Performance Framework: Flows

Many countries, as well as international development finance institutions are beginning to measure and report on actual flows of finance for sustainable development. There are as yet no harmonised standards, but common broad categories are often considered:

Green finance funded by, or directly leveraged by public investment
Commercial investment into key green sectors and product types
Flows of finance covered by environmental due diligence or environmental criteria
Value at risk from environmental hazards and associated policy shifts.

Countries that are building systems for measuring actual flows of green finance include Bangladesh, Brazil and China.

Inquiry Publications

Green Finance Progress Report

Date: 11-Jul-2017

The G20 Green Finance Synthesis Report adopted at the G20 Leaders Summit in Hangzhou in September 2016 set out seven options identified by the G20 Green Finance Study Group (GFSG) to accelerate the mobilization of green finance. This paper highlights some of the progress made against these seven options in G20 members and internationally since June 2016.
China Report

Date: 06-Oct-2015

The Inquiry collaborated in an 18-month project, Greening China’s Financial System, carried out by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and the Finance Research Institute (FRI), Development Research Center (DRC) of the State Council. The aim was to develop specific proposals for greening China’s financial system, based on an analysis of current practice in China
Green Finance Opportunities in ASEAN

Date: 15-Nov-2017

This report lays out ways in which the ASEAN region can unlock this investment and protect its people, environment and economies. It provides an analysis of green investment opportunities in the region from 2016 to 2030, assesses the characteristics of those opportunities, and estimates current green finance flows. Based on a literature review and expert
Establishing China’s Green Financial System: Progress Report

Date: 16-Nov-2017

The report finds that China – which put green finance on the G20 agenda during its 2016 presidency – is following through on its political commitment to boost the financing required to do this. The report looks particularly at progress since the State Council in August 2016 approved a set of recommendations for action on
Financing the Future

Date: 06-Feb-2017

Italy’s Ministry of Environment, Land and Sea, in partnership with UN Environment, launched the National Dialogue on Sustainable Finance in February 2016 to identify practical market and policy options to mobilize Italy’s financial system for sustainable development and climate action. The conclusions of the paper are: Italy faces a strategic opportunity to harness its financial
Towards a Stock-Flow Consistent Ecological Macroeconomics

Date: 22-Aug-2015

This paper describes the challenge of modelling combined economic, ecological and financial systems and sets out a series of objectives for modelling the socio-economic transition towards sustainability. It highlights the modelling needs in relation to full employment, financial stability, and social equity under conditions of constrained resource consumption and ecological limits. It outlines the development
Indonesia Country Report

Date: 30-Apr-2015

Placing Indonesia’s economy onto a green and sustainable development pathway, as envisaged in the National Long Term Development Plan, will require a large mobilization of investment. Estimates of the annual investment needed are in the order of US$300‐530 billion, with a large portion of this investment needed in critical infrastructure, as well as environmentally sensitive
Brazil Country Report

Date: 06-Apr-2015

As a contribution to the UNEP Inquiry the Brazilian Bankers Federation FEBRABAN established a partnership with the Center for Sustainability Studies at Getulio Vargas Foundation (GVCes) to develop three studies on the practice and potential for green finance in Brazil. The first looks at the legislation, regulation, and public policies aimed at socio-environmental themes related to the financial
The Value of Everything

Date: 15-Dec-2015

The purpose of this paper is to begin the process of clarifying global asset value especially as may be affected by the sustainability (or lack thereof) of financial systems, and not just that which is represented by institutional assets under management. This paper, therefore, will answer this question of what is the actual total value of
Greening the Financial System: Enhancing Competitiveness Through Economic Development

Date: 16-May-2017

This briefing summarises the discussions held during a roundtable for market and policy leaders in Washington, D.C. on 20 April 2017. The goal of the event was to explore pathways to scale and speed up green finance and to harness its benefits for long-term sustainable growth and competitiveness. The key messages are: Green finance made