IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/eneeco/v149y2025ics0140988325005535.html

Importing innovation or indigenous innovation: Evaluating the effect of climate finance on promoting environmental sustainability in developing countries

Author

Listed:
  • Zhang, Jinhua
  • Li, Yafei
  • Du, Ruonan
  • Hua, Xiuping

Abstract

This paper examines the influence of climate finance on the CO2 emissions and explores the underlying mechanisms from the perspectives of external and indigenous innovations, with a cross-country panel dataset encompassing 140 developing countries from 2002 to 2022. The results indicate that climate finance has a negative and significant impact on CO2 emissions. Specifically, a one-standard-deviation increase in climate funds correlates with an approximate 3.31 % reduction in per GDP CO2 emissions. However, heterogeneity analysis reveals that in the least developed countries, climate finance does not significantly reduce carbon emissions and, in some cases, may even enhance the carbon emissions. Mechanism analysis suggests that climate finance promotes environmental sustainability by introducing external innovation rather than promoting indigenous innovation in developing countries. These results shed new light on the pollution halo hypothesis in developing nations.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhang, Jinhua & Li, Yafei & Du, Ruonan & Hua, Xiuping, 2025. "Importing innovation or indigenous innovation: Evaluating the effect of climate finance on promoting environmental sustainability in developing countries," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:149:y:2025:i:c:s0140988325005535
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2025.108726
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140988325005535
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.eneco.2025.108726?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jonathan Pickering & Carola Betzold & Jakob Skovgaard, 2017. "Special issue: managing fragmentation and complexity in the emerging system of international climate finance," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 17(1), pages 1-16, February.
    2. Patrick Guillaumont, 2010. "Assessing the Economic Vulnerability of Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries," Post-Print hal-00594797, HAL.
    3. Kogut, Bruce & Chang, Sea Jin, 1991. "Technological Capabilities and Japanese Foreign Direct Investment in the United States," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 73(3), pages 401-413, August.
    4. Bronwyn H. Hall & Adam Jaffe & Manuel Trajtenberg, 2005. "Market Value and Patent Citations," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 36(1), pages 16-38, Spring.
    5. Carrión-Flores, Carmen E. & Innes, Robert, 2010. "Environmental innovation and environmental performance," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 59(1), pages 27-42, January.
    6. Zhao, Jinsong & Zhou, Boxu & Li, Xinrui, 2022. "Do good intentions bring bad results? Climate finance and economic risks," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 48(C).
    7. Shimaa Elkomy & Hilary Ingham & Robert Read, 2021. "The Impact of Foreign Technology and Embodied R&D on Productivity in Internationally Oriented and High-Technology Industries in Egypt, 2006–2009," Journal of Industry, Competition and Trade, Springer, vol. 21(2), pages 171-192, June.
    8. Alfonso Carfora & Monica Ronghi & Giuseppe Scandurra, 2017. "The effect of Climate Finance on Greenhouse Gas Emission: A Quantile Regression Approach," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 7(1), pages 185-199.
    9. Lee, Keun & Malerba, Franco, 2017. "Catch-up cycles and changes in industrial leadership:Windows of opportunity and responses of firms and countries in the evolution of sectoral systems," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 338-351.
    10. Patrick Guillaumont, 2010. "Assessing the Economic Vulnerability of Small Island Developing States and the Least Developed Countries," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 46(5), pages 828-854.
    11. Rai, Varun & Funkhouser, Erik, 2015. "Emerging insights on the dynamic drivers of international low-carbon technology transfer," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 350-364.
    12. Pan, Xiongfeng & Li, Mengna & Wang, Mengyang & Chu, Junhui & Bo, Hongguang, 2020. "The effects of outward foreign direct investment and reverse technology spillover on China's carbon productivity," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    13. Tennant, David & Davies, Stuart & Tennant, Sandria, 2024. "Determinants of access to climate finance: Nuanced insights for SIDS and other vulnerable economies," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).
    14. Cohen, Wesley M & Levinthal, Daniel A, 1989. "Innovation and Learning: The Two Faces of R&D," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 99(397), pages 569-596, September.
