The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Mizuho Financial Group have entered into a partnership to support scaling up sustainable finance across Japan and Asia. This follows an announcement by the Mizuho Financial Group that it intends to raise USD 700 billion in sustainable finance by 2030.
The partnership aims to expand sustainable and impact finance initiatives which strengthen economic infrastructure by resolving a range of societal and environmental issues and enhancing socioeconomic sustainability. The approach aims to integrate sustainability into business strategies and operations to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
UNDP has prioritized engaging with the private sector to mobilize much needed resources and to scale up efforts in achieving the SDGs. Its SDG Finance Team at the Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific (RBAP) and UNDP's Sustainable Finance Hub have introduced service lines for businesses and investors to align investments towards the SDGs. These service lines are focused on the development of impact-driven investment frameworks, integrated into the entire investment cycle.
In 2022, Mizuho became the first global company to participate in UNDP's "SDG Impact Standards Training", strengthening efforts to enable a wide range of customers to engage in impact finance. Mizuho published its "Impact Business Compass" in May 2024, which guides its thinking on impact, both in terms of the opportunities and approaches to becoming an impact business. This announcement advances collaboration with Mizuho, an industry leader in Asia, while serving as a model for other companies to follow suit.
In collaborating with UNDP, Mizuho is advancing initiatives that seek to establish positive cycles that cogenerate SDG impact and economic and corporate value. UNDP will provide Mizuho with comprehensive advisory services to enhance its sustainable investment strategy, operations, and project identification.
UNDP's expertise and global network will help Mizuho identify and support impactful projects aligned with the SDGs, structure blended finance solutions, and amend its sustainability-related policies.
Key areas of the partnership include developing a comprehensive sustainable investment strategy and financing for Mizuho that aligns with international standards and best practices. UNDP will also support Mizuho to develop sustainable product offerings, policies, and operational procedures, as well as identify and prioritize investment opportunities that can contribute to the SDGs.
"Private capital investments at scale are essential to see accelerated progress across the Sustainable Development Goals. Our partnership with the Mizuho Financial Group underscores the vital role and compelling business case for investing in areas like climate change, biodiversity, and social equity," said Kanni Wignaraja, UNDP's Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific. "By combining Mizuho's financial capabilities and assets with UNDP's strategic vision and development expertise across Asia and the Pacific, we look to enable transformative change. We hope this partnership serves as an inspiration for other financing institutions to follow the Mizuho Financial Group's lead," she added.
Yasuhiko Ushikubo, Executive Officer and Head of the Research and Consulting Unit, Mizuho Financial Group and Mizuho Group Chief Sustainability Officer (CSuO), said, "Mizuho works to co-create impact with diverse stakeholders in working towards its purpose of tackling new challenges and achieving success together. Achieving a sustainable society requires incorporating social and environmental factors, which have been regarded as external to corporate and economic activities, into decision-making as internal factors. In this way, internalizing externalities is crucial to fostering a virtuous cycle of impact creation and corporate growth. The UNDP has a proven track record of supporting projects that aim to create global impact towards achieving the SDGs through capacity building that accelerates impact thinking. Through this partnership, Mizuho will work with the UNDP to promote its impact business not only Japan, but also globally."
