Taking into considerations the two points I earlier raised, Bank Negara Malaysia has worked closely with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water to establish the Green Technology Financing Scheme (GTFS), a framework designed to improve the preconditions for financial institutions to finance viable and innovative green technology companies. This is achieved through arrangements that help to bridge information gaps between financiers and businesses. These arrangements also involves credit enhancements and financial incentives, to address current market short comings in meeting a legitimate economic need. Also critically important are efforts being pursued to strengthen the capacity of financial institutions, to provide continuing advisory support to businesses that are mutually beneficial to both business ventures and financial institutions. Central to this effort is the certification process to verify that businesses which qualify for the GTFS are not only able to demonstrate the required technical capabilities, but are also commercially viable. Other complementary efforts include education and awareness programmes, organised around the country to inform and update, financial professionals as well as businesses on the latest developments in the green technology sector. Likewise, courses offered by IBBM are designed to equip finance professionals to effectively assess the viability and risk of green technology projects. In 2010, a Joint Action Committee comprising of government agencies and financial institutions was formed to provide an efficient and coordinated platform to tackle implementation issues, such as, on the compliance and monitoring processes of green projects financed under the GTFS.

Muhammad bin Ibrahim: Role and opportunities of the financial system in supporting green technology Welcoming remarks by Mr Muhammad bin Ibrahim, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia, at the Green Technology Financing Bankers’ Conference, hosted by the Central Bank of Malaysia and the Institute of Bankers Malaysia (IBBM), Kuala Lumpur, 2 October 2012. *  *  *  Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, Introduction I am pleased to welcome you today to the Green Technology Financing Conference jointly hosted by Bank Negara Malaysia and the Institute of Bankers Malaysia (IBBM). This conference is timely and provides the industry with valuable opportunities to stay abreast with key developments in green technology financing and discuss transformative solutions to grow this new era of financing in a sustainable manner. My remarks today will hence focus on how the financial system can play a catalysing role in the development of a vibrant and dynamic green technology financing ecosystem, and to continuously support the needs of the economy in becoming a high value added high income economy by 2020. The world’s ecosystem is experiencing growing risks of climate change, resource depletion and environment degradation which have far reaching and irreversible ramifications for societies and economies. In the past 100 years, the global temperature has risen by 0.74°C as carbon dioxide intensity has increased largely due to increasing use of fossil fuels. More than 80% of our energy needs are currently derived from fossil fuels, exerting a huge burden on this non-renewable resource.