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Kenya kicks off green bond program

Xinhua, March 31, 2017 Adjust font size:

Kenya on Friday kicked off a Green Bond Programme that aims to raise funds to finance green economy projects.

Kenya central bank governor Patrick Njoroge told a media briefing in Nairobi that the program will develop a legal and policy framework that will enable Kenya to issue green bonds.

"According to the program, the first green bond which will be used to gauge the appetite of investors will be floated by the end of the year," Njoroge said.

The program is a joint effort of the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA), Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) as well as the Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Africa.

Njoroge said that Kenya is already a regional financial hub and so it hopes to lead the region in the adoption of green bonds.

During the launch, FSD Africa committed funding amounting to 600,000 U.S. dollars over a period of three years to fund the program with the objectives of aiding KBA to be in a position to tap the growing investor demand for green investments.

Njoroge added that the green bonds will help Kenya mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change.

He noted that Kenya is already feeling the impact of the climate change that has caused the present drought in the arid and semi-arid parts of the country.

KBA CEO Habil Olaka said that the global financial community is already transiting towards green finance because it promotes sustainable development.

"We will therefore develop and sustain the best green bond practices that will inevitably strengthen financial structures in the country," Olaka said.

NSE CEO Geoffrey Odundo said that the exchange is committed to developing a vibrant green market for the East African region.

"Through the NSE, issuers and investors will have a platform where they can come together and fulfill their green objectives," Odundo said. Endit