The Government of Barbados recently announced a coalition of multilateral banks and organizations to develop resilient infrastructure and to drive new social and nature capital investments, building on its Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The integrated package of innovative initiatives aims to accelerate Barbados’ transition to net zero, boost resilience, enfranchise workers, and draw in private sector investment while prudently managing public debt levels.

About 10 million dollars from the fiscal space created by the RSF will be used by the Government of Barbados as capital for a new Blue Green Bank, that will support five times that lending amount. Once established, the Blue Green Bank will help finance over 250 million dollars of green investments in affordable homes, hurricane-resilient roofs, the electrification of public and private transport, and other Paris-aligned investments.

Barbados’ financing partners include the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), World Bank Group (WBG), Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), European Investment Bank (EIB), and Green Climate Fund (GCF). Low-cost and long-term financing instruments from the EIB, CAF, IDB, GCF and RSF will support Barbados Government investment in resilient water and waste treatment infrastructure, flood and coastal protection and support its efforts to transform state owned enterprises and enfranchise workers.