Diokno briefs Asia House on PH agenda, highlights green finance

Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno briefed ministers, key government organizations, and senior business leaders of the Philippines’ economic outlook and agenda at the Asia House Annual Outlook on January 25, 2023.

Asia House is an independent think tank and advisory service that works with companies and governments in Asia, the Middle East and Europe by facilitating high-level dialogue, providing business and market intelligence, and driving commercial outcomes.

Secretary Diokno zeroed in on the Department of Finance (DOF)’s sustainable finance ecosystem, which will synergize investments from the public and private sector.

The Sustainable Finance Roadmap and Guiding Principles, which serve as a taxonomy for the sustainable finance ecosystem, was developed by the DOF, through the Interagency Task Force on Sustainable Finance, otherwise known as the Green Force.

“This is set to yield green and social projects that will have lasting impact on the environment and our communities,” said Secretary Diokno.

The Philippines has also successfully tapped the international capital markets with its offerings of Sustainability Bonds. The recent issuances in March 2022, October 2022, and January 2023 received strong demand from investors.

“This highlights the growing investor-investee confidence in our commitment to achieving sustainable development and mitigating climate change,” said Secretary Diokno.

According to the Asia House Annual Outlook Report, the Philippines will continue to see economic growth that surpasses many of its regional neighbors. This growth is seen as an excellent opportunity to improve the domestic ecosystem for green finance and digitalization.

The conference was attended by Anne-Marie Trevelyan(UK Minister of State for Indo-Pacific); HE Desra Percaya (Indonesian Ambassador to the UK); HE Hajime Hayashi (Japanese Ambassador to the UK); HE Dato’ Zakri Jaafar (Malaysia High Commissioner to the UK); HE Lim Thuan Kuan (Singapore High Commissioner to the UK); HE Thani Thongphakdi (Thai Ambassador to the UK); HE Nguyen Hoang Long (Vietnamese Ambassador to the UK).

Representatives from the US Embassy, Italian Embassy, Indian High Commission, the Philippine Embassy, London Bank Indonesia Representative Office, and senior business leaders from the banking, mining, energy, consumer goods, technology, and professional services sectors also attended the event.