KfW Development Bank in 2021

* Differences in the totals due to rounding

* Total commitments (EUR in billions)

* Differences in the totals are due to rounding

Promotion was provided to a total of 212 projects in 71 countries. The priority areas are:

• Healthcare and fighting the pandemic
• Food security
• Social security and protecting jobs
• Refugee and crisis regions
• Liquidity for enterprises and governments

* Differences in the totals are due to rounding; data as of 31 December 2021

KfW has launched a new Latin American fund for environmentally and climate-friendly investments: LAGreen (Latin American Green Bond Fund), the first of its kind in Latin America. It combines public and private funds, investing them in selected green bonds to finance climate-friendly projects and close Latin America’s considerable funding gap in climate investments, amounting to more than USD 100 billion per year. The aim of the new fund is to mobilise private capital for climate-friendly investments and thereby contribute to achieving the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Find out more

The African Risk Capacity (ARC) Group supports African countries in adapting to climate change by offering insurance in combination with comprehensive technical support for disaster preparation and risk management. Insurance payouts are made when a previously agreed parametric trigger event occurs, such as the lack of precipitation for a certain period of time.

The Natural Disaster Fund (NDF) transfers weather risks that cause financial hardship for poor and vulnerable people in developing countries to international insurance and capital markets.

KfW created the Clean Energy and Energy Inclusion for Africa (CEI Africa) foundation to fund the purchase and installation of privately-operated solar systems to run independently of the public grid (mini-grids) in order to supply sub-Saharan Africa with climate-friendly energy. The funds are earmarked for creating renewable energy systems that reduce carbon emissions by 55,000 tonnes per year and give more than 350,000 people access to clean electricity.

KfW has also committed around EUR 23.5 million to the construction of mini-grids in Mozambique. The Green People’s Energy for Africa Mozambique foundation will provide at least 7,000 businesses and households in remote rural areas with electricity – some for the first time.

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The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), with other public and private providers and in close cooperation with nature conservation non-governmental organisations (NGOs), has created an innovative instrument for long-term financing of conservation areas in developing countries and emerging economies, the Legacy Landscapes Fund (LLF). KfW played a major role in initiating the fund. The LLF will promote some of the most important biodiversity hotspots in the world in order to halt the decline in species and thereby make a key contribution to tackling a serious global crisis. It will only be active in developing countries, where biodiversity is often particularly rich, whereas the budgets for preserving it in many cases are particularly small. As such, the LLF is a new and innovative financing instrument for nature conservation. Find out more

• KfW concluded a financing agreement with the Tanzanian Ministry of Finance of EUR 20 million for a rescue package to conserve biodiversity in Tanzania. The conservation measures are aimed at the Serengeti and Nyerere National Parks, and the Selous Game Reserve. The funds are being used to cover the costs of maintaining park infrastructure.
• As part of the new focus on sustainable and resource-efficient tourism, a waste disposal concept for the Serengeti, electricity supply systems from renewable energy sources and measures to conserve water are being financed.
• Implementation of the regional tiger conservation project in selected Asian tiger-range countries is underway. The project comprises measures to conserve tiger habitats and support the local population. It also includes implementing campaigns to vaccinate livestock against the spread of diseases transmitted by wild animals.
• The Transfrontier Conservation Area (TFCA) facility is a new financing instrument for biodiversity conservation in southern Africa. The project has three objectives: species protection, improved living conditions for the local population and improved management of conservation areas. A flexible, demand-driven and performance-based funding mechanism is being established to achieve these goals, which enables investment in promotional measures which are thematically and geographically complementary to the project. The project is aimed at establishing a sound basis for revenue generated by the conservation areas.

KfW has provided EUR 20 million to promote the conservation and sustainable use of mangrove forests in Indonesia. A portion is earmarked for supporting the Indonesian Ministry of Environment and Forestry in planning and establishing a World Mangrove Center (WMC), which is planned as a cooperation centre for mangrove research and is set to open in early 2022. Find out more

KfW set up the Blue Action Fund (BAF) in 2016 to conserve marine biodiversity for future generations. The fund supports marine protection projects, such as those along the coasts of Ecuador, Mozambique, Indonesia and Cambodia. Find out more

Important particularly in a pandemic, the Unlocking Talent programme supports Malawian primary school pupils in maths as well as reading and writing in their native language Chichewa via app-based courses. The result is consistently good progress in learning and a reduction in the gender achievement gap. Find out more

Peru suffers from water scarcity in many areas of the country. Fifty percent of Peruvians live in the driest area of the country, on the Pacific coast, and consume 90% of the country’s drinking water. In order to ensure an adequate and sustainable supply of water for the people in this area, the technical and commercial cadastres of water supply companies in two conurbations are being digitalised and merged into a single geographical information system (GIS). This not only enables utility network water losses to be recorded, it also helps to establish a sound financial basis for the utility companies for the long term. Find out more(PDF, 132 KB, non-accessible)

The Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade – Financial Cooperation (FLEGT-FC) project offers the Laotian government financial support in order to consistently and sustainably implement forestry sector reforms. This is necessary as illegal logging is increasingly becoming a problem for the rural population.

In the Laotian forest areas, some of which are inaccessible, satellite remote sensing systems collect relevant data on a daily basis and analyse any changes in the forest canopy, enabling even the felling of a single tree to be tracked. Laotian forestry authority staff are trained to evaluate the satellite images and GIS data, identify suspected cases of illegal use and take law enforcement action on site. Timber and wood products that have been FLEGT certified may be legally exported to the EU in future.

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The experience gained by European start-ups already active in Africa shows that a successful launch requires market knowledge, local networks and access to local experts. This is where Chapter54 steps in. This is a promotional programme implemented by tech investment company Partech for European start-ups that aim to expand into African markets. KfW Development Bank is supporting Chapter54 with a EUR 5 million investment on behalf of the BMZ. The aim is to promote growth and create jobs. Find out more

Projects in fragile countries can increasingly also be monitored from Germany in an effort to continue the work while keeping operational risks as low as possible. This has been possible since 2020 with the help of KfW’s RMMV lab. The lab is equipped with an array of monitors and state-of-the-art hardware and software enabling further development of “Remote Management, Monitoring and Verification”. Demand for remote solutions in development cooperation has been on the rise, especially given the COVID-19 pandemic. Find out more

A specialised department works on digitalisation matters involving many employees from across the company. These include digital scouts, who seek and identify digital potential, and digital promoters, who work to make data streams usable for planning and managing development projects. The common objective is to make processes more efficient for all those involved in the projects.