The world as we know it has entered an era of unprecedented uncertainty and fragility. From the Covid-19 pandemic to the war in Ukraine and the climate crisis, these major macroeconomic forces have thwarted progress on the Global Goals and nowhere is this more evident than in Asia.  

The latest UN report on the Sustainable Development Goals — a collection of 17 interlinked targets adopted by all nations for a more sustainable future by 2030 — revealed that Covid-19 and the continued regression on climate action and resource use have caused the biggest slowdown in pace since the targets were set in 2015. Southeast Asia and the Pacific are particularly lagging.    

Amid a diverging geopolitical landscape marked by rising energy prices, higher inflation, slower growth and increasing commodity prices, the role of sustainable finance in driving stability and investments into a sustainable and equitable future is more important than ever.  

As we face an increasing triple planetary crisis – climate, nature, and pollution — there is an urgent need to align finance with sustainability, with all parties working towards shared goals of building a more resource-efficient industry, boosting green growth and economic development which provides green jobs and accelerating sustainable consumption and production.

The Glasgow Climate Pact at COP26 has accelerated pledges worldwide, with some 90 per cent of GDP now covered by net zero commitments. The latest IPCC report has called for a re-think of any further investments into fossil fuels – albeit complicated energy security concerns in the wake of the Ukraine war – and identified five key areas in urgent need of investment capital. McKinsey analysis indicates that a net-zero transition would require $150 trillion of capital spending, with two-thirds of it in developing economies.

Themed ‘The role of sustainable finance in a disrupted world’, Unlocking capital for sustainability 2022 will convene its annual meeting of leading minds and actors from across government, financial institutions, business and civic society to discuss ways to progress sustainable finance in this region and beyond.

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