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Labadi: IFC can partner with Egyptian gov’t to encourage green construction financing
Country Manager of Egypt, Yemen and Libya at the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Walid Labadi said the IFC can partner with the Egyptian government to establish the regulations to encourage green financing in this domain.
He said “there is incredible construction in Egypt… but that building can be much greener.”
He made the remarks on Monday during the 4th Forum on Strategies for Transition to Green Economy that kicked off in Cairo on under the theme of “From Vision to Implementation.”
He said “Egypt is positioning itself as a renewable energy hub for the entire region. There are real landscape of opportunities in Egypt, particularly burgeoning entrepreneurship sector in Egypt.”
Alongside these large projects, the IFC also works with entrepreneurs to develop energy-related projects, like developing solar applications to unclock energy generation capacity.
He said the IFC is “the private sector arm of the world bank Group .. so we try to unlock opportunities for the private sector.”
He said the IFC offers long and medium term loans to the private sector in addition to investments.
The IFC also works with the private sector partners to help them with corporate governance, energy efficiency, creating more jobs for women and developing their products, he added.
He said “Even more recently we have decided that we could be even more effective if we work what we call ‘upstream’ where we find companies that are interested in developing projects and work with them.”
He said Benban plant in Aswan which is the largest solar park in the world represents an example for this.
Benban was a product of engagement with the government for years, he added.
He noted also that the IFC also invested in the Zaafarana wind farm project where the private sector has played an important role.
As for financing, there are activities in the green bond market. The CIB issued the first green bond in Egypt which the IFC finances, he said.
He added that the “private sector interest in green products is a key area for growth of the sector,” stressing “We want to do more than just issuing bonds with banks.”
He added that the more money is available for green financing, the more that can be achieved.
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