• Productivity Declines: Temperature shocks reduce labor productivity in all firms, but the impact is 50% greater for SMEs than for large corporations in developing economies. 
• Revenue Losses: In heat-sensitive sectors such as transport and construction, a 1 standard deviation increase in temperature differences can reduce revenues by up to 43%. 
• Lack of Finance for Adaptation: Many SMEs struggle to access capital for climate adaptation, limiting their ability to invest in cooling, infrastructure, and resilient supply chains. 
• Higher Costs for Larger Firms: While large businesses can mitigate productivity losses through air conditioning and other energy-intensive solutions, this adaptation comes at the cost of higher operational expenses. 

Yet, despite these risks, climate adaptation offers investment opportunities. 

Investments in climate adaptation presents a $100 billion opportunity in Africa in sectors such as: 

• Agriculture – Scaling drought-resistant crops and climate-smart irrigation solutions. 
• Infrastructure & Cities– Climate proofing critical infrastructure and flood-resilient urban systems. 
• Energy & Utilities – Investing in decentralized renewable energy and smart grid solutions. 
• Transport & Logistics – Expanding climate-resilient supply chains and cold storage solutions. 

By positioning adaptation as an opportunity, businesses can innovate, access new markets, and secure long-term profitability. 

• Mobilize Finance: Working with leading financial institutions in Africa, such as CRDB Bank in Tanzania and Equity Group in Kenya, to expand access to adaptation finance for SMEs and corporates. 
• Unlocking Blended Finance for Climate Adaptation: Working with partners such as MIGA to de-risking adaptation investments through blended finance instruments, including guarantees, to help investors and lenders structure financing models that enable businesses to adopt climate resilience solutions. 
• Strengthening Business Climate Resilience: Providing technical support to enterprises on climate risk integration, supply chain resilience, and adaptive business models, and enhancing SME capacity to invest in climate-smart infrastructure and innovation. 
• Creating Enabling Policies for Private Sector Action: Working with governments and partners such as the IMF to advocate for and design policy reforms that create an enabling environment for private sector adaptation investment.  
• Driving Market Transformation: Partnering with the World Economic Forum and global financial leaders to integrate adaptation into corporate sustainability and finance agendas. 

Our Adaptation Finance Program deploys these approaches to build the capacity of vulnerable countries and businesses to drive adaptation at a much greater scale through its targeted business lines: 

For more information on this program, or to get involved, please contact: