The Inter-Agency Task Force on Sustainable Finance (ITSF) has doubled its efforts to mobilize various sources of public and private financing with the issuance of the Sustainable Finance Taxonomy Guidelines (SFTG) and the enactment of the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Code to catalyze green investments and drive sustainable growth.

The ITSF is co-chaired by the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Climate Change Commission (CCC).

It was established with support from the Government of the United Kingdom (UK) under the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Low Carbon Energy Programme (ALCEP) to aid in the development of a green and sustainable economy in the Philippines.

“The Department of Finance has been working hard to come up with innovative financing strategies for the Philippines to position itself as a global leader in the climate adaption and mitigation front. We will set an example for other countries to follow—showing them that real and lasting change is possible through strong commitment and leadership,” Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto said.

Approved by the Monetary Board on February 14, 2024, the SFTG is a classification tool for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and larger businesses to determine whether an economic activity is environmentally and socially sustainable.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) will have an observation period until the end of 2024 to allow banks time to understand and operationalize the SFTG principles.

The PPP Code, on the other hand, establishes a stable and predictable environment for collaboration of both public and private sectors and addresses the gaps in infrastructure financing.

The implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for the PPP Code was signed on March 21, 2024, ensuring that investor concerns were addressed and that the country’s PPP framework is aligned with the best practices globally.

The declaration of policy under Section 2 of the PPP Code provides that the government must ensure the integration of climate resilience, and sustainability policies, among others, in the implementation of PPP projects.

The PPP Governing Board has previously issued Resolution No. 2018-12-02 as a safeguard against the negative impacts of the implementation of PPP projects on the people and environment.

The guideline takes into account the following issues: safeguards from environmental impacts; resilience to climate change; considerations for indigenous peoples; protection and consideration of vulnerable groups such as persons with disability; and gender equality and women empowerment, among others.

Apart from the SFTG and the PPP framework, the CCC shared that the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) and Nationally Determined Contribution Implementation Plan (NDC IP) are expected to be published in April 2024, and localized for implementation in June 2024.

The NAP aims to facilitate effective medium and long-term adaptation planning and enable the integration of adaptation into relevant policies and programs across sectors.

Meanwhile, the NDC IP will detail the necessary actions, costs, phasing, and implementation arrangements for the Philippines to deliver its NDC, with constant consideration of its adaptation co-benefits.

“We are currently preparing the ITSF roadmap for climate finance to focus on adaptation efforts with mitigation co-benefits, which entails developing a sustainable pipeline of projects and policies for project design, implementation, and monitoring for 2025 onwards,” said Chief-of-Staff and Undersecretary Maria Luwalhati C. Dorotan Tiuseco, who presided over the ITSF meeting on March 15, 2024.

The Undersecretary invited member agencies to share their inputs and to identify areas for future collaboration for the climate finance roadmap to incorporate each agency’s perspective and expertise.

The DOF also provided updates on carbon pricing instruments and access to climate finance.

Given the significant developments, member agencies have expressed high hopes that these complementary policies will catalyze public and private investment in economic activities that are consistent with the country’s climate commitments.

Representatives from the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), CCC, Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Department of Transportation (DOTr), Insurance Commission (IC), National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA), and PPP Center took part in the meeting.