As part of the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Ministerial Forum for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific took place in Paris at the Ministerial Conference Center of the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, 22 February, 2022.
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Your Excellencies, Distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a privilege to address you on behalf of the European Investment Bank, the EU bank and the world`s largest multilateral bank by assets.
Strengthening ties between Europe and the Indo-Pacific region is essential to the recovery from COVID and to the fight against climate change. It requires new channels for dialogue and cooperation and a common approach to investments. I am grateful to the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union for making this Forum such a channel.
As the world emerges from the COVID pandemic, we must get back on track to meet our climate objectives and the Sustainable Development Goals.
That is why the EIB supports a green, sustainable and inclusive recovery through long-term investment in infrastructure and innovation, key enablers and a prerequisites for growth and prosperity.
The European Investment Bank, as part of Team Europe, deepens EU partnerships globally against common challenges. We build on our experience accumulated over many decades: our global portfolio is the largest among MDBs in both climate projects and in innovation and digitalisation.
As a catalyst for the funding needed to meet the Sustainable Development Goals in the Indo Pacific region, we have provided over €18 billion in financing in the region since 1968. Climate action is the forerunner among our operational priorities in the region, in line with EU policies.
- In India, over the last 30 years, we have signed €3.6 billion of financing for green urban transport in several cities and states, and more than €1 billion for renewable energy. We recently signed two urban transport operations in Kanpur and Agra. In Kanpur, 3 million people will benefit from green, safe, fast and affordable public transport.
- In Cambodia, via Team Europe, we have financed climate and environmental protection, in particular water irrigation systems.
- In Laos, we are investing in climate-resilient road rehabilitation.
- In Vietnam, we support climate change mitigation.
- In Indonesia, we back project preparation and finance for low-carbon rapid transit systems.
To contain the COVID pandemic:
- We have supported the emergency response, the purchasing of vaccines and vaccination campaigns in Bangladesh.
- …and we have supported small business in a variety of sectors hit by the pandemic, such as tourism, in the Maldives.
We firmly believe in the value of partnerships to enhance global impact. We are working with European institutions on a number of Team Europe initiatives:
- The Clean Oceans Initiative helps decrease plastic waste in rivers, seas and on land;
- The Green-Blue Alliance for the Pacific and Timor-Leste supports climate action and resilience operations.
We have built partnerships with the International Solar Alliance and with the Asian Development Bank to co-finance projects on climate action and environmental sustainability across Asia and the Pacific.
We have agreements in place with Japanese development and investment organisations, such as the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) for project co-financing, as well as with the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), with which we recently extended the scope of our agreement.
Let me also mention the EIB’s commitment to the Indonesian Presidency of the G20. As the chair of the group of heads of MDBs in 2022, our aim is to strengthen sustainable finance and infrastructure investment, and to make the Indonesian Presidency a success.
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Ladies and gentlemen,
We realized we need to be more present on the ground and increase impact. This is why the EIB has recently established a new specialised arm for international partnerships, EIB Global. I am convinced that EIB Global will be the European Union’s key partner for Global Gateways, helping step up investment in infrastructure around the world with on-the-ground expertise. To that end, I am glad to announce that the EIB has recently increased its presence in the region by opening two new offices: in Indonesia and in Fiji.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The discussion today has highlighted many opportunities for transformative investment in climate, environment, and regional connectivity that can bring Europe and the Indo-Pacific region closer together.
The challenges are global, let’s work together to address them!
Thank you very much