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Global Debt Relief Could Unlock $400 Billion in Climate Finance

  • Report names 58 countries that would benefit the most
  • Ways to help poor nations will dominate COP27 talks this year
The International Institute for Environment and Development identified 58 countries in, or at high risk of, debt distress that could benefit from climate-linked initiatives.

The International Institute for Environment and Development identified 58 countries in, or at high risk of, debt distress that could benefit from climate-linked initiatives.

Photographer: Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images

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Relieving poor countries of their debt burdens and creating innovative financial instruments could help free up more than $400 billion to help people suffering the most from warming temperatures, according to a new study.

Immediate debt relief would unlock about $105 billion that could be directed toward mitigating climate change and preparing developing nations for its effects, the London-based International Institute for Environment and Development said. And more than three times that amount could be raised by linking new debt to climate goals, such as through sustainability linked bonds.