Business News of Tuesday, 19 March 2019
Source: thefinderonline.com
2019-03-19
Alhassan Andani, Managing Director of Stanbic Bank
President of the Bankers Association of Ghana, Alhassan Andani says the banking sector will not finance projects which endanger the climate.
He added that it has resolved to halt funding of projects which do not follow the guidelines for sustainable investment.
Contrarily, he said the sector will actively take part in fund mobilisation to assist agencies in fighting climate change.
He intimated that all the 23 commercial banks will commission technical experts to do impact analysis on such project.
Mr Andani also said industries whose actions have affected climate change must be charged to invest in climate change interventions.
Speaking at an investment forum on Ghana’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) as part of the 2019 Africa Climate Week being held in Accra, he revealed that a committee is currently working on a document that will make this officially binding on all the current 23 banks in the country.
The two-day forum will discuss ways to crowd in private sector investment for projects in Ghana that are financially viable and that also deliver the climate solutions Ghana pledged in its NDC.
The forum will be a platform to discuss and showcase proven climate solutions and investment-ready climate actions projects to attract support from all relevant stakeholders and mobilise investments for climate actions in Ghana.
Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Professor Kwabena Frimpong Boateng, at the forum, stated that Ghana needs about $22 billion investments from domestic and international public and private sources to finance its climate actions starting 2020.
Additionally, he said about US$6.3 billion is expected to be mobilised from domestic sources and 16.3 billion will come from international support, and this is the best time for Ghana to mobilise more investment.
Consequently, he said huge investment is required to tackle climate change globally, and this calls for innovative financing, especially from the private sector, to accelerate climate change adaption and mitigation actions.
In his opening remarks, acting Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Mr John Pwamang, said Ghana has made efforts focused on developing an enabling policy framework for implementing the Ghana Nationally Determined Contributions (GH-NDCs).
However, he said the collective effort of all the current NDC is not enough to achieve the 2-degree goal on time; therefore, Ghana needs to drive more than it has pledged.
Resident Representative for United Nations Development Programme, Ms Gita Honwawa Welch, on her part, asserted that addressing climate change provides an unprecedented opportunity to unlock massive economic and social benefits that help in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
She said Ghana has demonstrated strong political will in raising the ambition of its climate agenda, as showcased by the NDC; however, like many other countries, it has to mobilise more funds in achieving that.
According to Ms Welch, Ghana needs to work on considering climate change in every ministerial decision taken and incorporating it into every development plan and accompanying budgetary framework.
