PANAJI
Goa will set up a first-of-its-kind climate-focused, multi-sectoral Blended Finance facility, with the help of the World Bank, which will enable the coastal state to access and mobilize concessional finance to implement low-carbon and climate-resilient investments. According to Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Goa will be the first state to receive funds under the facility from the World Bank.
Blended finance, inclusive of public, private, international, and domestic climate finance, has the potential to help Goa and other coastal states in India build greater resilience to the impacts of a rapidly warming climate.
The Blended Finance facility was announced at the 2024 edition of the World Bank’s India Climate and Development Partners’ Meet, being held in Panaji from February 19 to 21.
On the occasion, the Department of Environment, Government of Goa, signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), and Power Finance Corporation (PFC).
Addressing the conference on Tuesday, the Chief Minister said that resilience is a crucial aspect of our vision for a Santulit (balanced) Goa that bridges the economy and ecology and balances our aspirations for the health of our ecosystems and the development and well-being of our people.
The facility will play two key roles: assist projects with existing funding and/or establish commercial viability to access financing, and channelize financing to projects/sectors with no existing funding, below-market-rate returns, or an unattractive risk/return profile.
