Amman — Over the past five years (2021–2026), Jordan has succeeded in establishing itself as a strategic destination for green and climate finance flows, attracting a cumulative amount exceeding $623 million. The figure reflects growing international confidence in the Kingdom’s stability and the economic and development reform path it is pursuing. It also signals a shift in green finance from being merely a tool to support specific environmental projects to becoming an increasingly important driver of development priorities, linking economic growth plans with environmental and climate sustainability.
An analysis of the trajectory of these flows reveals a notable shift in the nature of external financing directed toward Jordan. The Kingdom has gradually moved from relying on technical grants and small-scale pilot projects toward major structural financing packages, which are increasingly linked to the Economic Modernization Vision and comprehensive reform programs. This enhances the ability of green finance to contribute to growth and investment objectives and improve competitiveness.
An Upward Trajectory for Green Finance
Looking at the annual figures recorded during the 2021–2026 period, as tracked by Al-Ghad through a number of disclosure reports issued by local and international institutions, the gradual development of green and climate finance becomes clear, both in terms of the volume of flows and the types of financial instruments used, as well as the widening range of beneficiary sectors.
In 2021, efforts began through a number of targeted projects, most notably the Green Climate Fund’s approval of $33.2 million in financing to improve water-use efficiency and address the impacts of climate change on agriculture in areas of the Dead Sea Basin.
In 2022, Jordan moved toward expanding credit programs and institutionalizing partnerships with the private sector through the launch and expansion of the Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF), with financing exceeding €48.5 million, equivalent to approximately $52 million, through local banks.
The year 2023 saw Jordan enter a new phase of financial innovation, with the issuance of the country’s first green bond worth $50 million through the local banking sector, alongside the launch of the Central Bank’s Green Finance Strategy for 2023–2028.
The year 2024 represented a major turning point in the green and climate finance trajectory, with a significant increase in the form of a $250 million sovereign and institutional development financing package from the World Bank to support climate-responsive reforms and renewable energy.
In 2025, efforts shifted further toward localizing finance and expanding the beneficiary base, including the involvement of the microfinance sector, alongside the activation of GEFF financing packages and implementation allocations exceeding €40 million, equivalent to around $44 million.
During the current year, momentum in financing flows has continued, with approximately $194.4 million allocated through financing packages directed toward economic growth and reform, alongside the start of the actual implementation of the Jordan Green Taxonomy, which aims to regulate and track these flows and identify the activities and projects that can be more accurately and clearly classified as part of the green economy.
A Clear Economic Footprint
Green economy expert and Executive Director of Sustain MENA, Shatha Al-Sharif, said that green and climate finance has begun to leave a “clear footprint” across a number of economic sectors in Jordan, noting that its impact has not been limited to grants but has extended to investments and various financial instruments that have contributed to the implementation of strategic projects.
Al-Sharif explained that the transformation in the energy sector is one of the most prominent examples. She noted that the adoption of the Energy Efficiency Law in 2012 helped attract billions of dollars in investment into renewable-energy projects, with renewable and clean energy sources now accounting for around 27% of the Kingdom’s electricity mix.
She stressed that Jordan’s access to green financing from donor institutions, including the Green Climate Fund, demonstrates the importance of climate finance in enhancing the competitiveness of national projects, particularly through blended-finance mechanisms that combine private-sector investment with climate finance provided by international institutions, alongside government contributions.
Al-Sharif noted that Jordan has had a green-economy policy framework since 2017, when the National Green Growth Plan was issued. However, the most important development was the integration of the green dimension into the drivers of economic growth under the Economic Modernization Vision, launched in 2022.
She explained that the Economic Modernization Vision aims to attract JOD 41 billion in domestic and foreign investment and create one million jobs, noting that government and international studies indicate significant opportunities for the green economy to contribute to these targets, particularly in the water, energy, transport, agriculture, waste and tourism sectors.
Advanced Legislative Framework
Al-Sharif pointed to important legislative developments in the energy sector, including the new Electricity Law, as well as the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Law. These laws open the door to investment in clean-energy fields, including energy storage, green hydrogen and smart grids, as well as electricity interconnection with neighboring countries.
Raising Awareness of Financing Opportunities Can Unlock Larger Flows
Regarding the challenges preventing an increase in green finance flows into the Kingdom, Al-Sharif highlighted the slow implementation of legislation on the ground, as well as limited awareness among the private sector and potential beneficiaries of available financing opportunities and instruments.