    15. D'Arcangelo, Filippo Maria & Galeotti, Marzio, 2025. "Environmental policy and investment location: The risk of carbon leakage in the EU ETS," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
    16. Li, Yafei & Mbanyele, William & Sun, Jinping, 2022. "Managerial R&D hands-on experience, state ownership, and corporate innovation," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    17. Zhao, Xiaomeng & Liu, Chuanjiang & Sun, Chuanwang & Yang, Mian, 2020. "Does stringent environmental regulation lead to a carbon haven effect? Evidence from carbon-intensive industries in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    18. Omri, Anis & Nguyen, Duc Khuong & Rault, Christophe, 2014. "Causal interactions between CO2 emissions, FDI, and economic growth: Evidence from dynamic simultaneous-equation models," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 382-389.
    19. Awaworyi Churchill, Sefa & Inekwe, John & Ivanovski, Kris & Smyth, Russell, 2020. "The Environmental Kuznets Curve across Australian states and territories," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    20. Lee, Chien-Chiang & He, Zhi-Wen & Xiao, Fu, 2022. "How does information and communication technology affect renewable energy technology innovation? International evidence," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 200(C), pages 546-557.
    21. repec:ipg:wpaper:2014-542 is not listed on IDEAS
    22. Ehigiamusoe, Kizito Uyi & Lean, Hooi Hooi & Smyth, Russell, 2020. "The moderating role of energy consumption in the carbon emissions-income nexus in middle-income countries," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 261(C).
    23. Sourafel Girma, 2005. "Absorptive Capacity and Productivity Spillovers from FDI: A Threshold Regression Analysis," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 67(3), pages 281-306, June.
    24. Head, C. Keith & Ries, John C. & Swenson, Deborah L., 1999. "Attracting foreign manufacturing: Investment promotion and agglomeration," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(2), pages 197-218, March.
    25. Misch, Florian & Wingender, Philippe, 2024. "Revisiting carbon leakage," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    26. Figueiredo, Paulo N. & Cohen, Marcela, 2019. "Explaining early entry into path-creation technological catch-up in the forestry and pulp industry: Evidence from Brazil," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(7), pages 1694-1713.
    27. Duan, Yuwan & Jiang, Xuemei, 2021. "Pollution haven or pollution halo? A Re-evaluation on the role of multinational enterprises in global CO2 emissions," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    28. Paul M. Romer, 1994. "The Origins of Endogenous Growth," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 8(1), pages 3-22, Winter.
    29. Zhang, Ling Eleanor & Zhao, Shasha & Kern, Philipp & Edwards, Tony & Zhang, Zhi-Xue, 2023. "The pursuit of indigenous innovation amid the Tech Cold War: The case of a Chinese high-tech firm," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(6).
    30. Zhang, Mingming & Zhang, Shichang & Lee, Chien-Chiang & Zhou, Dequn, 2021. "Effects of trade openness on renewable energy consumption in OECD countries: New insights from panel smooth transition regression modelling," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(C).
    31. Grossman, Gene M. & Helpman, Elhanan, 1995. "Technology and trade," Handbook of International Economics, in: G. M. Grossman & K. Rogoff (ed.), Handbook of International Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 25, pages 1279-1337, Elsevier.
    32. Fu, Xiaolan & Pietrobelli, Carlo & Soete, Luc, 2011. "The Role of Foreign Technology and Indigenous Innovation in the Emerging Economies: Technological Change and Catching-up," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(7), pages 1204-1212, July.
    33. Patrick Guillaumont, 2010. "Assessing the Economic Vulnerability of Small Island Developing States and the Least Developed Countries," Post-Print halshs-00512159, HAL.
    34. Asif Raihan & Rawshan Ara Begum & Mohd Nizam Mohd Said & Joy Jacqueline Pereira, 2022. "Relationship between economic growth, renewable energy use, technological innovation, and carbon emission toward achieving Malaysia’s Paris agreement," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 42(4), pages 586-607, December.
    35. Njangang, Henri & Padhan, Hemachandra & Tiwari, Aviral Kumar, 2024. "From aid to resilience: Assessing the impact of climate finance on energy vulnerability in developing countries," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    36. Li, Ke & Lin, Boqiang, 2015. "Impacts of urbanization and industrialization on energy consumption/CO2 emissions: Does the level of development matter?," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 1107-1122.
