African Development Bank partners with University of Oxford to build capacity in sustainable finance | African Development Bank

The African Development Bank is partnering with the University of Oxford to provide training on sustainable finance for up to 1,000 public and third sector workers from across Africa. The University of Oxford’s Public and Third Sector Academy for Sustainable Finance is a global center for learning and capacity building. It focuses on how the public and third sectors can unlock the opportunities associated with sustainable finance.

The third sector includes registered charities, social enterprises, cooperatives, research institutions and non-governmental organizations.

The nominees follow the academy’s ‘Introduction to Sustainable Finance’ course free of charge.

Launched in November 2021 with funding from the IKEA Foundation and the European Climate Foundation, among others, the program has trained more than 1,000 influential civil servants, regulators and civil society representatives to date. More than 40% of the participants come from developing countries.

The course provides government and third sector personnel with a foundation in sustainable finance. It equips them with the knowledge of key concepts, theories and topics to successfully navigate this emerging field and identify and mobilize levers for change.

“We are delighted to be working with the African Development Bank,” said Andrew McCarthy, head of capacity building and partnerships at the Oxford Sustainable Finance Group and deputy director of the academy.

He added: “Together, we will equip Africa’s public and third sectors with the knowledge, networks and skills needed to shift the direction of tens of trillions of dollars of capital from unsustainable activities to activities that are in line with the Paris Agreement and UN Sustainable Development. Goals.”

Dr. Ben Caldecott, the academy’s faculty chair and the Lombard Odier Associate Professor of Sustainable Finance at the University of Oxford, said: “The public and third sectors urgently need to develop broader and more in-depth capabilities in finance in general and sustainable finance in general. special.

“This is currently a major capacity gap and a persistent structural weakness that needs to be systematically addressed over time. We look forward to scaling up the academy’s work together with our partners. There is no time to lose.”

Dr. Al Hamndou Dorsouma, responsible for climate change and green growth at the African Development Bank, welcomed the collaboration. He said: “Access to adequate climate finance to tackle the impacts of climate change is a priority of the African Development Bank. This capacity building partnership between the bank and the University of Oxford will strengthen institutional frameworks in African countries to unblock the flow of sustainable finance.”

The Department of Climate Change and Green Growth, in conjunction with Oxford University, selects eligible beneficiaries for the programme.

The partnership will advance ongoing capacity building activities within the African Financial Alliance on Climate Change. This is a platform established in 2018 by the African Development Bank to engage the African financial sector, with the aim of reducing risk and directing capital flows towards low-carbon and climate-resilient investments across Africa.