Climate finance: in New York, the Netherlands announces €40m for the DFCD fund
On the sidelines of the 78th General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) in New York in the United States of America, the Dutch government is committing €40 million to the Dutch Fund for Climate and Development (DFCD). This mechanism finances the fight against climate change in Africa, Latin America and Asia.
The funding was announced on 20 September 2023, at the Nature and People: From Ambition to Action event, organised on the sidelines of the 78th General Assembly of the United Nations (UN), which is continuing in New York in the United States of America. The Netherlands is providing €40 million to the Dutch Fund for Climate and Development (DFCD).
The funds will be managed in equal parts by the Dutch branch of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF-NL) and the Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV), which are both responsible for the DFCD’s original mechanism. “With the additional resources, we will be able to achieve even greater impact and transformative systemic change needed to increase the climate resilience of people living in vulnerable situations in developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America,” explains Simon O’Connell, SNV’s Director General.
From January 2024, the funding will support businesses in the forestry, agroforestry, sustainable land use, food production, water and sanitation sectors. “The original mechanism strives to reduce risk and develop its portfolio into bankable investment opportunities for the DFCD’s investment facilities, managed by the Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO) and Climate Fund Managers(CFM), as well as for potential third-party investments,” says the DFCD.
To date, the fund has committed €25 million to 30 companies implementing projects that contribute to “more sustainable management of agricultural land and wetlands, increasing the livelihoods of local populations, reducing CO2 emissions and improving access to drinking water”.
