First KfW Green Climate Fund project approved

• USD 80 million for flood protection in Bangladesh to benefit 85,000 people
• First step towards increasing industrialised countries' contribution to international climate protection financing
• KfW accredited as first GCF implementing organisation

The Green Climate Fund (GCF), the world's largest climate fund, today approved the first project proposed by KfW, a climate change adaptation project in Bangladesh (Climate Resilient Infrastructure Mainstreaming, CRIM). The project will see the building of 45 new cyclone protection shelters along the country's coast in three of its poorest districts, while 20 other shelters are to be "climate-proofed" and 80 km of storm-proof access roads constructed. The project will not only protect roughly 85,000 inhabitants from the catastrophic effects of storms and flooding, it will also create more than 1,700 full-time jobs and primary school facilities for over 18,000 children, as well as reducing local transport costs by an estimated 20 percent.

"The launch of this project marks an important milestone, as it is a credible step towards increasing the industrialised countries' contribution to climate financing. Their contribution is a significant prerequisite for the success of the Climate Change Conference in Paris to be held this December", said Dr Norbert Kloppenburg, Member of the Executive Board of KfW Group.

Formally established at the 2010 Climate Change Conference in Cancun, the Green Climate Fund is seen as the most important component of international climate protection financing. It is designed to implement a substantial proportion of international climate financing for adaptation and greenhouse gas mitigation measures in developing countries. The fund awards grants and loans to accredited implementing organisations, which in turn make these available to those countries affected by climate change. In early 2015 KfW became one of the GCF's first accredited implementing organisations.

The GCF now has funds of USD 10.2 billion available for the first planning rounds. "KfW will also be supporting the planned cooperation between the GCF and the private sector by using innovative funding methods. This will make a significant contribution to implementing the decisions made by the international climate conferences", said Dr Kloppenburg.

The total volume of the project approved for Bangladesh is USD 80 million. The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is providing a grant of USD 40 million for this purpose. Via KfW, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is also co-financing the project to the tune of USD 15 million (about EUR 13.6 million), while the Bangladeshi government is providing USD 25 million of co-financing.