The World Bank has agreed to set up a new fund to help developing countries
protect the environment. At a meeting at the bank鈥檚 European headquarters
in Paris, 25 industrialised and developing countries agreed to set up a
fund of between $1 billion and $1.5 billion.
The fund will help developing countries pay for new technology aimed
at protecting the ozone layer, and will finance international schemes to
combat pollution that attacks more than one country. The fund is separate
from the 鈥榳indow鈥� in existing funds set up by the Bank last year to pay
for environmental projects, which was criticised at the time because it
did not involve new capital.
The new cash will be made up of donations only from the industrialised
countries. France, which broached the idea at least year鈥檚 summit of industrialised
nations, has promised $180 million over the next three years. The US is
understood to be planning a proportionately larger contribution.
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