Brazil

The population of Brazilian cities is constantly growing, meaning they are faced with a chronic lack of infrastructure, transport congestion and social inequalities, which are sources of violence. To improve the quality of life of people and promote sustainable, inclusive and smart cities, AFD finances projects led by federated States, municipalities, public companies and local development banks.

Urban development is understood as a whole and includes issues covering mobility integrated into public spaces, social housing, access to essential services, as well as the use of renewable energies, urban biodiversity, innovation, digital technologies, cultural and creative industries:

• In the megacities of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, we support public policies for sustainable urban mobility, single ticketing systems and the development of suburban trains, working with French public actors. Line 13 in São Paulo is eventually expected to serve 120,000 passengers a day, with a reduction in carbon emissions of 15,000 tons a year.
• In Curitiba, we have financed the extension of the capacity of the public transport network and the creation of an ecological corridor.
• In the State of Santa Catarina, we have supported a wastewater treatment project by the sanitation company CASAN, which has provided 200,000 people with improved access to sanitation. We have also assisted the Brazilian Ministry of Planning, Development and Management in preparing public-private partnerships by municipalities, with the aim of improving waste management and street lighting.

Brazil is one of the world’s largest energy consumers. It also has substantial natural resources allowing power generation mainly based on hydropower. However, generation is weakened by the recurrent flooding, meaning the country needs to find new renewable energy sources. It can count on its huge wind, solar and biomass potential for this.

To promote low-carbon growth, AFD supports the development of green energies and the promotion of energy efficiency:

• We are assisting the public electricity company of the State of Rio Grande do Sul (CEEE) in upgrading generation infrastructure and the transmission and distribution grid, in cofinancing with the Inter-American Development bank (IDB) and with the support of the European Union. The project, with an installed capacity of over 130 MW and 1.5 million beneficiaries, is expected to reduce carbon emissions by 15,000 tons a year.
• We promote investments in the fields of energy efficiency and renewable energies (wind, biomass), in partnership with the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES).
• Proparco, AFD Group’s private sector arm, is supporting the construction of the photovoltaic power plant in Ituverava, in the State of Bahia, which will become the 2nd largest solar power plant in South America.

Brazilian development banks play an active role in scaling up green finance for the climate, both in international dialogue platforms (International Development Finance Club, ALIDE) and at local level. AFD has close relations with these actors, with the aim of jointly stepping up the promotion of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and contributing to the implementation of the Paris Agreement at territorial level:

• We are supporting the Minas Gerais Development Bank (BDMG) in financing municipal investment projects with positive climate impacts.
• We are assisting the Far South Regional Development Bank (BRDE) with its “Sustainable Production and Consumption” program, which finances projects compatible with the protection of the environment in the South region of Brazil.

Moreover, AFD is a partner of the Institute for Applied Economic Research (IPEA), a public research foundation and member of the OECD Development Centre. One of the work areas concerns the measurement of development financing in relation to the SDGs.

AFD is also interested in agricultural and forest territories, which account for a substantial proportion of Brazil’s national contribution to the fight against climate change.