São Paulo, March 4, 2026 – IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has launched a regional initiative in partnership with BlackForest Solutions GmbH and ABIPLAST to accelerate investment-ready opportunities in industrial plastic circularity across Brazil, Latin America, and the Caribbean. The initiative aims to transform the region’s plastic industry by promoting a circular economy model that reduces waste, reuses materials, and restores natural capital, while fostering resilience, job creation, and innovation.
The circular economy represents a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity globally, employing an estimated 121 to 142 million people across 177 countries, equivalent to 5–5.8% of total employment. By replacing the traditional linear “take-make-waste” system, circularity initiatives in the region are expected to significantly reduce single-use plastics and minimize reliance on fossil-fuel-based virgin plastics.
Brazil is a leader in plastic production in Latin America and the Caribbean, which produces 15.7 million tons annually, representing 3.8% of global output. In 2024, more than 20% of Brazil’s plastic waste was reused as raw material, marking an 8% increase from the previous year. Recycled content is expected to continue rising, driving growth in post-consumer resin and expanding opportunities for circularity investments.
The IFC-led initiative, implemented with BlackForest Solutions and ABIPLAST, will support major plastic users, converters, and key value-chain actors in turning circularity ambitions into actionable investments. The program involves mapping regional industrial plastics demand, developing tools to quantify virgin plastic usage and model reduction pathways, piloting roadmaps with selected companies, and identifying credible investment opportunities to inform IFC’s business pipeline.
IFC has committed over $1.9 billion and mobilized nearly $500 million from investors to circular economy projects in emerging markets, supporting companies that reduce resource use, extend product value, regenerate natural systems, and design out waste. This effort builds on IFC’s May 2025 launch of the Harmonized Circular Economy Finance Guidelines, which assist investors and companies in identifying and financing circular economy projects.
BlackForest Solutions GmbH serves as an advisory and implementation partner specializing in waste and resource management, post-consumer plastics, and cross-border waste movement. The firm helps corporates, industry associations, and development institutions translate sustainability objectives into measurable roadmaps, delivering projects across Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.
ABIPLAST, the Brazilian Plastics Industry Association, represents Brazil’s plastics processing and recycling sector and promotes competitiveness, new technologies, and sustainable practices. With over 14,600 member companies employing more than 404,000 professionals, ABIPLAST prioritizes the circular economy as a strategic focus to advance sustainability across the industry.
