What It Is
Just Partnerships (JETPs) are country-specific partnerships between developing economies and a group of wealthy nations to accelerate fossil fuel phase-out and clean energy transition. They are bilateral-plurilateral country packages combining concessional finance, grants, and technical assistance to support coal phase-out and clean energy transition in specific developing economies.
JETPs combine multiple instruments — grants, concessional loans, guarantees, technical assistance — from multiple donors into single country packages. The financing typically flows over multi-year periods (3–7 years) with substantial portfolios.
The First JETP: South Africa
The first JETP, with South Africa, was announced at COP26 in Glasgow (November 2021) — an $8.5 billion package from the US, UK, EU, France, and Germany. The South Africa JETP was significant for several reasons:
- It was the first concrete major-donor commitment to direct climate finance to a specific country.
- The amount ($8.5B) was unusually large for a single climate finance package.
- It established the basic template (multi-donor, multi-instrument, country-led plan).
- It addressed coal phase-out in a coal-dependent economy with strong domestic political opposition.
The South Africa JETP came after years of climate-finance promises that had under-delivered. The Glasgow announcement was meant to demonstrate that the wealthy world could mobilize substantial climate finance for specific countries.
Subsequent JETPs
Subsequent JETPs have been agreed with:
- Indonesia ($20 billion, announced November 2022 at the Summit in Bali) — the largest JETP to date.
- Vietnam ($15.5 billion, December 2022 at the EU-ASEAN Summit).
- Senegal ($2.7 billion, June 2023).
Total announced JETP commitments exceed $46 billion across the four current JETPs. The has expanded the scale of climate finance significantly beyond what individual donors could mobilize alone.
Implementation Challenges
Implementation has been slower than announcements suggested:
- South Africa's JETP has faced challenges over coal-mining communities' transition support, grid investment sequencing, and disagreements about the right energy mix (more or less natural gas, more or less nuclear). Eskom's institutional and financial struggles have complicated implementation.
- Indonesia's JETP has had longer-than-expected planning phases as Indonesia and donors negotiate the specifics of coal-plant retirement schedules and renewable-energy deployment plans.
- Vietnam's JETP has been the most contested politically as Vietnam's government has navigated between donor preferences and domestic political constraints.
- Senegal's JETP is the smallest and earliest in its lifecycle.
The gap between the announced numbers and actual disbursement has been a recurring criticism.
Critiques and Debates
JETPs have faced several critiques:
- Concessional vs grant balance: a large share of JETP financing is concessional loans, not grants. Developing countries argue grants are needed for the transition; donors prefer concessional finance that doesn't their fiscal balances as severely.
- Speed of disbursement: the gap between announced and disbursed funds has been substantial.
- : donor requirements (coal phase-out timelines, governance arrangements) can be seen as overly intrusive.
- Domestic political reception: in coal-producing countries, JETPs can be politically contentious because they affect workers, communities, and political alliances.
Pipeline JETPs
India and the Philippines have explored JETPs but not finalized agreements. The political and technical complexity of negotiating multi-billion-dollar transition packages with major emerging economies has been substantial; both potential JETPs are in various stages of preparation through 2026.
The Indian JETP discussions have been particularly difficult given India's coal dependence and the politically sensitive nature of any external influence on Indian energy policy.
Common Misconceptions
JETPs are sometimes treated as gifts or grants. They are largely concessional loans — still debt that must be repaid, just at preferential terms. The grant element is typically a minority of the package.
Another misconception is that JETPs replace other climate finance. They are additional to other climate finance flows (GCF, , bilateral assistance) rather than substitutes.
Real-World Examples
The South Africa JETP Investment Plan (released in 2022 and updated in 2024) is the most detailed JETP implementation framework. The Indonesia JETP Investment and Policy Plan (November 2023) outlined the country's energy-transition pathway. The 2024 G7 Climate, Energy and Environment Ministerial revisited the JETP framework and committed to accelerating disbursement against the announced amounts.
Example
South Africa's JETP Investment Plan (November 2022) detailed how the initial $8.5 billion would support coal-region transition, EVs, and green hydrogen — but actual disbursements have lagged the announced ambition.