Karandaaz Pakistan approved for Green Climate Fund accreditation

Karandaaz Pakistan, a non-profit organisation working to promote financial inclusion and economic development, has been approved

Karandaaz Pakistan, a non-profit organisation working to promote financial inclusion and economic development, has been approved for accreditation by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), opening the way for it to play a role in financing climate-related projects in Pakistan.

The approval was granted at the GCF’s 46th Board meeting, which approved 21 climate projects and programmes worth a total of USD 1.97 billion. The meeting also approved 16 new organisations for accreditation, including nine Direct Access Entities (DAEs).

Karandaaz Pakistan was among the 16 organisations approved for accreditation. The GCF’s decision is part of its efforts to expand the number of organisations that can work with the fund and support climate action in developing countries.

The 46th Board meeting approved the largest amount of funding at a single GCF meeting so far. With these new approvals, the fund’s total financing commitments in 2026 have reached USD 3.3 billion, setting a new annual record.

The newly approved projects have increased the GCF’s portfolio to 379 projects and programmes. The fund has committed USD 22.3 billion to these projects, while their total value rises to USD 87.3 billion when additional financing from other sources is included.

The projects cover countries across Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East.

The GCF also reported progress in reducing the time required to review project proposals. Thirteen of the 15 projects assessed under its Efficient GCF standards met the required targets. Their average review time was six months, compared with the target of nine months.

Direct Access Entities will manage 34 per cent of the funding approved at the meeting. These organisations allow countries to access climate finance through their own national and regional institutions rather than depending entirely on international agencies.

Five approved projects are the first GCF single-country projects in Algeria, Cameroon, Moldova and Yemen. The meeting also approved the first direct sovereign loan in response to the Belém Call to Action for the Congo Basin forests.

Two projects from Brazil were also approved through the country’s Climate and Ecological Transformation Investment Platform. These are the first GCF projects to come from a pipeline developed through a GCF-supported country platform.

Of the 16 newly accredited organisations, nine are Direct Access Entities. Thirteen received accreditation under the fund’s revised accreditation framework. The average review time for these applications was four months, against the standard target of nine months.

The Maldives Finance and Leasing Company Private Limited also became the Maldives’ first national Direct Access Entity.

The Board also approved two new policies as preparations begin for the GCF’s third replenishment period, known as GCF-3. One policy provides greater flexibility for countries and other contributors to make financial contributions to the fund. The second creates a framework for receiving contributions from non-governmental and alternative sources.

The meeting also confirmed Mafalda Duarte for a second four-year term as the GCF’s Executive Director. Her reappointment followed the implementation of reforms aimed at improving the fund’s efficiency, increasing climate financing and expanding support for vulnerable countries.

Duarte said the Board’s unanimous support reflected confidence in the fund’s reform programme and its future goals.

She said the GCF had introduced major changes over the past three years, including improvements in its accreditation process, project reviews and financial management. These reforms had helped the fund approve record levels of climate financing while supporting countries that had received inadequate climate funding.

Duarte said the fund would continue these reforms and work towards increasing its financing capacity, with a focus on projects that could deliver wider and more meaningful climate benefits.