World Bank to strengthen focus on climate change

The World Bank’s chief told Bloomberg in an interview published Thursday that he hopes to elevate the international development institution’s climate change role.

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim, who took office in July, said the lender’s November climate change report already has had an effect on its 188 member countries.

"The response was quite surprising," Kim told Bloomberg. "It was as if ‘we’ve heard this all from the environmental groups, but my goodness, if the World Bank tells us this is an issue, then there must be something different to the story.' "

That report warned of "cataclysmic changes" resulting from heat waves, rising sea levels, decreased food supplies and a possible 4-degree Celsius temperature increase this century.

Kim said climate change would get a sharper focus as the World Bank becomes more selective about the programs it pursues.

The bank is helping finance renewable energy projects, assisting with climate change mitigation plans and awarding funds to discourage deforestation and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The financial lender also wants to pitch in on a "master plan" to avoid temperature increases and rising sea levels, Kim said.