Agreement to instruct micro-finance institutions about green credits

Tegucigalpa September 19, 2014. - Today the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), through its Green MSME Initiative, and Red Katalysis, a micro-finance network in Honduras, signed a US$66,050.00 technical cooperation agreement to raise awareness about renewable energy, energy efficiency and to promote projects that contribute to climate and environmental protection. The educational process will be targeted at representatives of micro-finance and financial institutions that provide financing to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

The agreement seeks specifically to strengthen the capacity of micro-finance and financial institutions to analyze investments in energy efficiency and small renewable energy projects. “The objective is to improve the standard of living of the micro-entrepreneurs, who will increase their net incomes by implementing more efficient energy use practices, in addition to being environmentally friendly,” said Pedro Emilio Banegas, Manager of the CABEI Office in Honduras, as he signed the agreement with Raúl Sánchez, General Manager of Red Katalysis.

Potential areas of cooperation include a diploma course on subjects, such as the different kinds of investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency projects, analysis of this kind of investment, creation of financial products and productive chains, among others.

This is one more CABEI initiative seeking to improve the conditions and the access of the MSME sector to financing of environmental investments.

The CABEI-run Green MSME Initiative is a tripartite initiative with financing from the German government’s KfW Development Bank and the European Union, which has funds amounting to US$44.5 million for small scale renewable energy and energy efficiency projects that are channeled through CABEI’s extensive network of intermediary financial institutions (IFIs). The Initiative also has a technical cooperation program amounting to US$4.5 million to provide technical cooperation to IFIs, energy audits for MSMEs and pre-investment studies for renewable energy projects, in addition to promotion and awareness raising about green issues.