The Impact of Official Development Assistance on Carbon Emissions in Developing Countries: Implications for Mongolia

Using comprehensive panel data covering 110 developing countries over four decades (1981–2020), this study asks the following questions: (1) Will carbon emissions naturally decrease as income levels in developing countries rise? and (2) How do financial resources reduce those emissions? The study finds that: 1) major carbon emissions are expected to decrease after countries reach a certain income threshold level, confirming the so-called Environmental Kuznets Hypothesis, with the turning point occurring between $26,884 and $38,674; and 2) both official development assistance (hereafter, ODA) disbursement in the energy sector and private investment are more effective in relatively lower income developing countries (a threshold of $6,343 and $7,806) where higher temperatures prevail. This means that, in colder and relatively higher-income (rapidly growing, per se) economies, ODA and private investment should serve as strategic complements to each other, facilitating multi-stakeholder partnerships, including public-private partnerships, to address environmental degradation. In this regard, this article discusses the case of Mongolia.