The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), together with the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), and the Securities and Exchange Regulator of Cambodia (SERC), signed a Memorandum of Agreement today to accelerate financing towards green, sustainable and net-zero projects in Cambodia. As part of this partnership, the Cambodia Sustainable Bond Accelerator: Empowering Issuers through Technical Assistance programme was also launched, in collaboration with Credit Guarantee and Investment Facility (CGIF) and GuarantCo part of the Private Infrastructure Development Group.
Cambodia's financing needs to address climate change impacts and meet Cambodia's nationally determined contributions (NDC) are substantial. Without climate adaptation and mitigation investment, it is estimated that the impact of climate change could cost Cambodia 1 percent of GDP per year for the next decade and could potentially wipe out all economic gains by 2050. According to the latest NDCs, Cambodia's climate mitigation and adaptation plans would require total funding of roughly $7.8 billion. Innovative financing instruments such as green and sustainable bonds have a strong potential to close this financing gap by driving institutional and private capital to prioritize the sustainability agenda.
"Green, sustainability and sustainability-linked bonds have demonstrated to be transformative investment vehicles to channel financing towards green and sustainable initiatives," said Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCAP. "Through our partnership with SERC and GGGI we are proud to be working to accelerate financing towards climate adaptation and mitigation initiatives in Cambodia. We are also pleased that the initiative has generated collaboration and support from the CGIF and GuarantCo as key collaborators."
The programme will support Cambodian companies planning to issue green, sustainability and sustainability-linked bonds through addressing the challenges faced by bond issuers by enhancing issuers' abilities to meet international thematic and sustainability-linked bond standards and by lowering the cost of issuance. Over the course of this year, the initiative will select up to four companies, which will receive technical advice and capacity building on the green bond issuance preparation, and investment support for roadshows, connecting to investors, and credit enhancement where feasible.
