Month: March 2025

Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea March 25, 2025- The Green Finance Summit 2025 marked a strong set of commitments and partnerships, reinforcing the country’s green finance agenda and accelerating its position as a leader in sustainable finance across the Pacific region.

This summit was hosted by the Green Finance Centre (GFC), under the auspicious of the Central Bank of Papua New Guinea (BPNG), brought together senior government officials from the Treasury, Energy, Agriculture, Labor, Forestry, and Environment Ministries in PNG, along with leaders from Agence Française de Développement (AFD), Asia Development Bank (ADB), International Finance Corporation (IFC) member of the World Bank Group, International Monetary Fund (IMF), New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), United National Development Program (UNDP), United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI), and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), and Bank South Pacific (BSP), Kina Bank, ANZ PNG, MiBank, Mama Bank and more.

Significant announcements and agreements were made throughout the day, as AFD committed to supporting the development of green finance instruments, such as the Green Refinancing Facility (GRF) and Green Guarantee Facility (GGF) to mobilize capital and de-risk green investments. The commitment was strengthened by an agreement from ADB to inject USD 20 million into both facilities while working with AFD, UNCDF, GFC, and BPNG. These partners will connect with local financial institutions to co-develop a pipeline of green and blue loans, forming the backbone of blended green finance and unlocking finance for Micro Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSME) in PNG.

BPNG Governor Ms. Elizabeth Genia (middle) pictured with BPNG Chairman Mr. David Toua (left) and Honorable Minister for Energy Mr. Thomas Opa (right) at the Green Finance Summit held in Port Moresby.

Image Caption: BPNG Governor Ms. Elizabeth Genia (middle) pictured with BPNG Chairman Mr. David Toua (left) and Honorable Minister for Energy Mr. Thomas Opa (right) at the Green Finance Summit held in Port Moresby.

Read more on the Green Finance Centre Website – https://www.gfcpng.com/green-finance-summit-2025-accelerates-the-investment-and-partnerships-for-a-sustainable-future-in-png/

 

Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea March 24, 2025- The Green Finance Centre (GFC), under the auspicious of the Central Bank of Papua New Guinea is hosting its Inaugural Green Finance Summit to unlock green finance opportunities, foster green investment, and support inclusive growth across key national priorities such as agriculture, sustainable land use and marine resources, renewable energy, women-led enterprises, and small and medium-sized businesses. The summit brings together senior government officials from Treasury, Energy, Agriculture, Labor, Forestry, and Environment Ministries in PNG, along with leaders from the financial sector, development partners, and private sector stakeholders in the country, the Pacific region, and international donor partners.

Image Caption:(L-R): Mr. Ivan Pomaleu, Chief Secretary to the Government, Ms Elizabeth Genia, Governor, Bank of PNG, Ms. Virginie Bleitrach, AFD Regional Director Pacific Ocean and Mr. George Awap, Assistant Governor – Financial System Development and Innovation- Bank of PNG at the opening session of the Green Finance Summit 2025.

Read more of this article on the Green Finance Centre Website – https://www.gfcpng.com/inaugural-green-finance-summit-2025-accelerating-climate-finance-in-png-and-the-pacific/

Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea – On Friday, March 7, the Centre for Excellence in Financial Inclusion (CEFI) celebrated International Women’s Day with a special milestone, the graduation of 25 participants from its Financial Literacy (FL) Training of Trainers (ToT) program. This celebration aligned with the 2025 International Women’s Day theme, “Accelerating Action,” emphasizing the need to equip more individuals, especially women with the financial literacy skills to train others.

The five (5) days FL ToT program, conducted from March 3 to March 7, was designed to train individuals not only to improve their own personal financial management skills but also to become financial literacy trainers within their respective communities and organizations.

Among the graduates, 10 were women, reinforcing CEFI’s commitment to bridging the financial literacy gap for women and marginalized groups. The participants represented various organizations, including Commerce and Industry (East Sepik), Niugini Health Link (Western Highlands), Tuhava Town Management Limited (Central Province), Rhodes PNG Limited, Ipili National Limited, Taragai Enterprise Limited, PNG Eco Solutions, and Women’s Microbank Limited, while six participants were self-sponsored.

