Philippine Activists Picket Bank Protesting Ecology Damaging Activities

Environmental activists from the Philippines rallied on Tuesday near the Export-Import Bank of Korea's (KEXIM) headquarters in Manila protesting against its funding of fossil fuel projects that are harmful for ecology.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, the UN-affiliated Green Climate Fund (GCF) is expected to gather in South Korea to discuss applications from the world's financial institutions, including the one from KEXIM.

The activists gathered in front of the headquarters of KEXIM protesting against its funding of coal plants in the Philippines and called for the bank's disqualification from the GCF because its activities contradicted the fund's principles, the InterAksyon news portal reported.

According to the news outlet, the bank had provided $3.8 billion for funding of coal power plants overseas from 2007 to 2014, making it the fifth biggest institution in the world that funded coal-related projects.

The website added that members of such groups as the Asian Peoples Movement on Debt and Development, the Freedom from Debt Coalition, the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice and 350.org East Asia participated in the rally.

The GCF was set up in Cancun, Mexico, in 2010 at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change's (UNFCCC) 16th Conference of the Parties (COP16). It is a financial institution aiming to support climate initiatives in developing countries across the world.