Driving clean energy investments
In the early 1990s, UN Environment began working with the finance community to increase its engagement in the clean energy sector. UN Environment's programmes combine technical assistance and targeted financial support such as project development funding. UN Environment brings together first-mover financiers and renewable energy project developers to share some of the additional costs related to early stage investments and mitigate risks. In its first phase, the Seed Capital Assistance Facility (SCAF) has mobilized $US 18 million of seed investment from commercial private equity funds for 22 projects and helped leverage $US 329 million for the first three fully developed and financed projects. SCAF will continue to offer support to clean energy focused investment fund managers willing to include a seed investment window within their overall investment strategy.
UN Environment also has long-standing experience of mobilizing commercial banks, through innovative financial schemes, to facilitate household’s access to small scale renewable technologies and efficient appliances. Moreover, UN Environment supports governments in accessing international climate finance to achieve their national low-carbon development ambitions UN Environment/ UNDP/ WRI Green Climate Fund Readiness Programme is helping 9 countries access the Green Climate Fund (GCF). One of the key activities of the programme is to help develop pipelines of national projects in line with countries’ climate change strategies, plans and policies while involving the private sector for GCF submission. UN Environment is also supporting developing countries’ access to the GCF through the Readiness Programme as well as through the International Implementing Entity.
For more information on visit UN Environment's energy finance
Facilitating scale-up of private climate financing
Facilitating scale-up of private climate financing UNEP Finance Initiative (FI) is a global partnership between UN Environment and the financial sector. More than 200 institutions, including banks, insurers and fund managers, work with UN Environment to understand the impacts of environmental and social considerations on financial performance. Through its Climate Change Advisory Group, UNEP FI aims to understand the roles, potential and needs of the finance sector in addressing climate change, and to advance the integration of climate change factors – both risks and opportunities – into financial decision-making. UNEP FI works on three key areas related to climate change:
- Facilitating finance sector advocacy for effective climate policies.
- Promoting finance sector leadership and best practice on climate change, for instance via the Portfolio Decarbonization Coalition, launched at the UN Secretary General’s 2014 summit on climate change.
- Demystifying private finance in the international climate process.
For more information visit UNEP FI work on climate change
