Collaborative projects with the Brazilian Development Bank and Brazilian financial institutions aim to support Brazil to deliver its G20 Presidency climate finance priorities and ambitious climate goals

UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions and Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) Co-Chair Michael R. Bloomberg and UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance and GFANZ Co-Chair Mark Carney announced two new initiatives from GFANZ to help support Brazil’s ambitious climate transition plans and advance the climate finance priorities of its G20 Presidency. Working with the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) and Brazilian financial institutions, these initiatives will focus on scaling climate transition finance across the Brazilian economy in support of the Government’s ambitious green growth agenda.

“Brazil has a unique combination of resources and capabilities that position the country to help lead the global transition to cleaner energy and lower emissions – and as President of the G20 this year and President of the UN’s COP30 climate conference in 2025, Brazil now has an historic opportunity to show the world how fighting climate change, growing the economy, and spreading prosperity are all interconnected,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, UN Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions and GFANZ Co-Chair. “These new partnerships will foster public-private collaboration to help finance innovative climate projects and turn Brazil’s ambitious plans into reality.”

“We are studying new possibilities to accelerate Brazil’s green reindustrialization,” said Aloizio Mercadante, President of the Brazilian Development Bank. “This partnership between GFANZ and BNDES will help create new opportunities for international investments in this front.”

“Brazil’s historic commitments and its track record of innovation have made it a global climate leader. Now its renewed ambitions are creating the unique opportunity to accelerate strong, sustainable, and inclusive growth,” said Mark Carney, UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance and GFANZ Co-Chair. “The Climate Transition Platform and the GFANZ Country Chapter will bring together the best in Brazilian finance and industry to support the essential data, transition planning and investment that this ambitious, essential transition requires.”

Underpinned by the country’s updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) and climate ambitions, Brazil aims to reduce its emissions by 50% by 2030, with the potential to become the first G20 nation to reach net zero while creating jobs and spreading prosperity. This includes ambitious goals for industrial decarbonisation, renewables, sustainable transport, green hydrogen, bioeconomy, and ecosystem restoration.

The two initiatives announced today will help Brazil realise these goals and set a benchmark for other nations to create sustainable, equitable, and just economies:

1. A Climate Transition Platform for Brazil: BNDES and GFANZ announced their intent to develop a platform to advance Brazil’s ambitious green growth agenda as set out in the Ecological Transformation Plan (ETP). The platform will be Brazilian-led and Brazilian-designed, with BNDES support in partnership with GFANZ.

• The initiative will create a cross-sector capital mobilisation platform that will foster public-private collaboration to achieve the right blend of public and private finance to support the Government’s priority projects in line with their climate transition plans.
• The platform will seek to develop new financing solutions to generate sustainable jobs, scale investment in low-carbon technologies, and develop Brazil’s sustainable economies that protect nature and biodiversity.
• The platform will draw on BNDES’s extensive experience as the biggest investor in climate transition infrastructure in Brazil – and one of the largest renewable investors in the world – and GFANZ’s expertise in transition finance and mobilising private investment for country transitions through the JETPs, and its network of over 675 international financial institutions committed to achieving net zero by 2050.
• The initiative will also help define the investment pipeline across the economy in support of the Government’s green growth goals, bring together domestic and international financial institutions to identify opportunities to scale investment in Brazil, and develop new financing mechanisms for nature-based solutions.
• Brazil’s Ministry of Finance added: “The Ministry of Finance is enthusiastic about this initiative and the Ecological Transformation team will closely monitor the next steps.”

2. GFANZ Brazil Country Chapter: Building upon the launch of the GFANZ Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) Regional Network in October 2023, Brazil will host the first GFANZ Country Chapter in LAC. The Chapter will convene locally-based financial actors to raise awareness, ambition, and collaboration on climate finance and issues particularly relevant to Brazilian financial institutions.

• Joaquim Levy, former Finance Minister of Brazil and current Vice Chair of the GFANZ LAC Network Advisory Board, will serve as Chair of the Brazil Chapter Consultative Group, a body of industry leaders and experts, and provide strategic input and expertise to the Chapter. The Brazil Chapter will additionally be advised by Denise Pavarina, an independent Board Member of Banco Bradesco. In-country GFANZ Secretariat staff, including a Chapter Director, reporting to Alan Gomez, Managing Director of the GFANZ LAC Network, will support the Chapter workplan.
• The Brazil Country Chapter will engage with financial institutions and build their capacity to support the development and implementation of their net-zero transition plans. It will also help identify the policy and regulatory changes required to support investment and develop platforms for piloting and scaling financial solutions that can mobilise climate finance.

Brazil’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions profile differs significantly from the global average, with renewables meeting almost 45% of primary energy demand and around 90% of the electricity mix, making the country’s energy sector one of the least carbon-intensive in the world. Brazil’s deforestation and land use change account for around half of the country’s emissions, and its economy includes important concentrations of global industry, as it is among the world’s top ten producers of cement, iron ore, steel, and aluminium.

Brazil’s commitment to decarbonising these traditionally high-emitting sectors, alongside transport, will put Brazil in an advantageous position as demand for green hydrogen and low carbon products increases globally. Indeed, Brazil’s wind and solar resources are estimated to create the potential for the lowest expected cost of green hydrogen in the world by 2030.[1] The Brazilian government has already made significant progress in addressing these emissions by halving deforestation in 2023.

With abundant renewable energy and natural resources, Brazil is well-positioned to launch decarbonisation projects to establish the country as a major global producer of green industrial production, while creating a blueprint for country-led climate transition for other countries to follow.

“The net-zero transition is only possible if we include every country. Now that we have a dedicated Latin America & Caribbean Network, the next step is a Brazil Country Chapter. Brazil is uniquely positioned to bring down emissions by transition planning, utilizing nature-based solutions, and deploying transition finance,” said Mary Schapiro, GFANZ Vice Chair. “The Chapter, coupled with the launch of the Transition Platform, will help bring together the right tools, frameworks, and capacity to attract the finance needed and showcase Brazil as a leader in a broader regional transition.”

“The Launch of the Brazil Country Chapter is a milestone in the work of the GFANZ Latin America and Caribbean Network to promote net zero finance across the region,” said Patricia Espinosa Cantellano, Chair of the GFANZ Latin America & Caribbean Network Advisory Board and former Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC. “Latin America’s largest country is called to play a leading role in regional efforts to achieve a net zero economy through ambitious commitment and implementation in the financial sector.”

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“Brazil has showcased itself as a leader in clean energy development and nature-based solutions, and its financial sector has made significant progress in identifying the carbon footprint of its portfolio. The launch of the Brazil Country Chapter will ensure that these insights are embedded in the regional and global efforts of GFANZ,” said Joaquim Levy, Chair of the GFANZ Brazil Chapter Consultative Group and Vice Chair of the GFANZ Latin America & Caribbean Network Advisory Board. “By championing development paths based on nature, carbon markets, decarbonization and people, Brazil can share valuable experiences across regional and global economies.”

“The financial sector in Brazil has the ambition and tremendous potential to champion the net-zero transition,” said Denise Pavarina, Senior Advisor of the Brazil Country Chapter. “Building upon global GFANZ tools and frameworks, the newly created Brazil Country Chapter can accelerate the work already set in motion to lower emissions and bring a more prosperous future to all Brazilians.”