KUALA LUMPUR, October 6, 2020 ¡ª New sustainable and inclusive finance solutions that Malaysia and other developing countries are tapping into to support a resilient recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic will be the focus of a week-long finance event jointly organized by ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP Negara Malaysia and ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP Group and starting today.
The Sustainable and Inclusive Finance Forum will feature sessions on innovative tools. The forum will also see the launch of a series of World ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP reports on Malaysia¡¯s experience in developing its financial sector and two sessions related the Green Finance Leadership Program co-organized with Tsinghua University.
¡°This forum will showcase Malaysia¡¯s important contributions to the global priorities of environmental sustainability and financial inclusion,¡± said Victoria Kwakwa, ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP Vice President for East Asia and Pacific. ¡°Financial instruments that reduce vulnerability and increase opportunities for vulnerable groups can be promoted along with investments that accelerate the transition toward a carbon-neutral, more resource-efficient and competitive economy.¡±
¡°The pandemic has provided an impetus for us to reset and reprioritize resources to reconstruct our economies and financial systems to be more sustainable and inclusive,¡± said Datuk Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus, ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP Negara Governor. ¡°While our immediate priority is to safeguard both lives and livelihoods in this pandemic, the world must not lose sight of its goal to pursue a better and more sustainable future for all, such as that set out by the Sustainable Development Goals.¡±
One highlight of the Forum will be progress on the Green Sukuk initiative since its first issuance three years ago. Green Sukuk was an initiative by ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP Negara Malaysia, Securities Commission Malaysia and ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP Group to create a new instrument to channel global Islamic financing flows toward green and sustainable investment projects. The experience of this initiative will be captured in a new report that will be launched during the Forum. The report notes that as of July 2020, there has been US$6.1 billion issuances of Green Sukuk globally.
Another initiative to be highlighted during the Forum is a new World ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP guide on how to develop a national green taxonomy. This taxonomy was launched recently to help regulators in emerging economies ¡°green¡¯ their financial systems by identifying investments that are in line with environmental objectives. With World ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP support, BNM has issued a discussion paper on climate change and the development of a principle-based taxonomy, with the goal of assisting Malaysia¡¯s financial sector in identifying and classifying economic activities.
Another new World ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP report on Malaysia¡¯s domestic bond markets will be launched during the Forum. It finds that Malaysia¡¯s ability to develop specific segments of the debt capital market have been best reflected in infrastructure and Islamic financing. The value of the Malaysian project-finance bond market stands among the world¡¯s biggest, with Malaysia ranking 21st out of 137 countries for the quality of its infrastructure.
Through its Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Finance Hub in Kuala Lumpur, the World ¶¹ÄÌÊÓƵAPP Group is working in close partnership with the Malaysian Government to support the country¡¯s inclusive growth ambitions and its global leadership role in promoting sustainable and inclusive finance goals.
For more information about the forum, visit /en/events/2020/09/22/sustainable-and-inclusive-finance-forum-2020
