation, proper consideration of gender in practice, learning and local community buy-in: all long running problems through the World Bank’s history. Yet, all the projects were given the go ahead regardless.

Even the UK government admitted that it has concerns about the World Bank’s climate funds, even whilst remaining one of the countries giving the most financial and political support to these funds.

Ahead of the next UN climate talks in Durban, it is critical to express strong and united opposition to the idea of loans being used for climate finance in this way. We will stand in solidarity with people from countries receiving loans in calling for funds to be channelled through the more democratic UN Adaptation Fund. The UK government has yet to give a single penny to this fund, in fact WDM supporters have given more funds to it than the UK government.

Debt week: No new chains of Debt. 

To coincide with the global debt week on 8 – 16 October, we are planning a new action to build pressure against the UK’s use of climate loans. At the next UN talks in Durban, details of a new ‘Green Climate Fund’ for long term climate finance are expected to be agreed. Ahead of the talks it is critical that we demonstrate strong opposition to loans for climate adaptation. 

The ‘No new chains of debt’ action is a cross between a stall, a media stunt and a lobby meeting. The plan is to ask people to write their messages against the UK’s support for World Bank climate loans on strips of paper, which will then be used to make paper chains that can be handed in to your local MP. The idea is to pass on the message that we don’t want new chains of debt created because of the climate chaos rich countries like the UK are responsible for causing. This will also be a great chance for a short lobby meeting to raise this issue. Even if you are not able to hold a stall, you could simply ask friends and family to write a message. This action can also happen outside of debt week. 

Packs will contain everything you need to run the action, as well as an MP briefing, Q&A on climate loans, a sheet explaining the action. It would also be good to do this alongside action cards, so the message can go directly to climate change minister Chris Huhne as well as to your MP. 

If you want to take part we can send you a pack. Please email climatedebt@wdm.org.uk by the second week of September and you will receive it in time. 

Week of action: World Bank out of Climate Finance, 13-20 November

Another date for your diary is the World Bank out of Climate Finance day of action, just ahead of the next UN climate talks in Durban. This is being run globally, together with our allies around the world. We will keep you updated as more details become more available. This will be a key action just ahead of the next climate talks in Durban.