Private Sector Investment in Conservation and Coastal Resilience in the Caribbean

United States International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) is committed to investing in projects that combat the climate crisis. DFC seeks to unlock high-quality private investment to support climate adaptation solutions for vulnerable communities, with priority to low and lower-middle income countries. In fiscal year 2022, DFC committed more than $2.3 billion for climate-linked projects, including more than $390 million in climate adaptation and an additional $200 million in deals that will generate adaption co-benefits.

Coastal resilience and conservation are areas where DFC can help bring in private investment. The Caribbean is one of the regions where coastal resilience is especially important. Given large coastal populations, vulnerability to climate change, and economies that are generally smaller and often focused on imports, tourism, and remittances, many Caribbean countries have particular vulnerabilities to climate shocks. In addition, many of these economies have heavy-debt burdens and struggle to raise funds for infrastructure projects. This Capstone seeks to identify opportunities to incentivize the private sector to invest in companies or projects that help conserve, protect, and/or advance resilience, biodiversity, habitats, and coastal resources of a selected Caribbean country.