Conference reviews progress towards green capital market

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam will need international support and co-operation to develop a green capital market, one that channels funding towards environmentally sustainable and climate change relevant ventures and projects, experts said on Friday.

The country plans to develop and implement a policy framework for “green finance and green financial products… in the Vietnamese stock market,” Phạm Hồng Sơn, vice chairman of the State Securities Commission of Việt Nam (SSC), said at a conference held in Hà Nội.

“It is very important to create co-operation among regulators, political and social organisations, the corporate society as well as investors,” Sơn said.

The conference on “Development of the Green Capital Market in Việt Nam,” was jointly organised by the SSC and the German Agency for Development Co-operation (GIZ).

It was held within the framework of the Macro-economic Reforms/Green Growth Programme being implemented by GIZ Việt Nam on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Economic Co-operation and Development (BMZ).

In order to implement the National Green Growth Strategy and National Action Plan on Green Growth for the 2014-20 period, the Ministry of Finance had promulgated an action plan for the finance sector via the Decision No 2083/QĐ-BTC dated 20th October 2015 on developing and completing a financial policy framework for development of a green capital market and green financial products.

The conference is yet another step that follows efforts by the Ministry of Finance and the SSC to implement the strategic policies of the Government for developing a green economy towards green growth, climate resilience and sustainable development, the organisers said.

Participants noted that several important green financial products/instruments have been introduced, including the Sustainability Index (VNSI) by the HCM City Stock Exchange and the Green Project Catalogue by the State Bank of Việt Nam.

A pilot issue of the first municipal green bonds has also taken place, they said.

Nguyễn Hoàng Dương, deputy head of the finance ministry’s Finance Department, said the VNSI could be considered the first gauge and indicator for benchmarking sustainability of the corporate sector.

“This is one of the initial outcomes achieved by Vietnamsese partners in co-operation with development partners, an active and effective contribution for which has come from the Macro-economic Reforms/Green Growth Programme under Vietnamese-German co-operation,” he said.

Michael Krakowski, Programme Director and Chief Technical Advisor of the Macro-economic Reforms/Green Growth Programme, appreciated the efforts and active support of the Ministry of Finance, SSC, the two stock exchanges and local authorities in creating appropriate policies for fostering green finance and developing green financial products, and for re-allocating capital towards green investment.

“We are committed to further co-operation on the long process of implementing Việt Nam’s Green Growth, Climate Response and Sustainable Development Strategy,” he said. — VNS