    37. Bruno Van Pottelsberghe De La Potterie & Frank Lichtenberg, 2001. "Does Foreign Direct Investment Transfer Technology Across Borders?," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 83(3), pages 490-497, August.
    38. Lee, Chi-Chuan & Li, Xinrui & Yu, Chin-Hsien & Zhao, Jinsong, 2022. "The contribution of climate finance toward environmental sustainability: New global evidence," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C).
    39. Jeon, Yongbok & Park, Byung Il & Ghauri, Pervez N., 2013. "Foreign direct investment spillover effects in China: Are they different across industries with different technological levels?," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 105-117.
    40. Yueqi Wang & Yang Li & Peng Ding & Bin Guo, 2025. "Technology transfer and innovation efficiency in a large emerging economy: an integrative perspective of absorptive capacity and the technology ladder," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 50(5), pages 2340-2376, October.
    41. Zhang, Wencheng & Peng, Shuijun & Sun, Chuanwang, 2015. "CO2 emissions in the global supply chains of services: An analysis based on a multi-regional input–output model," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 93-103.
    42. Wang, Quan-Jing & Wang, Hai-Jie & Chang, Chun-Ping, 2022. "Environmental performance, green finance and green innovation: What's the long-run relationships among variables?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 110(C).
    43. Huang, Junbing & Du, Dan & Tao, Qizhi, 2017. "An analysis of technological factors and energy intensity in China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 1-9.
    44. Bommer, Rolf, 1999. "Environmental Policy and Industrial Competitiveness: The Pollution-Haven Hypothesis Reconsidered," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(2), pages 342-355, May.
    45. Amy Jocelyn Glass & Kamal Saggi, 2023. "Intellectual property rights and foreign direct investment," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Kamal Saggi (ed.), Technology Transfer, Foreign Direct Investment, and the Protection of Intellectual Property in the Global Economy, chapter 11, pages 251-274, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    46. Lee, Chien-Chiang & Yuan, Zihao & Wang, Qiaoru, 2022. "How does information and communication technology affect energy security? International evidence," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    47. Cole, Matthew A., 2004. "Trade, the pollution haven hypothesis and the environmental Kuznets curve: examining the linkages," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 71-81, January.
    48. Patrick Guillaumont, 2010. "Assessing the Economic Vulnerability of Small Island Developing States and the Least Developed Countries," Post-Print hal-00488679, HAL.
    49. Mazzoleni, Roberto & Nelson, Richard R., 2007. "Public research institutions and economic catch-up," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(10), pages 1512-1528, December.
    50. Carfora, Alfonso & Scandurra, Giuseppe, 2019. "The impact of climate funds on economic growth and their role in substituting fossil energy sources," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 182-192.
    51. Nadia Ameli & Paul Drummond & Alexander Bisaro & Michael Grubb & Hugues Chenet, 2020. "Climate finance and disclosure for institutional investors: why transparency is not enough," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 160(4), pages 565-589, June.
    52. Huang, Rui & Chen, Guangwu & Lv, Guonian & Malik, Arunima & Shi, Xunpeng & Xie, Xiaotian, 2020. "The effect of technology spillover on CO2 emissions embodied in China-Australia trade," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    53. You, Wanhai & Zhang, Yue & Lee, Chien-Chiang, 2022. "The dynamic impact of economic growth and economic complexity on CO2 emissions: An advanced panel data estimation," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 112-128.
    54. Michael E. Porter & Claas van der Linde, 1995. "Toward a New Conception of the Environment-Competitiveness Relationship," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 9(4), pages 97-118, Fall.
    55. Fourcroy, Charlotte & Gallouj, Faiz & Decellas, Fabrice, 2012. "Energy consumption in service industries: Challenging the myth of non-materiality," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 155-164.
    56. Apergis, Nicholas, 2016. "Environmental Kuznets curves: New evidence on both panel and country-level CO2 emissions," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 263-271.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lee, Chi-Chuan & Li, Xinrui & Yu, Chin-Hsien & Zhao, Jinsong, 2022. "The contribution of climate finance toward environmental sustainability: New global evidence," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C).
