The governor of the central bank has stressed the necessity of upholding environmental-friendly norms in economic policy and projects.
Speaking at an event to mark the occasion of signing an agreement between the Central Bank of Iran and the Department of Environment attended by the heads of both the bodies, Valiollah Seif said with this agreement “the two sides commit themselves to pursuing a green economy.”
The agreement between the two is in line with the realization of Article 50 of the Islamic Republic Constitution related to the stewardship of the environment and the implementation of legal obligations of Article 59 of the Fourth Five-Year Economic Development Plan in order to move toward a multilateral approach to green accountability, the CBI website reported.
Referring to the World Environment Day (June 5), Seif said “environmental issues with an economic outlook in the sense of “anticipating and managing potential future shocks” are among the main goals of the Resistance Economy.”
“In the past, environmental accounting was limited to quantitative aspects, and increase in economic output was regarded as the most important goal to be achieved,” he said.
CBI lending power is limited and loans should be handed out efficiently in the interest of economic growth, he noted.
Emphasizing the role and influence of credits and banking resources in fostering growth and ending the recession, Seif said loans need to be utilized to strengthen the key manufacturing sector and by extension the supply mechanism.
Intertwined
Massoumeh Ebtekar, the DOE chief, said that environmental issues paired with economic considerations are important for the government, adding that the environment and economy have been intertwined to create a “balance”. “
“We must work to internalize environmental needs. Losses were imposed in the past because the environment was neglected in the economy. We need to fill the vacuum and prevent future harm through clarity of purpose,” the vice president said.
The CBI plays a vital role in the implementation of green economy, according Ebtekar.”By implementing electronic banking and creating green national accounts, the CBI has indeed turned some heads”
Also present at the event was Hassan Motamedi, CEO of the privately-owned Eghtesad Novin Bank that funded an environmental project at Tehran’s Pardisan Park. EN Bank’s larger “green agenda” includes installing solar panels, using energy-efficient equipment, reducing air pollution, enhancing the efficiency of air conditioning systems, waste collection/sorting at its source and incentives for customers.
