Exclusive-World's top MDBs to forge debt-for-nature swap 'task force' - sources

By Marc Jones

LONDON (Reuters) - The world's top multilateral development banks are set to launch a global "task force" at the COP28 climate summit in the coming days to scale-up the number and size of 'debt-for-nature' swaps countries are able to do, four sources told Reuters.

Debt-for-nature swaps, where a developing country's debt is cut in return for protecting vital ecosystems, are attracting growing interest following a number of successful examples in places such as Belize and the Galapogas Islands in recent years.

The move is the most significant step so far in showing that the global club of multilateral lenders, which between them have trillions of dollars worth of firepower, will significantly ramp up support of these types of environment-focussed deals and is expected to lead to a major increase in the number and size of debt-for-nature swaps.

Four sources involved in the plans, which are expected to be announced at the COP summit's 'finance day' on Monday, say the group will formally be called the "Task Force on Sustainability-linked Sovereign Financing for Nature and Climate".

It will initially be chaired by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and U.S. government's Development Finance Institution (DFC), said three of the sources which have direct knowledge of the matter. Both of the lenders have been involved in all of the recent swaps which have also included Barbados and Gabon.

Institutions have until Friday to confirm they will join, but those expected to do so include the World Bank, Inter European Investment Bank (EIB), African Development Bank (AfDB), Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Beijing-headquarted Asian Infrastructure Development Bank and a number of others, the sources added.

(Reporting by Marc Jones; editing by Christina Fincher)