IFC Circularity Plus

Accelerating Waste-to-Value-Solutions

Modern waste management practices play a critical role in achieving sustainable development and addressing climate change.

The world generates a staggering amount of waste—over 2 billion tons of municipal solid waste every year. Our World Bank Group research also shows that global waste is projected to increase by 70 percent by 2050 unless urgent action is taken. This surge, across both industrial and municipal sectors, is expected to be particularly pronounced in developing countries.

With limited access to reliable collection services or reuse, recycling, and energy recovery facilities, most of the waste in developing countries winds up in open dumps, creating a significant public health hazard and causing pollution, environmental degradation, and biodiversity loss. Waste is responsible for a full 20 percent of the world’s methane emissions. And, at a potency nearly 80 times that of carbon dioxide, emissions from the waste sector exacerbate the impacts of climate change.

Modern waste management practices play a critical role in achieving sustainable development and addressing climate change. This requires a shift away from the linear “take-make-waste” approach towards a circular economy. It means reducing waste generation and promoting waste-to-value solutions by reclaiming materials and recovering energy.

Waste pickers work long days collecting recyclable material at the Vinča Landfill in Belgrade, Serbia. Photo by Dominic Chavez/IFC

IFC Circularity Plus Platform

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The Solution: The Circularity Plus Platform

Circularity Plus is an IFC-led initiative that supports private waste management companies and municipalities with integrated investment, advisory and networking solutions to harness the resource value in waste and foster a circular economy.

Global Network

As members of a global network, participants gain exclusive access to knowledge, learning, and sharing of lessons learned, best practices and innovation from around the world to support their circular business ambitions.

Advisory Solutions

Members can benefit from IFC’s customized advisory and pre-investment services, thought leadership, and technical expertise on a range of relevant issues, such as markets and regulation, technology and business innovation, and carbon credit markets.

Investment Support

Members can tap into a variety of IFC financing options, including green, blue, and sustainability-linked financing; local currency financing, equity, mezzanine, and risk mitigation instruments; and concessional finance.

Focus Areas

Our client solutions span four areas of sustainable waste management

Integrated Waste Management Services

Improved technologies for collection, sorting, and safe disposal.

Energy Recovery from Waste

Deployment of technologies such as refuse-derived fuel (RDF), landfill gas-to-energy, biogas, and waste-to-energy.

Efficient Recycling Infrastructure

Material recovery facilities (MRFs), urban mining, and technologies to collect, sort, and process recyclables.

New Revenue Streams from Circularity

Identification of opportunities in carbon credits, plastic credits, and extended producer responsibility (EPR).

Current Advisory Engagement Areas

Recycling and reuse: Accelerating plastic and e-waste recycling and post-consumer electronics reuse.
Harnessing organic waste: Commercializing and scaling up bioconversion and biogas production.
Developing circularity strategy: Developing circular waste management strategies for municipalities and private-sector clients.
Accessing the carbon credit market: Enabling access to carbon credits for clients across the waste value chain.