The ASEAN Green Map outlines ASEAN’s vision for a comprehensive sustainable finance ecosystem, detailing the necessary building blocks and recommending regional actions to achieve this vision. To develop the ASEAN Green Map, the project reviews ongoing sustainable finance efforts in ASEAN and globally to provide a holistic assessment, avoiding duplication and ensuring consistency with international practices. The ASEAN Green Map aims to chart a unified course for ASEAN’s sustainable finance, guiding member states towards inclusive green transition and alignment with the Paris Agreement and 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It emphasizes the financial sector, particularly green certification and advisory services. The ASEAN Green Map’s recommendations aim to align priorities across ASEAN’s financial sector bodies, promoting coordinated efforts and efficient resource use. Expected benefits include providing a foundation for countries at different stages of sustainable finance development, supporting national roadmap creation, and offering a reference for policymakers implementing sustainable finance policies.

1. Chart a course for ASEAN’s sustainable finance efforts. It would establish a unified ASEAN vision for sustainable finance and serve as an overarching guide for all ASEAN Member States (AMS) in addressing the urgent need to foster an inclusive green transition which includes scaling up sustainable financing and accelerating towards Paris Agreement and 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

2. Draw the attention of the ASEAN Senior Level Committee on Financial Integration (SLC), relevant ASEAN financial sectoral bodies, networks, initiatives, and other stakeholders to the key priorities of the sustainable finance agenda. The roadmap will also help inform the broader SLC agenda on climate and sustainability, future workplans of the SLC Task Force on Sustainable Finance (SLC-TF), and other relevant ASEAN work.

ASEAN countries have experienced escalating climate change related impacts, including floods, droughts, habitat losses, and urban heat, leading to significant economic repercussions. Without effective mitigation policies, projections indicate a potential decline of over 7 percent in the world’s real GDP per capita by 2100.

In response to these challenges, ASEAN is committed to advancing a comprehensive sustainable finance agenda, encompassing banking, capital markets, and insurance sectors, while enhancing coordination among relevant working committees. Acknowledging this commitment, the ASEAN Senior Level Committee on Financial Integration (SLC) recommended exploring the development of the “ASEAN Green Map” as a vision document outlining essential components of a sustainable finance ecosystem in the region. The SLC endorsed the proposed workplan, which includes the ASEAN Green Map, led by the Bank of Thailand (BOT), during its 22nd meeting in October 2021.

This project’s ambition is to produce a Green Map that drives the ASEAN region toward a comprehensive transition to a sustainable finance ecosystem.

It primarily targets the regional scale, while also being designed to serve as a flexible foundation for ASEAN countries to build their national sustainable finance systems based on the regional roadmap.

The desired outcome is for the ASEAN Green Map to be used as a reference when designing future regional or national initiatives on sustainable finance