Circular No. 17: Outputs of the First Meeting of the Sustainable Finance Working Group

Palestine Monetary Authority

Circular No. (17 / 2025) To all specialized lending institutions operating in Palestine Date: Tuesday, 05 August, 2025

Subject: Outputs of the First Meeting of the Sustainable Finance Working Group

Further to Circular No. (2025/9) regarding the formation of the Sustainable Finance Working Group for the financial sector, and based on the outputs of the first meeting of the financial sector's sustainable finance working group held on 17/07/2025, with the participation of representatives from banks and specialized lending institutions, during which the current state of the sector in the field of sustainable finance was reviewed, highlighting the main challenges, key implemented initiatives, as well as discussing the vision and future directions, we wish to emphasize the following meeting outputs:

1. Proceeding with the implementation of the Palestine Monetary Authority's Sustainable Finance Roadmap as a strategic opportunity for expansion, investment, and mobilization of funds, especially in light of the trend of many international entities towards requiring compliance with Sustainable Development Goals and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) standards as a fundamental condition for obtaining financing or entering into investment partnerships. Additionally, it is necessary to keep pace with international developments in this field, which contributes to enhancing the reputation and status of the Palestinian financial sector at both the regional and international levels.

2. The role of the working group in enhancing coordination and consultation between the Palestine Monetary Authority and the financial sector, unifying concepts and terminology related to the field, and crystallizing a shared understanding that contributes to setting unified and integrated policies, in addition to unifying efforts towards effectively responding to environmental and social challenges.

3. The importance of enhancing internal consultation and coordination at the institutional level in this field, through: a. Forming an internal team concerned with sustainable finance, which should include key relevant functions, especially strategic planning and product development, risk management, operations, finance, marketing, human resources, and others.

   b. The institution's representative in the financial sector's Sustainable Finance Working Group - pursuant to Circular No. (2025/09) - must be a member of the internal team to ensure full coordination with the outputs of the financial sector working group.

   c. The team shall undertake, at a minimum, the following tasks:

   • Assessing the institution's current status in the field of sustainable finance and managing financial risks associated with climate.
   • Identifying gaps and related challenges, and preparing a vision and action plans aimed at enhancing the integration of sustainable finance principles and practices into strategies, policies, and internal procedures across various levels and functions within the institution.
   • Contributing to the unification of concepts, capacity building, and increasing internal awareness.

   d. The necessity of providing the Palestine Monetary Authority with the internal team's charter and identifying its members within two weeks of its date, via the following email address: GF-CCR@pma.ps.

We also attach a set of important reference documents in the fields of climate change and sustainable finance, which we believe will contribute to supporting your efforts towards integrating concepts in this field.

Supervisory Group Palestine Monetary Authority

Attachments:

1. Minutes of the First Meeting of the Sustainable Finance Working Group.
2. The presentation presented during the aforementioned meeting.
3. Climate and Development Country Profiles for the State of Palestine (CCDRs).
4. Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
5. Sustainable Finance Roadmap.