FC4S Lagos Centre was officially launched in Lagos on the 4th of October, 2019. In attendance at the launch were the Governor of Lagos state, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Chairman Governance Board FC4S Lagos, Mr. Bola Onadele Koko; Vice Chairman FC4S Lagos, Prof.Doyin Salami; Ag. Director-General, Securities and Exchange Commission, Ms. Mary Uduk and other special guests. In his remarks, the Governor of Lagos State, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, further reinstated the state’s commitment to achieving the the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through partnerships with organizations like FC4S Lagos.
Financial Centre for Sustainability, Lagos is one of the twenty-eight (28) financial centres across the world with a mandate to facilitate information exchange, share common actions and lead the development of global standards required to accelerate the expansion of green and sustainable finance.
In addition, FC4S Lagos was admitted into the FCS networks in May 2019 as the 23rd member which was formalized at a meeting attended by capital markets stakeholders in collaboration with the UNEP Inquiry. The FC4S Lagos’s mission is “To position Nigeria as a leading market in sustainability principles through investments, innovation, partnerships, and capacity development”.
It is also important to state that the Financial Centres (FC4S) Network was launched in Casablanca, Morocco, in September 2017 by the Casablanca Finance City Authority in partnership with UNEP Inquiry, Italy’s Ministry of Environment and the Morocco’s Presidency at the Conference of Parties (“COP”) 22 Climate Conference. It is a structured partnership between the financial centres and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP).
Some of the leading sustainability and financial organizations invited to help chart an effective plan that will set FC4S on the pedestal of progress and make Lagos State a pathfinder in sustainable finance and innovation include; SustyVibes, KPMG Nigeria, Financial Data House Limited, SMEFUNDS Capital Limited, Climate Smart Nigeria and Nigeria Climate Innovation Centre Lagos.
Moreover, the Research Education & Engagements group, which is one of the four thematic areas of the FC4S Lagos Governance Structure, had the following terms of reference which outline the objectives, tasks, limits of responsibility and key activities of members involved in the implementation of FC4S Lagos;
To provide insights and thought leadership on local sustainability issues.
To share knowledge and build capacity among stakeholders and relevant institutions/agencies through the execution of seminars, workshops and boot camp sessions for different market stakeholders.
To develop/leverage metrics for measuring the contribution of the financial centre to climate action & sustainable development via research papers on relevant topic areas and leveraging on the relationship within the global FC4S network.
To identify key opportunities and foster innovation in the Nigerian green/sustainable finance market.
To record relevant data/statistics and develop a robust database on investments in green/sustainable finance instruments.
To monitor and analyze developments in the FC4S Network and make recommendations to improve the global competitiveness of the FC4S Lagos.
To participate in and foster domestic, regional/international engagements (meetings, conferences, seminars, etc) on green/sustainable finance.
The above terms of reference were discussed extensively, and all parties present made significant and insightful contributions to the discussion.