The World Bank facilitates the establishment and operation of FIFs by offering to perform a set of roles and responsibilities tailored to the circumstances of each FIF. The World Bank is a valued partner as a trustee for FIFs, building on well-established financial, investment management and accounting platforms developed by the World Bank over the past two decades, and on experienced specialized legal and treasury services. In addition, the World Bank often hosts FIF secretariats and serves as one of the implementing entities.
The World Bank serves as limited trustee and/or financial or treasury manager for all 27 FIFs that were active as of the end of FY2020. Of these, the World Bank provides the legal personality for 19 FIFs, hosts the secretariats for 18 FIFs, and serves as an implementing entity for 20 FIFs. The World Bank takes on an implementing entity role for most FIFs whose secretariat is hosted by the World Bank. The World Bank also acts as an implementing entity for three FIFs with external secretariats: Climate Risk and Early Warning Systems (CREWS), the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and Guyana REDD+ Investment Fund (GRIF).
Interview with Mei Leng Chang, Manager, Financial Management, The World Bank Group