Countries where the EBRD works have taken important steps to reduce environmental degradation, with noticeable results including improved air quality, the phase-out of ozone-depleting substances, increased use of renewable energy sources and better water management. Yet the EBRD region is still lagging behind; its average carbon intensity is almost 5 times higher than the EU-28 average, and the level of energy intensity is 4 times higher. Furthermore, many of the countries in the region are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
In 2015 the Bank launched the Green Economy Transition (GET) approach to put investments that bring environmental benefits at the heart of the EBRD mandate. The GET approach builds on a decade of successful climate and resource efficiency investments by the Bank and seeks to increase the volume of green financing from an average of 24 per per cent of EBRD annual business investment over the previous 10 years to 40 percent by 2020. It also targets a broader range of environmental projects, while deepening the policy dialogue and partnerships needed todrive the growth of the green economy.
This brochure describes the GET model in theory and practice, demonstrates how green financing is making a difference (in Kazakhstan, FYR Macedonia, Tunisia, Turkey and Tajikistan), and highlights how the EBRD’s partnership with donors is promoting the green economy.
