Trust Funds

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ADB Trust Funds at a Glance

As the climate bank for the Asia and Pacific region, ADB harnesses trust funds to scale up climate action, mobilize private financing, and accelerate private sector participation in development. Trust funds support a variety of development priorities that partners share with ADB, such as disaster risk management, clean energy, private sector development, gender and development, information technology, regional cooperation and integration, and urban development.

In 2023, ADB administered 48 active trust funds with 36 active partners. Of these trust funds, 27 are stand-alone and 21 are established under a financing partnership facility—a mechanism that puts together several trust funds under one umbrella to support strategic, long-term, and multi-partner cooperation among various development partners.

From 2019 to 2023, external partners contributed $2 billion to ADB’s trust funds. A total of $1.6 billion of trust fund cofinancing was also committed during the same period, supporting ADB projects through loans, equities, grants, technical assistance, and other activities.

ADB provides effective administration and monitoring of its trust fund portfolio. Recent efforts at digitizing trust fund applications and approvals have helped effectively allocate available funds to new eligible projects and promote transparency in the process. ADB also reviews its internal trust fund policies and processes to incorporate lessons learned from the administration of previous funds and donor feedback for greater organizational coherence and more efficient trust fund administration and governance.

Download the list of active ADB trust funds as of December 2023

Who Our Partners Are

Knowledge and financing support from external partners are instrumental to ADB’s growing trust funds operation. Amid the complex development challenges of Asia and the Pacific, engagement with external partners enables ADB to address the needs of its developing member countries better.

On contribution commitments from 2019 to 2023, Australia, the European Union, Germany, the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, Japan, New Zealand, the Nordic Development Fund, the Republic of Korea, Sweden, and the United Kingdom were among the top trust fund contributors.

Highlights of 2023 Operations

Newly Established Funds

In 2023, ADB established eight new trust funds and three new financing partnership facilities (FPFs). More trust funds and FPFs were established in 2023 than in previous years. These new trust funds and FPFs demonstrate ADB’s commitment to fighting climate change and accelerating private sector participation in development.

ADB and its financing partners will also support urban development and promote resilience in developing member countries through these trust funds and FPFs.

Contributions Committed by External Partners

In 2023, external partners committed $657.4 million of contributions for 20 trust funds, higher by 148% compared to the previous year’s $264.2 million. Some $456.1 million, or about 69%, represent new contributions while the remaining $201.2 million were replenishments to existing trust funds.

Among the 36 partners supporting ADB’s active trust funds, the Government of the United Kingdom committed $269.5 million to four ADB trust funds, representing about 41% of total 2023 contributions from external partners. The Republic of Korea committed $100 million to two trust funds, and Japan committed $88.1 million to five.

During the year, ADB successfully mobilized support for new and innovative cofinancing arrangements and attracted new partners. Among ADB’s new trust fund partners is the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP). The nontraditional donor committed $35 million to help boost energy access and support energy transition in five priority developing member countries through the GEAPP Energy Access and Transition Trust Fund (GEATTF). The Rockefeller Foundation launched GEAPP in 2021 at COP26, intending to promote universal energy access and meet critical climate goals. In addition to The Rockefeller Foundation, the Ikea Foundation and Bezos Earth Fund are among the primary donors of GEAPP.

Support to Projects, Technical Assistance, and Other Activities

Total project and technical assistance (TA) commitments reached $271.4 million in 2023. About $5 million in direct charges—activities such as workshops, training programs, and inputs from experts that are key to supporting effective development but are not covered under a TA project—were also cofinanced from trust fund resources. Total support from ADB trust funds in 2023 reached $276 million, a 57% increase from 2022.

About 47% of trust fund commitments in 2023 went to sovereign projects and TA projects, with the remaining 53% cofinancing nonsovereign projects and TA projects. This indicates the increasing significance of trust fund resources and its innovative financing solutions to ADB’s nonsovereign operations.

By Source

The Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific committed $43.8 million for 20 projects. The Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector in Asia II committed $29 million for two projects. The Japan Fund for the Joint Crediting Mechanism commited $16.4 million for two projects and two direct charge activities.

By Product Type

Loans and equities cofinancing represented the biggest share with $142.6 million, or about 51% of trust fund commitments in 2023. Cofinancing for technical assistance followed with $77.9 million or 28% of the total, and $51.9 million, or 19%, cofinanced grant projects. Direct charges activities slightly increased to $5 million compared to $4.3 million in 2022.

By Developing Member Country

India received the largest trust fund cofinancing, $82.8 million, for 15 projects in 2023. The Lao People’s Democratic Republic followed with $51 million for eight projects, and Indonesia with $27.7 million for 14 projects.

By Sector

Energy sector projects received the largest cofinancing assistance from ADB trust funds in 2023 with $100.3 million, or about 37% of total commitments for the year. The second-largest share amounting to $75.3 million, or 28% of total trust fund cofinancing, went to transport projects. Projects in the agriculture, natural resources, and rural development sector received $29.5 million or 11% of total trust fund cofinancing in 2023.