KfW is one of the world's leading promotional banks. Since 1948, it has been working on behalf of the German federal and state governments to improve economic, social and ecological living conditions worldwide. With its subsidiaries, KfW IPEX-Bank for financing international projects and exports, DEG for supporting companies to invest in developing countries and KfW Entwicklungsbank for cooperation with state institutions, it is a key partner for successful cooperation with developing countries.

Export credit guarantees, investment guarantees and guarantees for untied loans have been established and proven foreign trade promotion instruments of the German government for decades. Export credit guarantees (“Hermes Cover”) protect German export transactions and the banks financing them against political and economic risks. With guarantees for untied loans, the German government supports eligible raw materials projects abroad. Investment guarantees protect eligible German direct investments in developing and emerging countries against political risks. One particular aim is to support small and medium-sized enterprises.

Since 2008, the International Climate Initiative (IKI) has funded over 1,000 ambitious climate and biodiversity projects in around 150 partner countries with almost 7 billion euros to date. It is an important tool of German international cooperation for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in developing and emerging countries as well as adaptation measures. This includes technology cooperation and numerous projects with technology components.

Promoting the private sector: Through the develoPPP.de programme, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) supports companies that want to sustainably invest in developing and emerging countries with financial and, if required, also professional support. Financial support can sum up to 50% of the project costs with a maximum of 2 mio Euro. It is important that these projects not only achieve a long-term economic objective but also generate sustainable benefits for local people. Around 3,030 development partnerships have been initiated since the program was launched in 1999. Many of these projects are climate-relevant as they involve investments in renewable energies, energy efficiency, water treatment, recycling / circular economy, biodiversity or forestry.

The German Energy Solutions Initiative supports German providers of sustainable energy solutions in the fields of renewable energies, energy efficiency, smart grids and storage in accessing foreign markets. New technologies such as power-to-gas and fuel cells are also increasingly being looked at. The offer is aimed in particular at small and medium-sized enterprises and supports participants with market preparation measures as well as with exploring, developing and securing markets.

GET.pro is a multi-donor project founded in 2018 that works on the key issues of a just global energy transition and is supported by Germany. The aim of the project is to improve the conditions for investment in a global energy transition as part of a coordinated European approach. To this end, it uses scalable instruments: GET.invest mobilizes private investments, GET.transform supports public partners in the design and implementation of their energy transitions, the Secretariat of the Africa-EU Energy Partnership (AEEP) promotes strategic political dialogue between Africa and Europe on an equal footing to accelerate a just African energy transition. The focus of the implementation of this global project is on Africa and Latin America.

With the Project Development Program for Developing and Emerging Countries (PEP), an important pillar of the German Energy Solutions Initiative, the German government supports small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that offer climate-friendly energy technologies when entering particularly difficult markets, often markets just in the process of being developed. PEP is currently being implemented in countries in sub-Saharan Africa, South and South-East Asia and the Middle East.

Since 2010, Germany has been promoting international partnerships for the development of environmental and climate protection technologies through model projects with the CLIENT funding priority. The follow-up project CLIENT II has been promoting international partnerships in the areas of climate, environment and energy since 2016. The aim is to reduce environmental pollution, use resources efficiently, provide clean and affordable energy and help adapt to climate change.

The Federal Ministry for the Environment's “Export Initiative for Environmental Protection” (EXI for short), launched in 2016, aims to support the market preparation of German environmental protection technologies. The focus is on the ministry´s core thematic areas: water and wastewater management, recycling, waste and raw materials management, resource efficiency, environmental management and sustainable consumption, “green” hydrogen and fuel cell technologies for off-grid electricity applications as well as environmentally friendly mobility solutions and innovative cross-sectional technologies. The funding program is an important building block for environmentally-focused foreign trade promotion.

Energizing Development (EnDev) is an energy access program that addresses the problem of lack of access to clean energy (electricity, sustainable cooking solutions) for millions of households worldwide. The global project is financed by six donors and implemented in 20 countries worldwide. It promotes the use and dissemination of sustainable, energy-efficient technologies. The program has reached over 30 million people to date.

The NACAG initiative, launched by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) aims to assure global abatement of N2O emissions from nitric acid production by 2020. The initiative provides all governments and plant operators with guidance and information on technological and regulatory issues regarding N2O abatement and provides financial support for the installation and operation of abatement technology on a condition that partner countries take full responsibility for the mitigation activities after 2020 (e.g. in their NDCs).

The German Partnership for Sustainable Mobility (GPSM) has become ‘TUMI Friends’ and continues to serve as a guide for sustainable mobility and green logistics solutions from Germany for other countries. As a platform for exchanging knowledge, expertise and experiences, TUMI Friends supports the transformation towards sustainability in developing and emerging countries. It serves as a network of information from academia, businesses, civil society and associations.

Climate, energy and hydrogen partnerships and energy dialogs are key instruments of the German foreign energy and climate policy. The partnerships serve to support the expansion of renewable energies, the promotion of energy efficiency and the dissemination of green technologies. At the same time, market-based framework conditions and export opportunities are promoted and the joint development of new climate technologies is driven forward. A less formal format are energy dialogues with various opportunities for exchange and dialogue. Germany currently maintains partnerships and dialogues with over 30 countries.

Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETP)

Climate club

In 2022, the Climate Club was founded on Germany's initiative as a high-level forum to promote the decarbonization of industry. The Climate Club, which was founded by the G7 and the EU Commission, works on setting the course for decarbonization strategies, including technology development and transfer. The work program was defined in December 2022 in a joint charter based on three pillars (i) promoting ambitious and transparent climate change mitigation measures, (ii) industry transformation and (iii) promoting international climate cooperation and partnerships.