BANK OF AFRICA PUTS CLIMATE ACTION AND SUSTAINABILITY AT THE HEART OF ITS ACTIVITIES THROUGH RESPONSIBLE BANKING PRINCIPLES 23 September 2019

BANK OF AFRICA is one of the founding signatories of the Responsible Banking Principles, committing to strategically align its activities with the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Accord on Climate Change.

By signing the Principles for Responsible Banking, BANK OF AFRICA joins a coalition of 130 banks worldwide, which together represent more than US$ 47 trillion in assets, and who commit to play a crucial role in achieving a sustainable future.

The official launch of the Principles for Responsible Banking took place at the beginning of the United Nations General Assembly and marked the beginning of the most important partnership to date between the global banking industry and the United Nations.

"The United Nations Principles for Responsible Banking are a guide for the global banking sector to achieve a sustainable development economy. The Principles create the accountability that makes responsibility a reality, and the ambition that can motivate action," said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the launch ceremony attended by the 130 founding signatories and more than 45 of their CEOs.

As stated in the Responsible Banking Principles, BANK OF AFRICA believes that "only an inclusive society based on human dignity, equality and the sustainable use of natural resources can enable our clients, businesses and companies to prosper".

By adhering to the Principles, we commit to "use our products, services and relationships to support and accelerate the fundamental changes in our economies and lifestyles necessary to ensure shared prosperity for current and future generations".

"A banking sector that anticipates the risks of climate change and other environmental challenges can not only facilitate the transition to low-carbon and climate-resilient economies, it can also benefit from them," said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). "When the financial system shifts its capital from gross resource investments to investments that prioritise nature, everyone wins in the long run".

The Responsible Banking Principles are based on a solid implementation and accountability framework. By signing them, BANK OF AFRICA commits to be transparent about its positive and negative impact on people and the planet. BANK OF AFRICA shall focus on those areas where it will have the biggest impact - in its core business – and it shall set, publish and implement ambitious targets to enhance positive effects and address potential negative impacts in line with global and local objectives.

BANK OF AFRICA supports impact-based transformation of the financial services sector. And we have joined the Responsible Banking community to better define, integrate and monitor objectives aligned with the goals of sustainable development and sustainable growth in Africa," said Othman BENJELLOUN, Chairman and CEO of BANK OF AFRICA.

The Responsible Banking Principles will provide BANK OF AFRICA with an effective framework for systematically identifying and seizing new business opportunities created by the new sustainable development economy, while enabling the bank to identify and effectively manage the risks associated thereto.