The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) approved USD226.7 million (mn) for climate action initiatives in 2025, marking the strongest annual climate investment performance in the Bank’s history. The record-breaking total was approximately 50% of the Bank’s total project approvals for the year and represented an increase of more than 100% compared to the USD101.5 mn committed in 2024.
The surge was driven by a USD125 mn environmental Policy-Based Loan (PBL) disbursed to Guyana, and by similar financing packages totalling USD30 mn each to Dominica and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The PBLs will support reforms in biodiversity conservation, climate action, and water resource management, among other areas. The financing will also build the technical and financial capacity of the member countries to withstand and recover from climate shocks.
Explaining the Bank’s focus, Ms. Valerie Isaac, CDB’s Division Chief, Environmental Sustainability said, “The climate crisis is not simply a challenge. It is an existential threat to our development and wellbeing, particularly the most vulnerable people.”
Speaking at the Bank’s Annual News Conference, held recently in Bridgetown, Barbados, Ms. Isaac explained that, “Resilience is neither an option nor a luxury. It is a fundamental requirement for regional growth and stability.”
Beyond its own approvals, in 2025, CDB also secured USD27 mn in grant and loan financing from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for the Integrated Utility Services Programme, which has a total investment volume of over USD68 mn and will scale up energy efficiency and distributed renewable energy, including rooftop solar, across Barbados, Belize, and Jamaica. Additionally, a further USD27 mn in GCF grant resources will fund the Caribbean Hydrometeorological and Multi-Hazard Early Warning Services Project, which will upgrade critical forecasting systems in Belize and Trinidad and Tobago to protect the lives and livelihoods of 1.8 million people.
The operationalisation of the CDB’s Climate Change Project Preparation Fund marked another major milestone in the Bank’s climate intervention efforts in 2025. Specifically designed to remove pipeline bottlenecks that impede the flow of climate capital, the fund will help increase financing for climate action projects in CDB’s Borrowing Member Countries.
The Environmental Sustainability Division Chief also signalled that CDB will accelerate its climate momentum in 2026. Key priorities include finalising a USD200 mn regional blue economy programme to protect ocean resources while generating new jobs in the marine sector. The Bank will also launch a flagship regional platform designed to generate actionable investment portfolios from national energy and transport priorities. The institution will also drive initiatives to support water sector resilience and advance locally led adaptation to climate change.
“The decisions and actions we take today will dictate the Caribbean’s development trajectory for the next half-century,” Ms. Isaac explained. “We will continue to innovate and transform, strengthen our own capacity and that of our borrowing member countries, accelerate the development of investment-ready pipelines, mobilise climate and disaster finance at scale, deepen strategic partnerships, and advance coordinated regional climate action.”
CDB held its Annual News Conference on March 3, 2026, at the Frank Collymore Hall in Bridgetown, Barbados. The event included presentations by some of the Bank’s top officials, including the President, Mr. Daniel M. Best; the Director of Projects, Mr. O’Reilly Lewis; and the Acting Deputy Director of Economics, Mr. Jason Cotton.