She explained that some companies may fail to benefit from financing funds and programs not because financing is unavailable, but because they lack knowledge of the conditions, instruments and amounts available, as well as the sectors eligible for financing.
Al-Sharif stressed the importance of greater clarity, both internationally and locally, regarding what can be classified as climate finance, particularly given its connection to the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted by Jordan as part of its international climate commitments.
An Integrated Financing System to Support Growth and Expansion
Climate-economy expert Mohammad Asfour said Jordan has an important institutional and legislative foundation for transitioning toward a green economy, but efforts still require greater coordination within an integrated system that ensures financing is directed toward activities with the greatest capacity to generate sustainable economic value.
Asfour considered the energy, agriculture, water, tourism, waste and transport sectors, along with addressing regulatory and financing gaps, to be among those best positioned to turn green finance into investments and jobs, given their direct links to reducing energy and water costs, improving productivity, and developing new markets and value chains.
He noted that Jordan’s green entrepreneurship ecosystem is developing, but remains fragmented according to sectors, company growth stages and governorates. This limits its ability to convert financing into sustainable economic value and, in some cases, increases reliance on grants rather than building sustainable and scalable business models.
At the same time, Asfour said green and climate finance directed toward Jordan has not yet had a sufficient impact on the real economy, stressing that the challenge is no longer simply making financing available, but turning it into sustainable economic activity.
He noted that part of the financing goes toward environmental and institutional projects and temporary programs, whereas more financing should be directed toward companies capable of growing, developing products, value chains and markets, and creating jobs.
The True Value of Green Finance
Financial and economic expert Dr. Mohammad Al-Hadab said the national economy’s ability to attract green finance in recent years is a positive indicator of financing institutions’ confidence in the Kingdom’s ability to implement sustainability projects.
However, he stressed that the most important economic criterion is not the volume of financing attracted in itself, but how much of it is transformed into productive investment that reduces energy and water costs, increases productivity and exports, and creates sustainable employment opportunities.
Al-Hadab explained that Jordan has a practical experience on which it can build, particularly in renewable energy. Its contribution to electricity generation increased from around 0.5% in 2014 to nearly 27% by the end of 2024, more than a 50-fold increase in roughly a decade. The energy sector strategy aims to raise this share to 40% by 2035.
He noted that this experience demonstrates that green finance, when combined with viable and implementable projects, can evolve from an environmental concept into a genuine economic and investment sector capable of creating new opportunities for growth and investment.
Al-Hadab also pointed to Jordan’s significant progress in building the regulatory infrastructure for sustainable finance, beginning with the Central Bank’s launch of the Green Finance Strategy 2023–2028, followed by the issuance of the Jordan Green Taxonomy in 2026.
He explained that the taxonomy establishes a unified definition of activities and projects that can be considered green, helping reduce the risk of what is known as “greenwashing” and enabling banks and investors to direct financing toward projects with measurable environmental and economic impacts.
Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises
Al-Hadab explained that the main gap is no longer the absence of financing or legislation, but rather the availability of a sufficient number of bankable green projects.
He noted that small and medium-sized enterprises account for around 99% of companies in Jordan, yet many require long-term financing, guarantees and technical assistance to prepare feasibility studies and measure energy savings and emissions reductions. Developing financing instruments tailored to the needs of these enterprises should therefore be an economic priority in the coming period.
Expanding the Impact of International Finance
Al-Hadab added that the next step should be a shift toward the concept of a “green finance multiplier,” whereby international financing, grants and concessional finance are used to reduce risks and attract multiples of their value in private capital.
He explained that international green finance should not be viewed merely as a direct source of funding, but as a tool for stimulating banking, institutional and private investment by reducing risks and improving projects’ bankability.
He stressed that the success of this approach would allow the economic impact of green finance to far exceed its direct value by mobilizing additional capital, transforming environmental and climate projects into productive activities, enhancing the ability of Jordanian companies to grow and expand, and creating sustainable jobs.
The Next Stage: Maximizing the Economic Impact of Green Finance
Strengthening the partnership between the government, the financial sector and the private sector, developing bankable projects, expanding concessional and blended-finance instruments, providing technical assistance and guarantees, and activating the Jordan Green Taxonomy could provide a practical foundation for Jordan’s transition from attracting green finance to using it as a lever for sustainable economic growth.
