About this learning event

This introductory online course provides essential insights into sustainable finance, offering a policy context and understanding of green, social, sustainability, and sustainability-linked bonds. You will gain an overview of the dynamics of the green, social, and sustainability bond markets, exploring key trends and developments. We will examine the International Capital Market Association (ICMA) principles, which set global standards for green, social, and sustainability bonds, and the role of the EU Taxonomy for Sustainable Activities and in shaping the green bond market. You will learn about the fundamental steps involved in issuing green, social, and sustainability bonds, as well as explore case studies, including the sustainability bonds of the Republic of Slovenia and the green bonds of the Republic of North Macedonia.

What will you learn

By the end of this course, you will get a solid foundation in sustainable finance and the tools needed to navigate the evolving landscape of green and sustainability bonds by gaining insight into:

• Policy context of sustainable finance
• Market players and products
• The dynamics of green, social, and sustainability bond markets
• ESG investing, the concept of greenium and the performance of labeled bonds
• The International Capital Market Association (ICMA) principles for green, social, sustainability and sustainability-linked bonds 
• EU Green Bond Standard and how the EU Taxonomy works
• The essentials of issuing green, social, and sustainability bonds (project evaluation and selection, management of proceeds, reporting, and the role of external reviewers), and
• Case studies on the issuance of sustainability / sustainability-linked bonds in Slovenia and green bonds in North Macedonia.

Who should attend

This online course is designed for officials working at ministries of finance (tresuries), line ministries such as the ministry of environment, transport, education and other relevant public administration agencies.

Faculty

The course will be delivered by:

• Kristjan Dekleva, Undersecretary, Treasury Directorate, Ministry of Finance, Slovenia
• Marjan Divjak, Director General, Treasury Directorate, Ministry of Finance, Slovenia
• Borys Matiash, Director, Head of Debt Capital Markets Central and Eastern Europe, Turkey and Israel, BNP Paribas
• Matthew Hewitt, Sustainable Capital Markets, BNP Paribas
• Viktor Cvetić, Independent Expert, North Macedonia

Practical information

Planned engagement for participants is estimated at three to four hours weekly of self study (pre-recorded videos) and four live sessions (lecture and Q&A with lecturers):

• Webinar 1: Wednesday, April 2 @ 13:30-14:30 CET
• Webinar 2: Friday, April 4 @ 10:00-11:30 CET
• Webinar 3: Wednesday, April 9 @ 13:30-15:00 CET
• Webinar 4: Friday, April 11 @ 10:00-11:30 CET
• Webinar 5: Monday, Apil 14 @ 13:30-15:00

Partners

This event is delivered as part of the Greening Human Capital of Public Institutions of the Western Balkans project implemented by the CEF and supported by The Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Energy and the Climate Change Fund of Slovenia.