In a major policy shift that could reshape global development priorities, the United States has called on the World Bank to abandon its disproportionate focus on climate change and return to its founding mission: ending poverty. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made the appeal this week, criticizing the institution for devoting nearly half of its financing to climate projects – a staggering 45 percent – and urging it instead to invest in projects that “increase access to affordable and reliable energy, reduce poverty and boost growth.”

The message is clear and long overdue. The World Bank was not created to become a global climate fund. Established at the end of the Second World War, it was designed to rebuild war-torn economies and later took on the task of lifting developing nations out of poverty. Yet, in recent years, the institution has strayed far from this core purpose, pouring billions into climate-related projects that have yielded negligible results for the world’s poorest populations.

Since the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, the World Bank has rebranded itself as a leader in green finance. Last year alone, it spent a record $42.6 billion on climate projects – funds that could have been used to provide basic health care, expand education, or build vital infrastructure in impoverished regions. Instead, this money has been redirected into climate schemes that, while politically fashionable in Western capitals, do little to address the daily struggles of billions living without electricity, clean water, or adequate food.

Saudi Arabia, notably, has aligned with Washington in opposing excessive climate spending. The Kingdom’s position underscores a growing recognition among developing and energy-producing nations that climate orthodoxy........

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