IDB Modernizes Lending to Accelerate Disaster Response and Boost Impact

WASHINGTON — The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved a new Unified Investment Lending Policy (UIP) that will allow investment financing to be deployed faster, more easily, and more clearly tied to outcomes.  

Under the UIP, the IDB is streamlining lending instruments — covering loans, grants, and guarantees — and introducing new modalities that:  

• strengthen disaster-risk management and resilience;
• make it easier to scale up financing for successful development projects; and
• support long-term programs to tackle shared challenges in areas such as regional integration and cross-border infrastructure. 

The reform updates previous instrument policies with a simpler, more flexible framework. The policy also expands results-based financing, where disbursements depend on pre-agreed outcomes. Countries will be able to apply this approach to a wider range of projects and scale up operations that have already proven effective. 

“This reform gives our borrowing members faster access to financing when they need it most and more flexibility to scale what works,” said IDB Group President Ilan Goldfajn. “It will allow us to combine instruments more effectively, work better with partners, and deliver impact at greater scale.” 

To boost preparedness and speed recovery, the IDB is introducing two new emergency tools:  

• Investment Financing with Deferred Drawdown Option: allows countries to secure financing in advance and draw it down immediately after a natural disaster;
• Post-Emergency Financing: provides rapid funding once a disaster has occurred to support recovery and reconstruction. 

In parallel, the Bank has also revamped its Conditional Credit Lines for Integrated Projects, making it easier to integrate policy-based loans, investment financing, and technical assistance under a single strategy that can run up to 10 years. A more flexible revolving credit line will also support project preparation and execution. 

The UIP aligns the IDB’s lending framework with its 2024–2030 Institutional Strategy and brings its practices closer to those of other multilateral development banks. 

For more information, visit the IDB’s financing offerings page.