Debt Swaps for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation: A Commonwealth Proposal

The high debt burdens of small states, particularly countries in the Caribbean, are seriously hampering international efforts to build resilience against the effects of climate change. This discussion paper introduces the Commonwealth multilateral debt-for-climate swap initiative – a proposal that would provide significant debt relief for small states and unlock pledged climate finance to fund climate change adaptation and mitigation projects. The paper explains how the initiative would work in practice and examines the costs to donors and other key points for consideration.