Baku, 22 January 2020 – On January 21, the Ministry of Economy and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) organized a video-conference webinar on "Sustainable Investment: Trends and Opportunities in the Economy of Azerbaijan." The event was attended by more than 50 investment experts, representatives of relevant government agencies and academia.

The purpose of the webinar is to support the Government of Azerbaijan in optimizing resources to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in accordance with the UN Agenda 2030.

The webinar was opened by UNDP Deputy Resident Representative Charu Bist and Huseyn Huseynov, Head of the Secretariat of the National Coordination Council for Sustainable Development.

“The financing of the SDGs in Azerbaijan will require a multi-stakeholder effort, involving different levels of national and local governments, private sector engagement and collaboration with local and international development organizations. We hope that this series of webinars will help bring all stakeholders a step closer and spark a continuous conversation on public financing, sustainable investments, and green growth in 2021”, said UNDP Deputy Resident Representative Charu Bist.

“The integration of three values (economic, social and environmental) is the valuable chain directing the accomplished fulfilment of SDGs, peculiarly awareness of “green economy” and its successful application into the reality. In line with the significance of this, green economy can serve as a vehicle for government and private sector to achieve the SDGs and advance the transition to low-carbon, resource-efficient and inclusive economies within the international benchmarks such as environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards, triple bottom line principles and effective guidelines of global organizations”, said Huseyn Huseynov, Head of the Secretariat of the National Coordination Council for Sustainable Development.

Kurt Morriesen, Senior Advisor on SDG Investments at UNDP,  Jurgen Hammer, Managing Director at Social Performance Task Force, Stephen Newby, Assets Management Specialist at Herbert Smith Freehills, Nick Ashburn, Director of Impact Investing Strategy at PNC Financial Services Group, and Arsalan Mahtafar, Director of Development Impact at J.P. Morgan participated in the discussions and shared their views on the development of the green economy.

These series of webinars will continue throughout 2021 with the aim to promote sustainable investment, attract investment in areas with green and social impact, and raise awareness about "green financing" initiatives.