China:Swiss Re & China Re subscribe to Belt & Road Green Investment Principles

China Reinsurance Group and Swiss Re have signed the "Belt and Road" Green Investment Principles (GIP) protocol, becoming the 38th and 39th signatories, announced Mr Ma Jun, director of the Green Finance Committee of the Chinese Society of Finance.

The two institutions have pledged to strengthen green and low-carbon investment in countries and regions along the Belt & Road initiative, and reduce pollution and high-carbon investment.

Mr Ma said that the “One Belt One Road” GIP has become a very important international cooperation mechanism to promote Belt & Road investments.

The GIP was initiated by the Green Finance Committee of the Chinese Society of Finance and the City of London's Green Finance Initiative. It has joined forces with the Principles for Responsible Investment, Sustainable Banking Network, and the Belt and Road Bankers Roundtable, World Economic Forum, Green Belt and Road Investors Alliance (Green Belt and Road Investors Alliance) and Paulson Institute. The GIP was first published in London in November 2018.

The GIP includes seven principles at three levels, i.e. strategy, operations, and innovation:

Principle 1: Embedding sustainability into corporate governance

Principle 2: Understanding Environmental, Social, and Governance Risks

Principle 3: Disclosing environmental information

Principle 4: Enhancing communication with stakeholders

Principle 5: Utilising green financial instruments

.Principle 6: Adopting green supply chain management

Principle 7: Building capacity through collective action.

Source: Asia Insurance Review