CBE Issues "Sustainable Finance" Guiding Principles

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) issued on Sunday the guiding principles for sustainable finance, which aims to lay the general framework for applying sustainable finance in Egyptian banks, building capacities and providing the necessary resources to implement these principles.

This comes in light of the CBE's keenness to support sustainable development, and with the aim of keeping pace with international best practices in establishing the rules of "sustainable finance" in the Egyptian banking sector.

Sustainable financing refers to banks financing projects that take into account the environmental component of society, such as clean and renewable energy projects, as well as projects that take into account the social component of small, medium and micro-industry projects and labor-intensive projects that create more job opportunities and work to reduce poverty rates and raise the level of Living in the most needy areas.

It also enhances the general framework of governance, establishing transparency and supporting monitoring, follow-up and evaluation systems in order to achieve sustainable benefit for both project owners and society as a whole.

It is worth noting that the application of “sustainable financing” leads to enhancing investment opportunities and pumping more foreign currency by attracting a new segment of investors, who target sustainable financing, as well as foreign direct investment (FDI) in the banking sector and the national economy.

The issuance of the principles comes as an important step towards supporting development efforts and the country's plans to achieve sustainable growth in all fields, as well as providing the necessary funding for projects that contribute to achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs).