Equity Bank Kenya Tops Global Rankings For Climate Financing, Disbursed KSh 24.7b

• Equity Bank Kenya was ranked top among 258 banks that were ranked in the 2023 Climate Assessment for Financial Institutions (CAFI) Awards for Climate Reporting
• Equity Bank Kenya has disbursed a substantial KSh 24.7 billion in climate finance through its partnership with IFC, benefiting over 47,000 households and businesses
• The support provided included climate loan facilities, starting as low as KSh 6,000 for the acquisition of energy-efficient cookstoves

Elijah Ntongai, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, leverages more than three years of expertise in financial, business, and technology research, providing profound insights into both Kenyan and global economic trends.

Equity Bank Kenya has earned global acclaim as the top performer in the 2023 Climate Assessment for Financial Institutions (CAFI) Awards for Climate Reporting by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group.

The recognition comes in light of Equity Bank's outstanding achievement in climate-related financing, reporting the highest number of transactions among 258 participating financial institutions worldwide.

"By being recognised as the Bank with the most transactions, Equity is creating a broader impact and reach for local communities and businesses. The Bank continues to work towards supporting Kenya's goal of combating climate change by reducing its carbon emissions by 32% by 2030 and building resilience, as outlined in the National Determined Contribution," said Equity Group Managing Director and CEO James Mwangi.

What is CAFI

CAFI is a tool developed by the IFC that enables financial institutions globally to report on their financing activities for climate-related projects.

“CAFI continues to be a critical tool for accountability and progress in aligning financial flows toward the goals of the Paris Agreement. IFC's work with banks and other financial institutions helps scale up climate finance activities and measure investments earmarked for climate, vital for our clients to realise their climate impact," said Tomasz Telma, Global Director, Financial Institution Group, IFC.

Who received climate financing from Equity Bank?

Equity Bank Kenya has disbursed a substantial KSh 24.7 billion in climate finance through its partnership with IFC, benefiting over 47,000 households and businesses.

The bank assisted 47,593 households and businesses in implementing adaptive and mitigating measures to tackle the adverse effects of climate change,, which yielded a commendable annual reduction of 39,917.4 tons of CO2eq.

The support provided included climate loan facilities, starting as low as KSh 6,000 for acquiring energy-efficient cookstoves within the retail sector.

Additionally, the bank extended support amounting to KSh 8.54 billion to finance the distribution of renewable energy derived from sources such as hydro, geothermal, and wind.

Equity Bank Wins Best SME Financier of the Year Award

In other related news on TUKO.co.ke, Equity Bank Kenya emerged the winner of the SME Financier of the Year Award in Africa during the Global SME Finance Awards 2023 in Mumbai, India.

The lender promised to continue supporting SMEs and women's groups through its KSh 1.05 trillion Africa Recovery and Resilience Plan.

“We are honoured to receive this recognition from the IFC and the Global SME Finance Awards. This reflects our commitment to continually innovate our financial solutions to cater to the diverse needs of SMEs, individual women, women in groups, and women-led SMEs, among others, and to continue to empower them and enable them to foster growth and wealth creation,” said Equity Group Managing Director and CEO James Mwangi.