Cartagena hosts largest development banking summit focused on sustainable finance
Cartagena, Colombia, Sept 3 (EFE).- The Colombian port city of Cartagena is set to host the fourth edition of the Finance in Common (FiCS) Summit on 4 – 6 September, marking the world’s largest gathering of development banking professionals aiming for a sustainable future.
“The Summit aims to strengthen alliances and foster global collaboration among PDBs (public development banks) to promote sustainable finance,” contributing to the achievement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement’s temperature and adaptation objectives, organizers stated in a press release.
Under the slogan “Building new alliances for the next generation of development financing,” the summit is to focus on four main topics: small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and financial inclusion; climate and biodiversity; sustainable infrastructure; and an agenda for institutional strengthening for Public Development Banks.
FINANCING GAP
This marks the first time the event, organized by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Business Development Bank of Colombia (Bancoldex), and the Latin American Association of Financial Institutions for Development (ALIDE), takes place in Latin America.
The gathering is to convene leading international and national development banks and multilateral agencies to discuss, among other topics, strategies to reduce the financing gap.
According to IDB data, an estimated $3.3 to $4.5 trillion in global investments would be required to meet the SDGs and the Paris Agreement.
“We’re realizing the increasing need, not just for climate change adaptation on a continent heavily impacted by disasters, but also for addressing the substantial social change demand in Latin America,” IDB President Ilan Goldfajn told EFE in an interview.
He said he believed that “institutions like the IDB are becoming increasingly crucial” and events like the FiCS summit represent “a significant opportunity” for development banks to “amplify their impact.”
GLOBAL PARTICIPANTS
Apart from Goldfajn, attendees will include Colombian President Gustavo Petro; President of the French Development Agency (AFD), Rémy Rioux; President of the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF), Sergio Diáz-Granados; and President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Werner Hoyer.
Other dignitaries present are former Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla; Director of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (Aecid), Antón Leis; and the President of the West African Development Bank (BOAD), Serge Ekué, among others.
The summit will also feature academic exchanges and discussions on the latest innovations in development financing, addressing the most pressing social challenges.
Data from the IDB reveals that there are about 520 public development banks with $23 trillion in assets, accountable for $2.7 trillion in development financing in 2022, or 12% of the global investment. EFE.
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