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Against the backdrop of the climate crisis, environmental degradation, and profound social challenges, the international community has set ambitious goals for the transition to ecologically and socially sustainable economies with the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement.

The financial sector has a key role to play in this transformation. Through its functions of allocating capital, transferring risks, and providing decentralised information, the financial sector has the power to channel capital from environmentally and socially damaging activities to sustainable activities. This not only includes the capital of global investors, but also existing resources in the financial systems of developing countries and emerging countries.

However, financial institutions around the world often do not have the skills and knowledge needed to align their operations with the goals of international frameworks such as the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This makes it difficult to leverage private finance to meet global targets, educate their clients and customers about the social and environmental impacts of their own business models, and promote the transition to more sustainable business practices. So far, a multitude of global, regional, and national initiatives on ESG, green finance, and sustainable finance have stood in the way of a uniform application of ambitious standards.

Since the beginning of 2022, GIZ has been developing the Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB) Academy on behalf of BMZ, together with UNEP FI and The Chartered Banker Institute (CBI). The aim of the PRB Academy is to develop a unified global framework for capacity building in the financial sector based on the UN Principles for Responsible Banking and other leading international standards and principles.

The target group is employees of financial institutions around the world, with a special focus on financial institutions in emerging and developing countries. The PRB Academy seeks to enable banks in GIZ partner countries to build their capacity to offer sustainable banking products and services, and to embed critical skills and knowledge for business model transformation in their own business practices and strategies.

The PRB Academy will be available as an online e-learning course on a platform created by the CBI (Launch Event: UNEP FI Global Round Table, 10 October 2022). Banks will be able to integrate the learning materials on their own learning and development systems, which will allow the training to scale. Bank trainings will also take place on-site in partner countries.

The PRB Academy offers four levels of courses tailored to the needs of different target groups, from beginners to (highly specialised) banking professionals to executives of the management board of financial institutions. There are also special courses, for example, on climate and client engagement (“How do bank employees bring sustainability aspects into conversations and relationships with clients?”). The on-site training will be piloted in Mexico, India, and Egypt in the last quarter of 2023.

UNEP FI is the main partner and funding recipient. The UN Principles for Responsible Banking are among the world’s leading frameworks for sustainable banking. Banks can use the principles to align their strategy, decision-making, lending, and investment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and international agreements such as the Paris Agreement. UNEP FI currently has more than 300 signatory banks representing approximately 45% of global banking assets. The UK’s Chartered Banker Institute is also contributing its extensive experience in delivering training to banks and their staff. The CBI is a global, not-for-profit professional training organisation for bankers with a mission to promote socially responsible banking in the public interest. CBI has over 33,000 members in more than 100 countries worldwide.