About
Climate Policy Initiative will provide high-level advisory and will produce analysis to better identify key challenges and innovative solutions related to guarantees, pinpoint lighthouse projects to unlock climate investment, and offer recommendations for scaling green guarantees ahead of COP30.
The Green Guarantee Group (GGG) was soft-launched at COP28 by Germany’s Federal Foreign Office (Auswärtiges Amt, AA) and Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action (Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Klimaschutz, BMWK). It aims to unite a diverse range of stakeholders in addressing the challenges associated with using guarantees to support green transition finance.
Since its formal launch in March 2024, the GGG has convened experts from various sectors—including governments, multilateral development banks (MDBs), development agencies, the private sector, civil society, and academia—to initiate discussions on guarantees. These conversations have highlighted the evolving context and challenges posed by limited public funding and high capital costs, particularly in emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs). This has spurred the GGG to scale up into a group with the ultimate goal of reporting to policymakers at COP30 in Belem, Brazil.
The GGG will work to produce solution-oriented recommendations for decision-makers, fostering a significant increase in the use of green guarantees. The group will facilitate collaboration among various actors—including investors, insurance companies, renewable energy manufacturers, and service providers—to explore guarantees as essential tools for funding the green transition in EMDEs. This work will include identifying “lighthouse projects” that demonstrate the effectiveness of guarantees in driving green investments. It will also serve as a forum to better understand the limitations of guarantees, improve risk management, and build on existing innovative initiatives.
The GGG is chaired by Professor Lars-Hendrik Röller, Chairman of the Berlin Global Dialogue and former Chief Economic Advisor to Angela Merkel (2011-2021). The European Climate Foundation (ECF) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) serve as its Secretariat. Morgan Deprés, Executive Director of International Finance, Economy and Nature Programmes at ECF, is head of this Secretariat. The GGG is chaired by Professor Lars-Hendrik Röller, former Director General for Economic and Financial Policy at the German Chancellery (2011-2022).
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Events
Events
Technical expert group
An expert group has been meeting regularly since April 2024 to discuss elements of guarantees. The group brings together governments, Multilateral Development Banks, Development Agencies, Think Tanks, private sector actors—including investors, insurance companies, RE manufacturers companies and service providers—as well as civil society actors and academia.
Latest event
Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue
Accelerating the energy transition and de-risking investments – Accelerated Partnership on Renewable for Africa, APRA, and the GGG
Date/time: March 18, 11:15-12:45
Location: Adenauer-Saal
Speakers: State Secretary Jennifer Morgan; Prof. Lars-Hendrik Röller, GGG Chair; Alex Wachira, Principal Secretary, Kenyan State Department for Energy; Kandeh Yumkellah, Chairman Presidential Initiative on Climate Change, Renewable Energy and Food Security, Sierra Leone; Gloria Magombo, Permanent Secretary Energy and Power Development, Zimbabwe; Richard Gyan-Mensah, Deputy Minister Energy & Green Transition, Ghana; Anne Hougaard Jensen, Director Green Diplomacy & Climate, DNK; Francesco La Camera, Director General, IRENA; Heike Freimuth, Head of the EIB Group Office Germany; Peter Ellersiek, Director Impact Investments, Allianz Global Investors/EMCAF; Lisa Pinsley, Fund Head of the African Transition Acceleration Fund, African Infrastructure Investment Managers; Thomas Pohl, Senior Investment Manager Africa, KfW; Birgit Pickel, Head of Department, BMZ
Catalysing Private Capital for the Green Transformation – The Green Guarantee Group
Date/time: March 18, 14:30-15:00
Location: Europasaal
Speakers: Prof. Lars-Hendrik Röller, GGG
Upcoming events
- Hamburg Sustainability Conference 2025 (2 – 3 June 2025)
- ESMT Expert Forum on Climate Finance (5 June 2025)
- Global NDC Conference (11 – 13 June 2025)
- UNFCCC SB 62nd Sessions (Bonn, 16 – 26 June 2025)
- Conference on Financing for Development (Spain, 30 June – 3 July 2025)
- NYC Climate Week (New York, 21 – 28 September 2025)
- IMF & WB Annual meetings (Washington D.C., 17 – 19 October 2025)
- Berlin Global Dialogue 2025 (21 – 22 October 2025)
- G20 High-Level Engagement (Q3 2025)
- COP30 (Belem, Brazil, 10 – 21 November 2025)
Past events
- 16th Petersberg Climate Dialogue (25 – 26 March 2025)
- IMF & WB Spring meetings (Washington D.C., 23 – 25 April 2025)
and first Wise-Persons Group Meeting (24 April 2025)
ESMT Expert Forum on Climate Finance
(5 June 2025)
Expert Forum Climate Finance
Hosted by ESMT Berlin business school, this expert forum on effective climate finance mobilization brought together policy makers, academics and investors, including development finance institutions and foundations. The session included key notes, panel discussions, and side events focusing on adaptation and mitigation finance.