Held at the CEFI Training Room, the graduation ceremony was a moment of celebration, marked by a cake-cutting and a photo session with CEFI staff and participants. In his keynote address, CEFI’s Acting Executive Director, Mr. Peter Samuel, highlighted the significance of empowering women as financial literacy trainers.

“Instead of having separate events, we chose to combine this graduation with International Women’s Day because empowering women in financial literacy is a key step in accelerating economic empowerment,” said Mr. Samuel. “Women play a crucial role in building strong families and communities, yet their contributions are often overlooked. Today, we celebrate their achievements and their potential as change-makers in the space of financial literacy and financial inclusion.”

He challenged the newly trained participants to apply their knowledge by training others in their communities. “Now that you have completed this training, the real work begins. How will you take what you’ve learned and implement it? How will you teach others about budgeting, saving, and responsible financial decision-making? This program is about more than just learning, it is about becoming trainers and advocates for financial inclusion.”

Representing the graduates, Sharon Woruba emphasized how fitting it was that the training concluded on International Women’s Day. “CEFI has done tremendous work in promoting financial inclusion, particularly for women. The theme, ‘Accelerating Action,’ perfectly aligns with CEFI’s mission, providing financial literacy that enables women and girls to take charge of their economic future,” she said.

Other graduates shared their personal transformation through the training as well:

• Rita Kari, from Manda village in Western Highlands Province, admitted that before the training, she lacked awareness of her financial habits. “This program made me realize the importance of financial discipline, setting savings goals, and making informed spending decisions. I now understand how to train others to do the same,” she shared.
• Ezekiel Lakain, a security officer from Enga Province, was inspired to share his new knowledge with his family. “I have learned so much about budgeting and saving, and I am eager to train my family and community on how to make better financial decisions,” he said.
• Solomon Peni, a Youth Empowerment Project Officer from Western Highlands, recognized how his own financial behaviour had changed. “This training opened my eyes to the importance of financial planning. I am now more mindful of my spending and ready to teach others how to manage their money wisely,” he stated.

The FL ToT program’s core objective is to ‘’Building a Nationwide Network of Financial Literacy Trainers ‘’ by developing a network of skilled trainers who can deliver financial literacy training in their respective organizations and communities. By focusing on savings, budgeting, and responsible personal financial management skills, the program ensures that participants do not just gain knowledge for personal use, but become advocates for financial inclusion, particularly for women, youth, and rural populations.

Through this initiative, CEFI is accelerating action toward financial empowerment for all, ensuring that more Papua New Guineans, especially women and girls, gain the financial skills needed to build resilient, sustainable livelihoods.

 

 

 

Ends.

 

For further information on the work of CEFI please contact CEFI Communications Team: +675 3225300, email: lomaro@thecefi.org  or visit www.thecefi.org

 

 

Image Captions:

Image 1.   CEFI’s Acting Executive Director Mr. Peter Samuel speaking to the participants during the mini graduation.

Image 2. CEFI’s Acting Executive Director Mr. Peter Samuel presenting female participant Lina Wingawi, her certificate at the graduation ceremony.

Image 3. CEFI’s Acting Executive Director Mr. Peter Samuel is joined by female participants in cutting the IWD cake.

Image 4: CEFI’s Finance and Admin Manager, Mr. Andon Sevua (left) presenting twenty-four old Ezekiel Lakain his certificate at the graduation ceremony

Image 5: NFIS Coordination and Stakeholder Engagement Manager Mr.Danny Koka presenting Sharon Woruba her certificate at the graduation ceremony

Image 6:  CEFI Staff and management with FL ToT participants pose for a group photo following the presentation of certificates

Image 7: CEFI and BPNG staff were involved in mini IWD activities. Pictured here staff enjoying morning tea as part of the IWD celebration activities.