Supporting Sustainable Finance in LATAM
In March, GFW Pro, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Sustainable Finance Protocol in Argentina hosted a regional workshop to present new Latin America (LATAM) analytical tools that can support stakeholders to monitor their portfolios for deforestation risk to meet national legal requirements, trade regulations and global market demands. These regional product offerings from GFW Pro are an outcome of the collaboration between WRI and the Sustainable Finance Protocol, supported in a technical capacity by Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina, MapBiomas and IDB Invest.
The analyses were developed after identifying the data and map layers necessary to demonstrate compliance with Argentine legislation:
• Territorial Planning of Native Forests (in Spanish, Ordenamiento Territorial de Bosques Nativos, or OTBN)
• Protected areas (configured for Argentina local needs)
• Base map of natural forests in Argentina and deforestation analysis based on the national forest monitoring system
• Indigenous territories
• Planted forests
• Deforestation alerts
Workshop participants looking at the map layers on GFW Pro
Juliana Salles Almeida, Leading Specialist in Climate Change of the IDB Group in Argentina, spoke about the role of the financial system in curbing deforestation and advancing restoration to tackle the risks of biodiversity loss and climate change. “The IDB Group in Argentina will use GFW Pro analyses to support evaluation of loans and to ensure that investments align with Climate Targets from the Paris Agreement,” said Almeida.
The workshop took place at IDB’s office in Buenos Aires and was opened by Diego Flaiban, IDB Invest's Head for Financial Intermediaries for the Southern Cone, who highlighted the vital role of sustainable finance to better support private sector development in the region.
Four organizations - Banco de Inversión y Comercio Exterior (BICE), Banco de la Nación Argentina, Banco Ciudad and Banco Galicia - also shared how they are using GFW Pro analyses to support their institution’s decision-making processes.
Finally, Luiz Henrique Calado, Engagement Manager for GFW Pro in LATAM, presented GFW Pro’s strategy and roadmap for the region, sharing use cases and functionalities of WRI´s platform. To aid with onboarding to the platform, GFW Pro has developed a user manual that not only includes practical information on how to use the tool, but also guidance on how to use key map layers to support monitoring according to recommended eligibility criteria for project financing.
Luiz Calado, WRI, during his presentation on GFW Pro
Another recent LATAM-focused event, a Summit on Sustainable Finance hosted by the Roundtable of Sustainable Finance, WWF and GFW Pro, took place in Paraguay in March. The Summit covered topics related to how technology can leverage this sector to support greening the finance agenda.
Speakers from banks, governments, industry and civil society discussed various sustainability initiatives they have undertaken, as well as opportunities and barriers related to the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Key topics focused on new policies to support the climate agenda, how technology can be adopted by different actors along the supply chain, and what could be fueled by innovations from the financial markets.
A presentation on monitoring solutions from WRI’s Land & Carbon Lab and GFW Pro at the Summit on Sustainable Finance Paraguay
WRI’s Land and Carbon Lab and GFW Pro showcased how their various monitoring solutions on deforestation, restoration and pasture conversion can be adopted to support the development of a more sustainable pathway for food production and forest conservation in the region. Some of the strategic partners GFW Pro has in the region — Sicredi and the PCI Institute (Brazil), Finagro and the Tropical Forest Alliance (Colombia), and the Sustainable Finance Protocol (Argentina) — shared how they are currently integrating WRI’s monitoring solutions into their work.
Log into your GFW Pro account to explore tools for LATAM. If you would like to request an account, please complete and submit the form here.