EU officials and international lenders have promoted a new Global Green Bond Initiative designed to channel private investment into sustainable infrastructure projects in partner countries.
The initiative was presented on the margins of the 81st United Nations General Assembly by EU Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Síkela and European Investment Bank president Nadia Calviño alongside public investors in the GGBI fund and leaders from partner countries, the European Commission reported in a release on Tuesday.
The Global Green Bond Initiative, part of the EU’s Global Gateway strategy, is intended to mobilise up to €20 billion in private capital for large-scale sustainable infrastructure, while also supporting the development of green bond markets.
Green bonds are debt sold to investors where the proceeds are used for environmental projects.
Work is already under way to prepare a pipeline of green bond issuances in 15 partner countries through a technical assistance programme, with further issuances expected across Latin America and the Caribbean, Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia-Pacific and the EU neighbourhood.
Fund operations and who is involved
The GGBI Fund began operations in summer 2026 and is expected to reach close to €3 billion, including up to €2 billion in private capital from European and international investors and close to €1 billion in equity committed by public investors.
The public investor group includes a consortium of European development finance institutions led by the European Investment Bank, alongside the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and development banks from Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany and France, as well as Luxembourg’s government implemented via LuxDev and the Green Climate Fund.
Credit protection for the consortium is being provided by the European Commission through the European Fund for Sustainable Development Plus (EFSD+) guarantee, while the fund is managed by Amundi, the largest European asset manager.
The broader initiative is set out as three parts — the fund, technical assistance to support issuers in partner countries to issue green bonds and attract investors, and a “Green Coupon Subsidy Facility” intended to help reduce borrowing costs in certain circumstances.
Private capital is needed because public resources alone cannot fund investment at the scale required for clean energy supplies, and the initiative is designed to support partners to issue green bonds, design projects and reduce investment risk, Síkela said in a statement.
