Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), on Wednesday, said it has become a signatory to the Principles for Responsible Banking: a single framework for a sustainable banking industry developed through an innovative partnership between banks worldwide and United Nations Environment Programme’s Finance Initiative.
The six Principles for Responsible Banking include Alignment, impact and target setting, clients and customers, stakeholders, governance and culture, as well as transparency and accountability.
The principles seek that signatories align their business strategy with and contributing to individuals’ needs and society’s goals, as expressed in the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Climate Agreement, and relevant national and regional frameworks; and continuously increase their positive impacts while reducing the negative impacts on, and managing the risks to, people and environment resulting from our activities, products and services. Consequently, the group will set and publish targets where it can have the most significant impacts.
Ecobank Group will equally work responsibly with clients and customers to encourage sustainable practices and enable economic activities that create shared prosperity for current and future generations; while proactively and responsibly consulting, engaging and partnering with relevant stakeholders to achieve society’s goals. In the area of governance and culture, the group also pledges to implement its commitment to these Principles through effective governance and a culture of responsible banking; just as it will periodically review individual and collective implementation of these Principles and be transparent about and accountable for our positive and negative impacts and our contribution to society’s goals.
The six principles aim to create a financial sector that serves people and the planet while delivering positive impacts and improving people’s quality of life, without compromising that of future generations.
They align the banking sector with the objectives of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement and embed sustainability across all business areas and enable banks to identify where they can make the most impact on the sustainable development of economies and the world.
A statement by the Ecobank Group quoted Ade Ayeyemi, its Chief Executive as saying Ecobank takes “sustainability responsibilities seriously by continuously ensuring that sustainable practices are established throughout our decision making, management, business activities, and organisation.
“Along with our customer-centric focus and intent to be a trusted adviser, we take a proactive leadership role in sustainability and our decisions and actions always take account of society’s goals and Africa’s future generations,” he stressed.
By subscribing to the six Principles for Responsible Banking, he continued, Ecobank Group is “publicly declaring that we follow the best-in-class sustainability practices that have been adopted by major global banks.”
Members of the banking industry of UNEP FI have developed the six Principles of Responsible Banking to refine the business and Environmental, Social and Governance practices in the banking industry. The Principles guide banks in their sustainability stewardship and challenge them to continuously increase their contribution towards a sustainable future.
Ecobank has been a signatory to the UNEP FI since 2009. The Initiative has 274 financial institution members from the Banking, Insurance and Investment industries. Ecobank also serves on the Global Steering Committee (GSC) of UNEP FI.
Ecobank says it “has integrated the UNEP FI framework with its internal Environment and Social Management Systems (ESMS), which was developed on the basis of our engagement with the globally recognised ESG frameworks, such as IFC Performance Standards as well as our association with other financial institutions on their interpretation of environmental and social management as related to the credit review process.
“Furthermore, as a result of our membership, we are gaining a better understanding in ensuring that projects financed and eligible transactions in the E&S sensitive sectors are developed in a socially responsible manner and reflect sound environmental management practices. The Bank continues to ensure that negative socio-environmental impacts are avoided and where possible the Bank engages the project proponents in establishing a set of corrective mitigating measures.”