Egypt’s financial regulator to establish regional centre for sustainable finance

Egypt’s Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) approved on Monday the establishment of the Regional Centre for Sustainable Finance (RCSF) to accelerate the shift to a sustainable and green economy and create a research and information database that is required for companies and corporations to make decisions.

Head of the FRA Mohamed Omran said in a statement released on Monday that the new centre is one of the FRA’s initiatives to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals that have been set by the UN General Assembly for 2030, as well as Egypt’s sustainable development vision 2030.

“The centre will have a regional role to play in the MENA region in the areas of recognising the available investment opportunities for the non-banking sector to finance sustainable, green projects and to develop new financial tools,” Omran said.

“The new centre will support African and Arab economic integration, introducing solutions to bridging financing gaps, and involve small and medium sized enterprises to open new markets under the umbrella of the AU agenda till 2063, especially as Egypt chairs it the current round,” Omran said.

African Union reports show that Africa has the second fastest growth rate in the world, with an annual growth rate at 4.6 percent from 2000 to 2016, while Africa’s real GDP is expected to grow by 3.9 percent annually till 2022.