Date/time: June 5, 10:00-18:30
Location: ESMT Berlin, Auditorium Maximum, 2nd floor
Speakers: Prof. Lars-Hendrik Röller, GGG; Jochen Flasbarth, State Secretary BMUK; Frannie Léautier, CEO of SouthBridge Investments; Haje Schutte, OECD, Deputy Director Development Co-operation Directorate; Bård Vegar Solhjell, Director General, Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad); Matt Robinson, Associate Managing Director, Sovereign Risk Group, Moody’s Ratings; Avinash Persaud, Inter-American Development Bank, Special Advisor to the President of the Inter-American Development Bank
Hamburg Sustainability Conference 2025
(2 -3 June 2025)
Green Guarantee Group: Unlocking Private Climate Finance in EMDEs
This high-level panel and networking event convened expert speakers to discuss the strategic role of guarantees in accelerating the green transformation. The event facilitated an open and action-oriented dialogue, building on the ongoing work of the Green Guarantee Group.
Date/time: June 2, 08:30-10:00
Location: Hamburg
Speakers: Prof. Lars-Hendrik Röller, GGG; Jochen Flasbarth, State Secretary BMUK; Frannie Léautier, CEO of SouthBridge Investments; Haje Schutte, OECD, Deputy Director Development Co-operation Directorate; Bård Vegar Solhjell, Director General, Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad); Matt Robinson, Associate Managing Director, Sovereign Risk Group, Moody’s Ratings; Avinash Persaud, Inter-American Development Bank, Special Advisor to the President of the Inter-American Development Bank
COP29
Green Guarantee Group – Unlocking private capital at scale for the green transition in EMDEs
Date/time: November 13, 16:30-18:00
Location: German Pavilion
Speakers: State Minister Lührmann, AA; Prof. Lars-Hendrik Röller, GGG; Dr. Barbara Buchner, CPI; Ivan Oliveira/ Ministry of Finance BRA, (tbc) Olga Sclovscaia, World Bank MIGA; Anthony Hobley, Deputy Chair Climate Risk & Resilience, Howden Group
Providing the Private Sector with Confidence: The Green Guarantee Group
Date/time: November 14, 18.30-19.30
Location: COP29 Presidency Pavilion
Speakers: StS Morgan; H.E. Mukhtar Babayev, COP 29 Presidency; Lars-Hendrik Röller; Andrew Forrest, FORTESCUE; Karen Fang, Bank of America
Mobilizing private investment to accelerate sustainable development
Date/time: November 14, 16:00-17:00
Location: Deloitte Pavillon
Speakers: Hendrik Röller; Prof. Dr. Bernhard Lorentz, Deloitte; Lavinia Bauerochse, Deutsche Bank; Ingrid Hoven, GIZ Management Board
Resources
Energizing Private Capital: Innovations in Guarantee Offerings for Climate Finance
This policy brief, published in January 2025, identifies key barriers to the adoption of green guarantees and highlights existing solutions to mobilize private capital for the climate transition, particularly in EMDEs. The report also draws important policy considerations and recommendations for enhancing the design and scale of green guarantees.
Landscape of Guarantees for Climate Finance in EMDEs
Climate Policy Initiative has conducted a mapping exercise to better understand the landscape of guarantees for EMDEs. This report, published in February 2024, highlights key gaps in the uptake of guarantees for climate finance and identifies areas where further research is needed to increase their scale and effectiveness for climate finance in emerging markets and developing economies.
Scoping Note on Green Guarantees
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the challenges that will be addressed by the Green Guarantee Group. In line with its mandate, the GGG will publish its final recommendation by COP30 in 2025.
People
Lars-Hendrik Röller
Professor Lars-Hendrik Röller is an economics professor at ESMT Berlin. Throughout his career, he has held professorships at INSEAD, Humboldt University Berlin, and the WZB Berlin Social Science Center. He served as the president of ESMT Berlin from 2006 to 2011. His research focuses on the relationships between economics, business, and society, with a particular emphasis on geopolitical risks. Röller has previously worked as the Chief Economic Advisor to former German Chancellor Angela Merkel and has served as a G7 and G20 Sherpa. Prior to that, he was the Chief Competition Economist at the European Commission.
LinkedIn Profile
Faruk Yusuf Yabo
Faruk Yusuf Yabo is the Permanent Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy in Nigeria. He began his career in the Federal Ministry of Power in 2002, rising to the position of Director in 2020. In 2022, he was appointed Permanent Secretary of the Special Duties Office, Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, where he led digital transformation initiatives. He has held various national and international roles in the energy sector, including serving as Nigeria’s National Focal Person for the UN Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) initiative and the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE) from 2015 to 2020.
Morgan Després
Morgan Després is Executive Director for international climate finance, land use and net zero macroeconomy at the European Climate Foundation (ECF). Mr Després joined the ECF after 18 years years working in the French official sector on financial stability and international and European financial regulation issues most recently as Director of Strategy at the Banque de France. He was the founding head of the Secretariat of the Central Banks and Supervisors Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS).
