Uche Usim, Abuja
Jaiz Bank Plc on Monday disclosed that it has empowered 2,239 women through the clean environment initiative powered by its Green Account.
The Managing Director of the bank, Mr Hassan Usman made the disclosure at the inaugural Islamic Finance and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Taskforce virtual meeting.
Usman said that Jaiz Bank in collaboration with its development partners like United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) and Chanja Datti were able to use the Bank’s Green Account to protect the environment. “In less than a year, the project successfully diverted 113.226 tons of waste from the landfills and saved 12.285 million Kg of Green House Gases (equivalent to 1,011 cars taken off the road).
In his presentation at the meeting, convened by the Islamic Finance Council UK (UKIFC) in partnership with the UK Government, which brought together over 40 global Islamic finance leaders, Usman also revealed that the Bank is piloting a dedicated rural women economic empowerment scheme that has so far moved about 2,239 Women out of poverty.
The pioneering meeting intended to explore the role Islamic finance can play in addressing the $2.5 trillion SDGs funding gap as part of the post-Covid-19 economic recovery.
Usman revealed further the Jaiz Bank’s experience as a founding signatory to the UN Principles for Responsible Banking in addition to the Bank’s products and initiatives the bank has launched to engage with the SDGs.
Practitioners from Africa, Europe, Gulf and South East Asia joined the United Nations Development Programme, Islamic Development Bank, Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions and the Islamic Financial Services Board to discuss the need for the Islamic finance sector to move from talk to collective action to support the achievement of the Global Goals by 2030.
As the Taskforce’s first country partner the UK Government’s Economic Secretary to the Treasury and City Minister John Glen MP highlighted the global nature of the SDGs and the need for nations to work together. Islamic Development Bank President Bandar Hajjar also welcomed the initiative and called for greater cooperation between the public and private sectors and to use the SDGs to inspire financial innovation.
With assets expected to reach US $3.8 trillion in 2022, Islamic finance is one of the fastest growing sectors in the global financial industry. Achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed in the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will take over US$5 trillion per year investment with the current financing gap standing at around $2.5 trillion per year.