    2. Njangang, Henri & Padhan, Hemachandra & Tiwari, Aviral Kumar, 2024. "From aid to resilience: Assessing the impact of climate finance on energy vulnerability in developing countries," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    3. Zhang, Wenyue & Li, Jianan & Sun, Chuanwang, 2022. "The impact of OFDI reverse technology spillovers on China's energy intensity: Analysis of provincial panel data," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    4. Borojo, Dinkneh Gebre & Liu, Ningning, 2025. "The impacts of climate finance and digitalization on resources and energy intensity: Evidence from global south," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 332(C).
    5. Henri Atangana Ondoa & Arnold Dilane Momou Tchinda, 2026. "Resilience Starts with Revenue: Does Domestic Taxation Outperforms Climate Funds in Reducing Climate Vulnerability?," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 68(1), pages 1-43, March.
    6. Ren, Xiaohang & Hong, Keyi & Tao, Lizhu, 2025. "Driving a green future: Spatial econometric analysis of climate finance aid in renewable energy transition in developing countries," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 929-949.
    7. Thalis P. V. Zis & Harilaos N. Psaraftis, 2022. "Impacts of short-term measures to decarbonize maritime transport on perishable cargoes," Maritime Economics & Logistics, Palgrave Macmillan;International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), vol. 24(3), pages 602-629, September.
    8. Angelucci, Federica & Conforti, Piero, 2010. "Risk management and finance along value chains of Small Island Developing States. Evidence from the Caribbean and the Pacific," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(6), pages 565-575, December.
    9. Dirk Dohse & Rajeev K. Goel & Michael A. Nelson, 2019. "What induces firms to license foreign technologies? International survey evidence," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 40(7), pages 799-814, October.
    10. Zhu, Qingyuan & Sun, Chenhao & Xu, Chengzhen & Geng, Qianqian, 2025. "The impact of artificial intelligence on global energy vulnerability," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 15-27.
    11. Montalbano, Pierluigi, 2011. "Trade Openness and Developing Countries' Vulnerability: Concepts, Misconceptions, and Directions for Research," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(9), pages 1489-1502, September.
    12. Sourafel Girma, 2005. "Absorptive Capacity and Productivity Spillovers from FDI: A Threshold Regression Analysis," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 67(3), pages 281-306, June.
    13. Hejazi, Walid & Tang, Jianmin & Wang, Weimin, 2023. "Absorptive capacity, learning and profiting from outward FDI: Evidence from Canadian firms," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 58(3).
    14. Roger Hosein & Nirvana Satnarine-Singh & George Saridakis, 2022. "The Spillover Effect of Exports: An Analysis of Caribbean SIDs," Economia Internazionale / International Economics, Camera di Commercio Industria Artigianato Agricoltura di Genova, vol. 75(1), pages 1-28.
    15. Sèna Kimm Gnangnon, 2012. "Does Structural Economic Vulnerability Matter for Public Indebtedness in Developing Countries?," CERDI Working papers halshs-00749469, HAL.
    16. Jean-Fran ois Hoarau & Nicolas Lucic, 2022. "Are real merchandise imports per capita a good predictor for the standard of living for the small island world: Testing for the imports-led growth and the growth-led imports hypotheses in panels over the period 1970-2019," TEPP Working Paper 2022-16, TEPP.
    17. Pan, Xiongfeng & Li, Mengna & Wang, Mengyang & Chu, Junhui & Bo, Hongguang, 2020. "The effects of outward foreign direct investment and reverse technology spillover on China's carbon productivity," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    18. Andrew Curtis & Benjamin McLellan, 2023. "Framework for Assessment of the Economic Vulnerability of Energy-Resource-Exporting Countries," Resources, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-38, February.
    19. Nadia Basty & Dorsaf Azouz Ghachem, 2022. "A Sectoral Approach of Adaptation Finance in Developing Countries: Does Climate Justice Apply?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-18, August.
    20. Angeon, Valérie & Bates, Samuel, 2015. "Reviewing Composite Vulnerability and Resilience Indexes: A Sustainable Approach and Application," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 140-162.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • F35 - International Economics - - International Finance - - - Foreign Aid
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • O44 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Environment and Growth

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:149:y:2025:i:c:s0140988325005535. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/eneco .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.