Türkiye has signed 10 agreements worth $5.1 billion (TL 256.30 billion) with four multilateral development banks on the fourth day of the COP31 climate summit in Antalya, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek said Thursday.
The banks include the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the World Bank and the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB).
Speaking at a joint signing ceremony, Şimşek said the financing would help build a greener and more resilient economy through projects that support employment, industrial modernization and green and digital transitions.
Türkiye has secured about $50 billion in external financing from development partners since 2023, he said.
The funding has supported post-earthquake reconstruction, railways, decarbonization, renewable energy, resilient hospitals, exporters and small businesses.
Şimşek also emphasized that sound economic policies and structural reforms were essential for attracting long-term investment, while national budgets alone could not cover the transition's financing needs.
ADB President Masato Kanda outlined a 620 million euro ($687 million) agreement to build disaster-resilient hospitals, strengthen health services and train doctors.
Another $500 million will be provided through Turkish lender VakıfBank to expand long-term financing for small businesses, particularly in less developed and earthquake-affected provinces and for women entrepreneurs.
Şimşek said the agreements would bring ADB financing support to $3.1 billion.
Meanwhile, AIIB President Zou Jiayi announced $1.9 billion in financing, including $1.6 billion for Türkiye's climate action acceleration program and additional financing.
The remaining $300 million will be channeled through Türk Eximbank to support businesses' green transitions and resilience to economic shocks.
World Bank Group President Ajay Banga said three agreements totaling $1.5 billion would support cities, agriculture and industry, excluding additional private investment the institution seeks to mobilize.
He said the group's portfolio in Türkiye had reached $32 billion, making it one of its largest worldwide, and highlighted the country's economic transformation during a partnership spanning more than 75 years.
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank reached a record $1.6 billion financing deal with Türkiye to support a series of policy reforms aimed at attracting the investment it needs to hit its climate goals.
Türkiye, a founding member of the AIIB, will need an estimated $68 billion in additional climate investment by 2030, around half from private sources, the bank said in a statement on Thursday.
Covering fiscal policy, financial regulation and sectoral planning, the agreement will support the implementation of Türkiye's Climate Law and its plan to cut planet-warming emissions, which includes an interim target for 2035 and aims to achieve net zero by 2053.
The money will help scale sustainable finance, accelerate decarbonization and boost climate resilience efforts across the country of 86 million people as global warming drives drought, floods and wildfires.
"This financing represents AIIB's largest climate policy-based financing package to date, and we look forward to contributing to Türkiye delivering on its climate ambitions," said AIIB Chief Investment Officer Konstantin Limitovskiy.
Part of the sustainable finance support will go toward helping the country scale its nascent emissions trading scheme, under which companies in high-emitting sectors will receive and trade allowances.
A domestic carbon price could help exporters to the European Union in sectors such as steel and cement, as carbon costs paid in Türkiye can be taken into account under the bloc's carbon border levy on emissions embedded in certain imported products.
Program targets include getting at least 180 facilities reporting baseline emissions under the scheme by April 2027 and securing production licences for 1,800 megawatts (MW) of wind and solar capacity by early 2027.
The plan also aims to help 225,000 farmers in water-stressed basins switch to less water-intensive crops by 2028 and to have 50,000 hectares (124,000 acres) designated as carbon sinks – where land absorbs climate-damaging carbon – by 2028.
As the country faces increasing pressure from water scarcity, drought, extreme heat, wildfires and urban flooding, the reform plan aims to help strengthen planning and risk management in areas including water, ecosystems and health.
