Latest News – September 13: SBFN hosted its 8th Global Meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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Category: Global Developments

On World Environment Day, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in the Philippines kicked off its 2nd Climate Forum, a pivotal event dedicated to fostering discussions and actions towards the net-zero transition for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). Held from June 5 to June 7, 2024, the forum convened key stakeholders including the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), an SBFN member since 2013, Securities and Exchange Commission Philippines, Hong Kong Monetary Authority, and significant private sector partners such as The Alliance for Green Commercial Banks, Bank of the Philippine Islands, RCBC, GCash, and Maya.
In a concerted effort to embrace Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles and Sustainable Finance practices, Banking Associations (BAs) across the Western Balkans gathered for a Training of Trainers (ToT) event on April 26, 2024. Organized by IFC's Integrated ESG Program in collaboration with the Sustainable Banking and Finance Network (SBFN) and Sustineri Partners, the event unfolded under the auspices of the ESG Adria Summit
Makhtar Diop, IFC's Managing Director, has called for global alignment of sustainable finance taxonomies to direct capital to urgent common goals, such as addressing climate change. He explains that, while each country has its own needs and priorities, policymakers and regulators can identify common design features, align impact metrics and accounting standards, and embrace an “adopt or adapt” approach — borrowing templates or criteria from others and adjusting as needed.
The Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBAR), a Sustainable Banking and Finance Network (SBFN) member since 2022, published the country’s first Sustainable Finance Roadmap in February 2023.  The Roadmap sets out the country’s ambition for sustainable finance for the period 2023-2026 and aims to ensure both sustainability of the financial sector to the environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks and the realization of green finance opportunities.
The European Union (EU) Platform on Sustainable Finance published “Platform recommendations on Data and Usability as part of Taxonomy reporting” and a "Final Report on Minimum Safeguards of the EU Taxonomy", which provide important insights into the implementation of the EU Taxonomy and application of minimum safeguards.