With climate change, resource crisis, energy shortage and air pollution becoming increasingly serious issues, to help local enterprises seize green investment opportunities and enhance their sustainable competitiveness, the Chinese Manufacturers Association of Hong Kong recently held the first Green Finance Seminar to assist non-listed companies in Hong Kong, inviting experts and academics to share the latest trends and future development of green finance. At the same time, it also marks the official launch of a series of green finance projects.

According to the CMA, it was funded by the Trade and Industry Department’s Support Fund for Industrial and Commercial Organizations last year to carry out a 16-month project on “Enhancing the Sustainable Competitiveness of Hong Kong non-listed Enterprises through Green Financial Instruments”, providing technical support and advisory services on green finance to enterprises in targeted industries including logistics, catering, food manufacturing, environmental protection and property management. And unlisted companies in general.

The seminar invited Mr Ting Kwok-tao, Director, Strategic Services Development, Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency; Mr Wong Tsz-ming, Vice President, Hong Kong Green Finance Association and Chief Executive Officer, Hong Kong Investment Funds Association; Mr Wu Bo-Kit, Vice Chairman and Executive Director, Pei LAN Environmental Protection Group; Prof Lo Wing-hung, Head of the Department of Politics and Administration and Director of the Centre for Business Sustainability, Chinese University of Hong Kong; and Mr Cheng Zu-ming, Independent Sustainability Consultant, Share experiences and insights in developing green finance, and brief on how green finance tools can be used to promote sustainable development of enterprises, attracting about 100 representatives from different industries to participate “online” or “offline”.

Shi Lide, president of the Manufacturers Association, said that in recent years, many enterprises have actively started to reduce waste from the production process and product design, on the one hand, reduce operating costs, and at the same time, expand business opportunities and enhance returns by investing in environmental protection technology to enhance competitiveness; “However, the lack of awareness of green financial products and green technologies and the ability to prepare attractive large-scale green investment proposals have made it difficult for enterprises to win the favor of traditional banks.” Therefore, the CMA has set up the “Green Finance Knowledge Sharing Online Platform” to provide the industry with practical and detailed green finance information, facilitate the interaction of key stakeholders, and assist smes to obtain one-stop expert support for green bonds/loans. In addition, the manufacturers’ Association has tailored the “Green Finance Enterprise Implementation Guide” for each of the five target industries, providing implementation guidelines and practical tools to help them embark on the road to green finance.

With the establishment of the Green Finance Project Team and the support of the Trade and Industry Department, as well as the participation of various professionals and the assistance of partner organisations, the CMA’s green finance project will help to enhance the green and sustainable financial development in Hong Kong, in line with the Government’s policy objective of developing Hong Kong into a green finance hub in Asia, Mr Shi said.

Luo Baibai, chairman of CMA Certification Center and Vice president of CMA, expects that this project can promote knowledge sharing and strengthen the ability of local enterprises to manage environmental risks and social risks, at the same time, strengthen the awareness of local enterprises to green opportunities, and use green finance to shape green image and build green brands to improve competitiveness; It also helps connect investors, issuers, experts and other stakeholders for mutual support.

He added that more seminars and investor forums would be held in the future to deepen the knowledge and skills of enterprises on green finance, and provide opportunities for enterprises to communicate with potential investors. He looked forward to working with more organizations to promote green finance development in the future, so as to achieve a win-win situation in protecting the environment and achieving sustainable development of enterprises.

Shi Lide pointed out that in recent years, enterprises have actively reduced waste from the production process and product design, reducing operating costs, but also by investing in environmental technology to expand business opportunities.

Luo Baibai, chairman of CMA Certification Center and Vice President of CMA, expects that the project will promote knowledge sharing and strengthen local enterprises’ ability to manage environmental and social risks, while enhancing local enterprises’ awareness of green opportunities.