PRESENTATION BY THE KCB GROUP CEO, MR. JOSHUA OIGARA, ON FINANCING A GREEN ECONOMY HELD AT UNEP HEADQUARTERS – GIGIRI ON 25 TH JUNE 2014 AT 12NOON United Nations Under-Secretary General; UNEP Executive Director- Mr. Achim Steiner United Nations Under-Secretary General, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Secretary General – Dr. Mukhisa Kituyi, Executive Vice President, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China- Jingdong Wang Session Chair and Moderator & UNEP Finance Initiative – Dr. Charles Anderson, Ladies and Gentlemen, It gives great pleasure today as I join you for this session to share thoughts and insights to discuss “ How the Kenyan financial sector can increase capacity to respond to Kenya's Green Economy financing needs through the Kenyan Sustainable Finance Initiative.” Background of Kenya Banking landscape
In Kenya we have 73 Financial Institutions and 43 of them are commercial banks and 30 are Micro Financial Institutions. KCB is the largest Bank in Kenya and has a rich heritage of having been in existence since 1896. KCB has presence in Kenya, Tanzania, South Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi and supports the economic empowerment of the East African Region. The Bank offers universal banking products and services and is a member of Kenya Bankers Association (KBA). The Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) is the umbrella body that represents banks in Kenya and is an intermediary between the commercial banks, the regulator and government. Therefore all Banks are members of KBA. Because of our history, the Kenya banking sector is heavily multi- regulated but on the flipside we have seen positive trends in the sector over the last 10 years that has revolutionized banking in the country. • Introduction of automation for majority of payments (cheques, RTGs, EMV, internet) • Introduction of agency banking services • Introduction of Consumer Protection Guide • Credit Information Sharing • Mobile Banking services innovation for transaction and credit facilities access among others. All these initiatives have positively contributed towards supporting the financial inclusion agenda. KCB individual efforts as a Sustainable Finance Leader in Africa In line with today’s topic, I would briefly like to share KCB story on its Sustainability journey. This journey started in 2008 and last year, the Bank formally adopted a KCB Sustainability Framework that was approved by the Board. This was immediately followed by a comprehensive implementation of Social and Environmental Management System (SEMS) into the credit process and it allows the Bank to assess financing of its
projects to corporate and custromers. Internally, the Bank also rolled out its Green Agenda to address the annual carbon footprint. The success of the KCB story in the implementation of Sustainability and Green Agenda initiatives can be attributed to the following: • Ownership and drive from the Board and senior management. • Sustainability incorporated as an overall strategic direction for Bank business • Active engagement with employees for relevance and adoption at all levels and support sustainability as a business enabler to drive revenues, manage costs, reduce risks and build our brand and reputation. • Long term vision of looking beyond profits and assess the Bank’s impact on the community, employees and other stakeholders. Therefore the four Sustainability Pillars is very much aligned and is relevant to the Kenya Green Economy Assessment Report and Sustainable Finance Initiative (SFI) which the Bank is pursuing: • Financial stability • Economic Sustainability • Environmental Sustainability • Social Sustainability In line with the four pillars the Bank has also identified 10 Action Points to drive this agenda in the next five years focusing on short, medium term and long term initiatives. Today KCB is playing an active role in driving the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) agenda to incorporate the sector wide approach of Sustainable Finance Initiatives (SFI) for business. Sustainable Finance Initiative (SFI)
The introduction of Sustainable Finance Initiative (SFI) was initiated by members of Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) to find the best approach for members to implement sustainable green economy into the banking sector. As earlier mentioned the Banking Sector in Kenya does not have a standard framework that encompasses the green economy lending and risk assessments into credit. Therefore this approach of incorporating the whole sector will greatly enhance ownership by all banks and encourage economic growth for the country. In order to work on the recommendations for SFI, 12 banks were selected and they range from large, medium and small banks who form part of the working group to customize the five SFI initiatives into the Kenyan context within the five initiatives: • Financial Returns versus Economic viability • Growth through inclusivity and innovation • Managing and mitigating associated risks. • Optimal resource management • Business ethics and value In the long term the implementation of SFI by all banks in Kenya will greatly make Kenyan banks more competitive globally. In addition, Kenya also now joins the ranks of other countries like China's ‘Green Credit Policy’, Nigeria's ‘Sustainable Banking Principles’, and Paraguay's ‘Roundtable for Sustainable Finance’ to drive the SFI initiative. Banking Sector and Financing Looking at the banking sector in Kenya the following are the seven key sectors for lending and financing which is mirrored in the Kenya Green Economy Assessment Report: • Agriculture • Construction
• Manufacturing • Trade • Transport • Real estate • Personal financing As one looks at these sectors one can see a paradigm shift in banking to embrace these sectors and respond to the highlights of the green economy in Kenya. The sectors identified have potential for growth, innovation, expansion and job creation for progress as a nation. Opportunities in Green Financing There are opportunities in the green economy that Banks can support in agriculture, construction and real estate, energy and transport and manufacturing already available in the market. The challenge is to promote an enabling environment for policy and framework for the green economy at a macro level to drive this agenda forward and adopt it for business. Banking Sector Approach There are different approached to adoption of Sustainable Finance Initiatives globally, within Africa and in Kenya. The countries that have adopted the different approaches have either adopted voluntary or regulatory approach. On a global platform, the voluntary approach is favoured as it encourages ownership from all and a number of initiatives in place today like Equator Principles, UNEP-FI, Carbon principles, Climate Principles on Responsible Investments have continued to exist because of this approach. The regulatory approach is also used in countries like South Africa and Nigeria and it so far it is working well for their markets. The traditional way in Africa is that the regulator takes the lead in the sector and enforces compliance. However the issue of ownership rather than compliance is a debatable matter.
In Kenya although traditionally the regulator would enforce measures to be taken, the Banking Sector has adopted the voluntary approach towards SFI implementation. Once the commitments and the implementations are agreed upon, then the regulator can enforce it to the sector. The most important aspect of this arrangement is that there will be ownership from all members. Way Forward Through KBA the SFI is now being implemented on three work streams. These three work streams are focusing on the principles, capacity building and development of the green economy. The conclusion of this exercise will enable the banking sector to transition into the green economy with clear guidelines and will help achieve the following: • Promote enabling policies to drive the green economy. • Focus on energy (renewables-solar wind, geothermal and mini hydros) agriculture, manufacturing and construction to drive green economy growth. Action Points How can we transition into the Green Economy? I will share 10 Action Points relevant for our country today. These action points relate to the macro and micro level. The 10 action points: Macro Level: 1. Promote enabling environment for policy and framework for green economy. 2. Address the high cost of credit due to high risks 3. Support national statistics on green economy to address lack of data to facilitate informed decision making and future annual planning. 4. Broaden the base for government subsidies on essential goods and services to include manufacturing and energy.
5. Introduction of tax breaks and incentives for the banking sector looking at it in long term benefits to targeted sectors. Micro-Level 6. Support to best available technology that enables shift towards green growth. 7. Robust capacity building programme for the banking industry on green economy 8. Access to external markets for green economy products and development of alternative revenue streams through product value chain. 9. Promote environment and health benefits of green economy. 10. Since women are the majority in agriculture and trade in Kenya, specifics strategies need to developed targeting their work environment and return on investments. Thank you.
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