Jeddah,

The Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), the insurance arm of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, in cooperation with Commercial International Bank (CIB), Egypt’s largest and leading private sector bank, is organising an important Panel Discussion on 9 November 2022 in Sharm El Sheikh during COP27.

Two important pillars of Climate Action are mitigating the release of greenhouse gases with a focus on the transition to clean energy, for instance, through the generation of renewable energy projects, and adaptation to the detrimental effects of Climate Change, specifically climate-related impacts on water and food security.

The need for out-of-the-box thinking involving partnerships and risk mitigation solutions such as credit and political risk insurance becomes ever more urgent. The supply chain disruptions due to the ongoing Ukraine/Russia conflict have seriously impacted the food security of grain-importing countries in the OIC Member States, especially in Africa, and to structural Energy Poverty globally.

The launch of COP27 Host Country, Egypt’s comprehensive National Water, Food and Energy (NWFE) Programme provides a valuable playbook on the involvement of private sector investment, the bankability of Climate Adaptation projects, and the credit enhancement de-risking tools of multilateral institutions such as ICIEC. NWFE is underpinned by the bold Egypt Vision 2030 agenda, which has Climate Change Adaptation at its heart.

Climate security affects water poverty, the protection of coastal areas, the development of sustainable cities, and waste management. All ICIEC Member States in Africa face similar challenges.

Private sector entities have specific targets for climate financing under their ESG targets, and this High Level Panel Discussion will showcase the banking sector’s perspectives on the bankability of adaptation projects with a focus on Food Security.

The Panel will be addressed inter alia by ICIEC CEO, Oussama Kaissi, Mr. Talha Karim, Chief Risk Officer of CIB, Ms. Lina Osman, Head, Sustainable Finance, Standard Chartered Bank and Mr. Jahan Chowdhury, Cluster Lead for Environment and Climate, IFAD and senior representatives from Afreximbank.

Key topics that will be addressed include Egypt’s NWFE Programme, the case for financing adaptation projects from CIB’s perspective, gaining insight into Climate Financing for adaptation from a multilateral’s perspective such as BADEA, and showcasing Standard Chartered Bank’s experience with Green Financing in African markets. 

As a signatory to the Principles for Responsible Insurance and being the only Shariah-compliant multilateral insurer, sustainable investment, climate action and finance, and Green Finance are firmly embedded in ICIEC’s due diligence process through linking all new business and other queries with SDG and climate action indicators. ICIEC and peer multilaterals have an important role in contributing to the international climate finance ecosystem. It is committed to further boosting its green and sustainable finance operations.

Mr. Oussama Kaissi, CEO of ICIEC, commented: “This Side Event is a unique platform to address frameworks and methodologies for appraising Climate Adaptation projects with a focus on Africa. It is important for all partners and stakeholders to share learned experiences, success stories, best practices and explore investment and trade opportunities for adaptation.”