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10/15/2021

Remarks by Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen at the World Bank's Making Climate Action Count: Turning Actio…

Remarks by Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen at the World
Bank's Making Climate Action Count: Turning Action into Reality
October 14, 2021

As prepared for delivery:
Hi everyone. I’m Janet Yellen, the U.S. Treasury Secretary. I want thank President Malpass for
the chance to say a few words about climate change, and the United States’ role in
addressing this existential threat.
As I record this video, a host of climate proposals are moving through our Congress. The
President has proposed dotting the American landscape with 500,000 electric vehicle
chargers and funding for fundamental R&D in nascent green technologies. But we also know
that our e orts to address climate change cannot stop at the border.
In July, when many of us met in Venice, I outlined the United States’ plan to double our
public international climate finance to developing countries by 2024. Last month, President
Biden went to the UN General Assembly and announced we’re doubling that number again:
The United States has committed $11.4 billion per year, including financing for adaptation
e orts.
Indeed, as we approach COP26, there’s renewed urgency for all nations to take the necessary
steps toward the global goal of keeping warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. The multilateral
development banks, as this group knows better than anyone, play a leading role here. They
help emerging economies prioritize climate investments, integrate climate resilience into
infrastructure planning, protect critical ecosystems, and increase climate ambition as part of
their nationally determined contributions and long-term strategies.
The United States is a large shareholder in the multilateral development banks, and we are
committed to using our position of leadership to help facilitate a global transition toward
net zero emissions by midcentury. In fact, I convened a meeting of the heads of the
multilateral development banks over the summer. And I asked that each institution develop
concrete plans to raise their climate ambitions and to identify specific ways they could each
mobilize climate finance for developing countries.
https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy0408

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10/15/2021

Remarks by Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen at the World Bank's Making Climate Action Count: Turning Actio…

Of course, no amount of public financing alone will be su icient to meet the goals of the
Paris Agreement. Private capital will be essential to fill the gap. As we work to mobilize this
capital, we must continue to focus on addressing the ongoing challenges that emerging
markets and developing countries face in attracting private sector financing, especially for
greenhouse gas mitigation and adaptation infrastructure, and to reduce these impediments
to investment.
I look forward to our discussions over the coming week and hearing more from you on how
we can move beyond our ambitions to definitive action.
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https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy0408

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