The Climate Investment Funds (CIFs) have been in existence since 2008 and are managed by the World Bank. Originally, the funds were only intended to run until 2012, until a financing architecture had been established under the international climate negotiations. However, this so-called ‘sunset clause’ was permanently suspended in 2019.
Objectives and modalities
The aim of the CIFs is to mobilise capital from various stakeholders to finance climate mitigation and adaptation in developing and emerging economies. The funds provide concessional loans. The CIFs’ implementing partners are the regional development banks (AfDB, ADB, EBRD, IDB) and the World Bank.
The World Bank operates two funds under the CIF, each with a different focus:
- The Clean Technology Fund (CTF) finances large-scale projects by private and public sector actors in low- and middle-income countries. The aim of the projects is to pilot and scale up low-emission technologies through a mix of grants, loans and equity investments. Key thematic areas include the transition away from coal, the promotion of clean technologies and the decarbonisation of industry.
- The Strategic Climate Fund (SCF) comprises several funding windows through which topic-specific projects are supported. These include, amongst others, the Pilot Programme for Climate Resilience (PPCR), the Forest Investment Programme (FIP), the Scaling-up Renewable Energy in Low-Income Countries Programme and the Nature, People and Climate Programme.
Since 2019, there has also been a Technical Assistance Facility, which supports governments in developing and improving legislation and other regulatory frameworks.
Key developments
The CIFs are among the largest climate funds. Through the CIF, the World Bank is funding 471 projects and 11 programmes in 82 countries. To this end, the CIF has allocated US$9.4 billion and expects co-financing of US$98.5 trillion to be provided by governments, multilateral development banks and the private sector. The CTF has committed US$7.9 billion, with a focus on Asia (31 per cent) and Europe and Central Asia (20 per cent), whilst Sub-Saharan Africa (15 per cent), Latin America and the Caribbean (15 per cent) and the MENA region (14 per cent) receive significantly less funding. The SCF has pledged US$2.7 billion. Of this, 35 per cent goes to sub-Saharan Africa, 20 per cent to Asia and 29 per cent to Latin America and the Caribbean, whilst only 5 per cent goes to Europe and Central Asia and 1 per cent to the MENA region.
A current trend being viewed with great concern by civil society is the pressure on the World Bank to scale back its commitment to climate change. This pressure comes primarily from the US government, as the largest contributor. The World Bank’s Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP), which expired on 30 June 2026, was extended by one year . However, in return, the World Bank has dropped its target of investing 45 per cent of its funding in climate-related projects,
To date, CIFs have published various evaluations of funded projects, programmes and operational modalities on their website. These include, amongst others, the evaluation of the Technical Assistance Facility (TAF) (2026), the PPCR (2025) and stakeholder engagement (2020). Further evaluation reports and documented lessons learnt can be found on a separate page. A planned evaluation of the CCAP has been announced.
Funding volume and Germany’s contribution
Germany supports the CIFs through payments to the CTF and various programmes under the SCF. Germany is the third-largest donor after the USA and the UK, and by the end of 2025, Germany will have contributed a total of 1.3 trillion US dollars to the CIFs. Germany also holds a seat on the Trust Fund Committee of the CTF and SCF and is thus involved in funding decisions. (As at October 2026)
Further information on the CIFs:
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