The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | President Yoweri Museveni has urged financial institutions operating in Uganda to align their business strategies with the development needs of the country and with the well-being of its people.
He emphasized that the financial sector is key to sustainable economic development through mobilization and use of domestic savings and investments.
This was at Thursday’s opening of a two day global gathering in Kampala of financial sector players drawn from policy owners, regulators, and leaders from the financial sector, to examine cutting-edge solutions for mobilizing and financing the post-pandemic economy.
The Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development and the Uganda Development Bank Limited (UDBL) – the country’s National Development Finance Institution – co-hosted the forum with international partners.
“I am very pleased that the World Development Finance Forum which Uganda is proud to co-host, focuses on introducing new solutions and examining promising practices to make the financial industry a powerful engine of sustainable green economic growth and environmental safety,” said Museveni, in a speech read for him by Minister of Finance Matia Kasaija.
The two-day meeting organized under the World Development Finance Forum (WDFF) brought together over 400 delegates from 45 countries to explore new approaches, pragmatic solutions, and collective actions to mobilize capital and finance the transition to a zero-carbon, green, inclusive and sustainable economy.
“We are honored to co-host the second WDFF in Kampala, in which ground-breaking solutions for financing sustainable development will be unveiled. The event will also spotlight Uganda’s own efforts and that of UDB to invest in the best knowledge available on financing a sustainable and resilient economy. It will also demonstrate to the world what is possible when governments and financing institutions enact smart and ethical policies towards building a sustainable future,” said Patricia Ojangole the Managing Director of UDBL.
This is the second convening of the WDFF and marks the second time that UDB and the Government of Uganda are hosting the event.
In the inaugural event held in 2020, delegates passed a resolution calling for action to enhance and protect global and national sustainability and development goals through collective strategies. These include the expansion of domestic resource mobilization and pooling of international financial resources, strengthening the role of national development finance organizations like UDB, Central Banks and other non-financial institutions and coordinating these efforts towards tangible goals.
Uganda Development Bank received an award for exceptional leadership through creating social, economic, and environmental values.
“We are emotional and delighted. Thank you for appreciating the humble work we do. It’s just the beginning and there is so much work to do but with everyone on board we will achieve the economy and world we want. Thank you all for your participation,” said Patricia Ojangole, MD, UDBL.
She said one of the roles of UDBL with the central bank and Ministry of Finance is to see how they can ensure the sustainability of the financial sector to deliver social-economic empowerment of people while protecting the natural environment.
“It was imperative that if we did nothing it was a matter of time before we were nothing. We now have a role to play given the mandate to change our society. The question is how? How do we survive? How do we ensure our existence?”
UDB, in a statement said WDFF 2021 at this meeting focussed on four objectives. They were “Unveiling Financing 4.0”, an effort to revolutionize the mobilization and deployment of capital at a mass scale. Another feature is the “Reshaping Industry for a Sustainable Economy” and focus is on enabling countries to benefit from the unfolding 4th industrial revolution and use latest engineering and technology to advance national development, protect the environment and combat climate change. The other two objectives are about sustainability standards for value driven financial sector players which will showcase how sustainability driven financial institutions are changing their economies. The forum ended with recognition of various sustainability leaders for their contribution towards a better world for all.
The WDFF is jointly organized by the Association of Development Finance Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP), Association of National Development Finance Institutions in Member Countries of the Islamic Development Bank (ADFIMI), Association of African Development Finance Institutions (AADFI), European Organisation for Sustainable Development, as well as the Government of Uganda and the Uganda Development Bank Ltd.
