Manaus, Brazil, Jun 13 (EFE).- The Amazon Financial Network announced on Thursday the addition of 22 new members, bringing the total to 46 institutions, with the aim of increasing the financing of sustainable projects in the Amazon region.
The 22 new members represent various regions and include banks and companies such as Visa, Citibank, Aqua Capital, Banco Fie, Bemol, Caja Los Andes, Patria Investments, StoneCo, and Visionamos.
The announcement was made during Sustainability Week organized by IDB Invest, part of the Inter-American Development Bank Group, in the Brazilian city of Manaus, where 900 people gathered to discuss the region’s challenges over three days.
The addition of new members marks a significant step forward for this network, which was launched by IDB Invest and the IFC, the private sector arm of the World Bank, during the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28).
“There is no limit to the amount of money; our appetite for doing business in the Amazon is infinite,” said James Scriven, general manager of IDB Invest, at a press conference.
Similarly, Jorge Rubio, Citibank’s global head of Social Finance, told EFE in an interview that they aim to finance a wide range of projects, from forestry to the digital economy.
“It’s about aligning with these like-minded players to seek opportunities in the region that have a positive impact,” he said.
Boosting the Amazon
Network members met in person for the first time in Manaus and organized the ‘Tambaqui Tank,’ an event where they presented a total of 30 proposals on financial inclusion and forestry, among other topics.
The potential impact of these projects includes more than 2.1 million possible direct beneficiaries, 1.2 million hectares of reforested and conserved land, and six million metric tons of CO2 sequestered by 2030.
Selected projects will gain access to knowledge, resources, and financing to help them reach the scale necessary to make a significant impact in the region.
“We asked participants at this event to make proposals that would positively affect the Amazon and to tell us what positive effect the projects would have in 18 months and in five years,” Scriven explained.
IDB Invest plans to organize these types of events periodically and create a virtual mechanism to receive project proposals in need of funding. EFE