UNDP urges more private sector investments

THE United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in the Philippines launched the Philippines’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Investor Map in the SDG Investment Forum that brought together key private sector stakeholders, government partners, and civil society representatives.

Sustainable and inclusive economic development cannot be achieved without channeling private capital to where it is needed most. SDG Investor Maps, a UNDP market intelligence tool, encourage private sector participation and investment on the global goals by helping the private sector identify investment themes in emerging markets. These investment themes may have significant potential to advance the sustainable development goals and are aligned with the government policies and sustainable national development needs of the country.

The Philippine SDG Investor Map was produced by UNDP Philippines in partnership with the SDG Impact and the Center for Impact Investing and Practices (CIIP), an entity established by Temasek Trust, and with support of the recently concluded Joint Programme on Integrated National Financing Framework ( JP-INFF) of the United Nations.

UNDP Philippines Resident Representative Dr. Selva Ramachandran noted that: “As interest grows among private sector actors to align investment activity with the SDGs, there is a demonstrated call for unifying standards, tools, and services that can be relied upon by investors to support a process of targeting, measuring, and achieving development outcomes. This is the reason why the UNDP, through its SDG Impact Team, in partnership with the Centre for Impact Investing and Practices, initiated the development of the SDG Investor Maps.”

UNDP Philippines co launched the initial outputs of the Philippine SDG Investor Map with some of the country’s biggest private sector organizations – Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP), and Makati Business Club (MBC) – and with generous support from the Government of Canada through the UNDP Climate Finance PH for NBS Project.

The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), the country’s premier national development agency, expressed their staunch support for the initiative. NEDA Undersecretary for National Development Policy and Planning Rosemarie G. Edillon, who delivered a presentation on the Philippine progress on the SDGs, highlighted in her remarks the priority areas for SDG financing the Philippines. “We made sure that the SDGs are mainstreamed in the Philippine Development Plan. Taking off from the lessons from the pandemic, we have seen that we need to effect an economic and social transformation so that we can have a prosperous and inclusive and society. We are championing the SDGs because we know that if we achieve the SDGs in 2023, it gives us better chances of achieving our Ambisyon2040,” she reiterated.

The launch highlighted the country’s twelve investment opportunity areas (IOAs), including climate finance initiatives and nature-based solutions. Each IOA provides comprehensive information, including the specific development needs it addresses, anticipated developmental impacts, supportive conditions, potential impact risks, and illustrative case studies. This information is designed for both international and domestic investors aiming to amplify their contribution to the SDG in the Philippines.

Joel Tugade, Chair of SDG Committee of Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, spoke at the panel discussion that dove deep into the insights of the IOAs for the Philippines. He shared that: “Today, many of the businesses, including conglomerates and large corporations are becoming much more aware and are starting to articulate their business plans as they align them with SDG goals. The investment opportunities presented by the SDG Investor Map came in at a very timely and relevant manner for businesses.”

Philippine’s IOAs are available through the Global Platform. The Global SDG Investor Platform is developed by the UNDP Sustainable Finance Hub through the SDG Impact initiative, focusing on mobilizing, and aligning private sector capital in delivering the SDGs. The Platform, which currently houses 613 IOAs from various countries around the world, provides private sector investors with access to country level market intelligence, including on-the-ground insights on local investment landscape and investor connections. /