The accelerating progress on climate action in Asia and the Pacific will require significant resources, and there is an increasing need to look across the role of both public and private players to effectively respond to climate change and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While Governments will need to accelerate the reform of fiscal management and increase technical capacity to systematically address climate change issues across their public investment portfolio, the private sector will be also critical in achieving the SDGs through leveraging their financial resources and innovation for sustainable development.
Following the outcome of the Paris Agreement (or COP21), Governments around the world, especially those in Asia and the Pacific, are increasingly taking steps to encourage the development of green finance. Green finance is gaining momentum, and one of the most significant growth opportunities in the capital markets is in green bonds. The global green bond issuance reached to US$ 167 billion in 2018.
The Climate Finance & Sustainable Investing Conference 2019 aims to bring together policymakers, private business and financial sectors, international organizations, and other relevant stakeholders to discuss the pressing issues in promoting climate-resilient investment to support the SDGs and scale the Asia-Pacific's green capital market.
The major objectives are to:
(1) Develop a common understanding of the latest trends, successes and challenges with infrastructure financing for the Belt and Road countries;
(2) Launch a platform or network to integrate green technologies, including smart city solutions into carbon mitigation strategy and leverage greater financial flows for the Greater Bay Area of China;
(3) Identify best practices for public-private partnership (PPP), environment, social and governance (ESG) investment and green bonds, mainstreaming, and accessing and leveraging finance for climate change; and
(4) Raise awareness about climate and sustainable finance and strengthen capacity of stakeholders to develop an enabling policy environment that promotes public and private investment in climate change mitigation and adaptation projects.
For more information and all photos of the event, please visit http://wgo.org.hk/unf/media-centre/
