Officials from SEC and IFC at the launch of the Green Bonds Guidelines 2024 in Accra
THE SECURITY and Exchange Commission (SEC) has, in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), launched the Green Bonds Guidelines 2024 in Accra.
The guidelines is an initiative aimed at promoting the role of the financial market in the financing of projects that meet the environmental development needs of Ghana.
Director General of SEC, Rev. Daniel Ogbarmey Tetteh, intimated that the Green Bonds Guidelines are designed to reshape Ghana’s financial landscape, unlock new avenues for investment, and accelerate the nation’s progress towards a greener, cleaner, and more prosperous future.
These guidelines, he added, are crafted in alignment with international best practices such as the International Capital Market Association’s Green Bond Principles and tailored to Ghana’s unique national context, and would provide a robust framework for the issuance and management of green bonds in the country.
“They are designed to foster transparency,
ensure credibility, and mitigate risks, thereby instilling confidence in investors and issuers alike. The guidelines also promote the standardization of green bond reporting, a critical step in ensuring transparency and attracting both domestic and international investors”, he assured.
He added that the bonds, enabled by these guidelines will channel much-needed capital into areas of the Ghanaian economy such as green infrastructure, water and waste management, affordable green housing, centralized and distributed renewable energy/power generation stations, among others, “which will enable us to advance in our quest to combat climate change, conserve our natural resources, and promote acircular economy.”
Director of Financial Sector Division at the Ministry of Finance (MoF) Sampson Akligoh, opined that the guidelines would facilitate the development of a domestic green securities market; maintain credibility of green securities in general through transparency, disclosure, integrity, and quality; and prevent “green washing” or “green wash” bonds from being issued and invested in.
He, however, bemoaned that promoting a sustainable greener economy would require investments in new skills, institutions and technologies, and therefore, public money alone will not be enough to address the urgency of the climate crisis we face.
“We need to have access to private capital like green bonds to help us to push forward the green transition and to invest in our needed infrastructure. Evidently, a financial system that facilitates this transition is indispensable for the global call of action”, he said.
Senior Country Manager, Ghana Country Cluster, IFC, Kyle Kelhofer, stated that the guidelines are intended to support the establishment of a domestic market for green securities, ensure their credibility through transparency and integrity, and prevent the issuance and investment in bonds that are falsely marketed as “green”.
By Nii Adjei Mensahfio