The eco.business Fund Development Facility co-hosts training in environmental and social risk analysis
“Theory and Practice in the Diagnosis, Development and Implementation of Environmental and Social Risk Management Systems”
As part of its strategy to support and build capacity among its partner institutions in the region, the eco.business Development Facility co-delivered a web-based training session on environmental and social risk analysis for financial institutions in Latin America on June 29, 2018.
Entitled “Theory and Practice in the Diagnosis, Development and Implementation of Environmental and Social Risk Management Systems,” the training was organized by Brazilian consultancy firm SITAWI, a pioneer in the development of financial solutions for the social sector.
The eco.business Development Facility and SITAWI had already conducted several technical assistance projects together with various banks in the region to help them develop and implement Environmental and Social Risk Management Systems (ESMS) to address such risks in their portfolios. Now, the partners tapped this experience to offer their insights to further banks in the form of a webinar.
The webinar was attended by 40 participants from financial institutions around the region. Special focus topics included not only the relationship between socio-environmental issues and financial institutions, but especially how ESMS development and implementation can ensure benefits for all stakeholders. To illustrate how this can work best, the eco.business Development Facility and SITAWI presented the particular success story of Nicaragua’s Lafise Bancentro: Here, the eco.business Fund had provided the resources for implementing the ESMS in the bank, and SITAWI had acted as a consultant to support the evaluation, design and implementation of that system.
The webinar (in Spanish) is now available online.
About the eco.business Fund
The eco.business Fund is spearheading the promotion of business practices that contribute to the preservation of biodiversity, the sustainable use of natural resources, and climate change mitigation and adaptation through private enterprises. By providing financing for business practices that conserve nature and foster biodiversity, the fund seeks investments with both financial and environmental returns. The fund mainly provides loans to qualified local financial institutions that lend the money to eligible borrowers, which include holders of recognized certifications or those making improvements in line with conservation and biodiversity goals. The fund supports sustainable operations in the sectors of agriculture, fishery, forestry and eco-tourism.
The eco.business Fund was initiated by Germany’s KfW Development Bank and Conservation International with financial support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). It has received further donor support from the European Commission. The additional investor base comprises Dutch development bank FMO, the Austrian development bank OeEB and institutional investors such as sustainable banking institution ASN Bank, German ethical bank GLS, Calvert Impact Capital, and Raiffeisen Bank International. Finance in Motion, a leading impact investing company, is also an investor.
Operating hand-in-hand with the eco.business Fund, the eco.business Development Facility provides high-impact technical assistance at the sector level to local lending institutions and final borrowers.
For more information, please visit www.ecobusiness.fund and follow us on Twitter @ecobusinessfund
About the eco.business Fund Development Facility
The eco.business Fund Development Facility was created in 2014 to support the environmental funding office. Its main goal is to maximize the impact of the fund by complementing its investment activities with an efficient, specific, and innovative assistance technique in the beneficiary countries.
The program is implemented through training projects, direct support to the financial sector, and applied research, with the goal of strengthening the internal skills and the transactions of institutions associated with the fund.