Hong Kong – The Construction Industry Council (CIC) organised the Sustainable Finance Certification Scheme (the Scheme) Launching Ceremony on 5 November 2021 to celebrate the joint achievements of 18 forward-looking pilot projects and 88 supporting organisations. The Scheme is developed based on 3I Principles – Integrity, International, and Intelligent, aiming to support the HKSAR Government’s carbon neutrality target, and in response to the growing demand for sustainable finance across the construction industry.
The Scheme aims to provide a common framework and user-friendly assessment system for sustainable construction to facilitate the application of sustainable finance for the construction industry in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area. Over 280 renowned guests coming from construction and financial sectors attended the ceremony, together with nearly 1,000 industry practitioners joined the livestreaming session to better understand the latest development on sustainable finance opportunities.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mr. CHAN Ka-kui, Chairman of the CIC said, “18 pilot projects from 16 organisations have obtained our certification successfully. These 18 pilot projects came from large-scale contractors, subcontractors and SMEs like green technologies suppliers, etc. We are delighted to receive proactive support throughout the supply chain to enhance our Scheme development. Some of them are already engaged with banks and enjoying the privilege brought by the Scheme.”
In his speech, Mr. Paul CHAN, Financial Secretary of the HKSAR commended the CIC for driving Hong Kong to become a sustainable green city. He expressed his gratitude towards the CIC in launching the Scheme, which provides a common framework and a simple and easy assessment system that facilitate stakeholders including developers, contractors, subcontractors and suppliers. They can utilise this tool for sustainable finance and further develop more sustainable construction projects.
Speaking at the experience sharing session, Dr. MA Jun, Chairman and President of Hong Kong Green Finance Association (HKGFA) said, “The launch of this Scheme is an important initiative, they are supporting green finance in construction industry in Hong Kong. There will be a lot of opportunities for the CIC and HKGFA to collaborate in promoting the Scheme and arising the awareness of sustainable finance solutions to the construction industry, with a will to supporting Hong Kong’s carbon neutrality agenda.”
The Scheme is now open for application with early bird discount provided for application of the first 20 organisations. The CIC will also arrange awareness training and assessor training soon to build up capability of construction practitioners regarding sustainable finance. The user-friendly one-stop service platform will process application, assessment and certification online.
Interested parties can visit the online platform https://sfcs.cic.hk for the latest information.
