Translating climate strategies into action: An analysis of the sustainable, green, and resilient city action plans of the multilateral development banks

Adrian Robert Bazbauers

Development Policy Review, 2022, vol. 40, issue 2

Abstract: Motivation Climate change is exposing significant urban vulnerabilities. The multilateral development banks (MDBs) have responded by devising a suite of sustainable, green, and resilient (SGR) city advisory services and lending products to prepare cities for future climate change impacts. Purpose The article comparatively analyses SGR city action plans and companion projects drafted by the MDBs. It thus evaluates the translation of analytical work into investments, reviewing what the MDBs are prioritizing and what this means for development and climate change. Methods and approach The article qualitatively analyses 124 SGR city action plans and 65 companion lending operations approved by four MDBs between 2014 and 2021, evaluating action plan documents and project appraisal, implementation, and results reports. Findings The article finds that while the SGR city action plans propose comprehensive recommendations, the companion projects narrowly focus on infrastructural upgrades that are uncertain to adequately prepare cities for future climate change impacts. Policy implications Multilateral interventions targeting climate change expanded considerably during the 2010s. The MDBs, however, continue to prioritize project‐based infrastructural investments financing climate mitigation and resilience actions over more substantive climate adaptation initiatives. This article thus shows that SGR city action plans hold great potential to enact robust and inclusive climate responses but have so far been stymied by the conservatism of project‐based investment lending.

Date: 2022
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