Financial sector must step up its role in sustainable financing

SUSTAINABLE financing is no longer just the latest catch phrase in banking. The practice has grown significantly in recent years, but still, more needs to be done to cut global carbon emissions.

The vital numbers in the climate change narrative are by now well known: In its October 2018 report, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) painted the devastating impact that a rise of 1.5 degree Celsius (1.5°C ) in global warming would have on all fronts - environmental, economic, and human. Global average temperatures have already risen by about one degree Celsius above pre-industrial levels due to human activities.

The IPCC has called for "global carbon dioxide emissions (to) start to decline well before 2030" to avoid the most severe consequences of global warming. If temperatures around the world continue rising at the current rate, global warming is likely to reach 1.5°C between 2030 and 2052, the panel has warned. Coral reefs are projected to decline by a further 70 to 90 per cent at 1.5°C, and by more than 99 per cent at two degrees Celsius. These ecosystems provide food, support biodiversity and deliver economic benefits estimated at US$170 billion a year.