The initiative, to be implemented through the ABA, will not only benefit the natural environment, but will also strengthen the country’s economic and social resilience.
The Dominican Republic will benefit from a regional network of Enlaces launched by IDB Invest to promote green finance in Latin America.
The implementation of the protocol will not only benefit the natural environment, but will also strengthen the country’s economic and social resilience, creating a path towards a more prosperous and promising future for current and future generations.
In addition to favourable financing conditions, research and training initiatives are also planned to facilitate access to credit.
At the time of the launch of the network, which took place within the framework of the II Latin American Congress on Sustainable and Inclusive Banking held on August 26 and 27 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, nine countries were incorporated, including the Dominican Republic, with the Green Protocol network, which will be executed through the Association of Banks of the Dominican Republic (ABA). The other incorporated networks are: Sustainable Finance Protocol (Argentina), Green Protocol and Social Protocol (Asobancaria, Colombia), Sustainable Finance Protocol (ASOBANCA, Ecuador), Sustainable Banking Committee (ABANSA, El Salvador), Sustainable Finance Advisory Council (Guatemala), Sustainable Banking Program (AHIBA, Honduras), Sustainability Protocol (ABM, Mexico), Sustainable Finance Protocol (ABP, Panama), Sustainable Finance Roundtable (Paraguay).
The network, which is of particular importance to the Dominican Republic as one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change, involves public and private commercial banks and financial institutions, and seeks to create a space for collaboration between financial actors in the region, which allows for the sharing of experiences and best practices, facilitates access to knowledge and training, promotes actions that incorporate environmental, social and governance criteria in financial institutions, and enhances the mobilization of impact financing to position the Dominican Republic and other countries in the region in the global context of sustainable finance.
BID Invest will provide support during the network’s constitution and consolidation stages, it was explained.
The Green Protocol, which will be implemented by the ABA through multiple banks, is a voluntary agreement between financial institutions that seeks to promote the sustainable development of a country by financing projects that have a positive impact on the environment and reduce the polluting effects of productive activities.
This protocol constitutes a collaborative initiative that establishes the action plan with which the entities of the Dominican banking system are committed to address the growing environmental and climatic challenges and create the conditions for productive dynamics conducive to sustainable and inclusive development.
According to an ABA report, this is an instrument that allows addressing environmental and climate challenges by institutionalizing best practices for the sustainable development of the banking sector in the Dominican Republic, creating conditions for directing more private capital toward long-term environmentally sustainable projects and programs.
“This commits the signatory financial institutions, the multiple banks, to comprehensively evaluate the climate impact of the projects and investments to be financed and promote sustainable solutions (products, services and others) that support eco-efficient economic activities, in accordance with the national green taxonomy,” explains the ABA report.
