Polaris Bank said it has recorded remarkable success in adopting the United Nations Environment Programme Financial Initiatives (UNEP-FI) Principles for Responsible Banking.
The Principles for Responsible Banking, an initiative of UNEP, an Agency of United Nations (UN), provide a framework of six principles for integrating Sustainability into the heart of banking operations.
By signing on to adopt the framework, in September 2019, Polaris Bank committed to aligning its strategies with the Paris Climate Agreement and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Outlining some of the successes it has recorded since its membership of the UNEP-FI Banking Principles in New York, Polaris Bank in a statement yesterday, explained that within its first 100 days of introducing its agency banking platform, “Sure Padi,” it serviced over half a million customers and was ranked fifth in the first quarter 2020 by the Shared Agent Network Expansion Facility (SANEF).
Commenting on the progress made so far, the Acting MD/CEO of Polaris Bank, Innocent Ike, was quoted in the statement to have said: “Signing the UNEP-FI Principles for Responsible Banking in 2019 has ensured that we remain committed to developing a sustainable economy and empowering our stakeholders to build a better future.
“Our role as intermediaries means we can significantly influence the direction that our clients and customers take. Through concerted efforts of the Bank’s stakeholders, the progress we have made in key focus areas proves that driving sustainable businesses can yield positive returns. We look forward, with renewed vigour, to surpassing our achievements in the first year.”
In line with the principles of working responsibly with key stakeholders to encourage sustainable practices and enable economic activities that create shared prosperity for current and future generations, Polaris Bank rolled out its instructive learnings across stakeholders.
Through its client-vendor engagement, the bank creates awareness on environmental and social risk assessment procedures, equipping relevant stakeholders with requisite knowledge for building environmentally sustainable businesses.
The programme is implemented through collaboration amongst its key departments, including risk management, corporate support and strategic brand management.
Stakeholders benefit from visitations, monthly e-learning sustainability materials, impact reports, and yearly workshop sessions on environmental & social risk.
