On the occasion of the fifth session of the 13th CPPCC National Committee, Wang Dongsheng, member of the CPPCC National Committee and deputy director of the agriculture and Rural Committee in Hong Kong, chairman of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce and chairman of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, submitted relevant suggestions on the implementation of financial support for the "double carbon" goal and Rural Revitalization.
In terms of financial support for the implementation of the "double carbon" goal, Wang Dongsheng pointed out that to achieve the "double carbon" goal, all industries of the real economy need to follow the low-carbon transformation path based on science.
"Through close cooperation with the government and the financial sector, we can play a key role as a promoter and regulator in the field of financial transformation." Wang Dongsheng told Chinese reporters of securities companies that although the "net zero" goal will help countries determine the path of sustainable development, it still needs to make a trade-off in terms of cost, social and industry acceptance.
"Therefore, the process of transition to net zero emissions must take into account 'fairness' and be pragmatic." He stressed.
improve the synergy of low-carbon transformation
Wang Dongsheng pointed out in the proposal that to achieve the "double carbon" goal, all industries of the real economy need to follow the low-carbon transformation path based on science. As the provider and promoter of the required climate financing, the financial industry can play a key role in supporting transformation through close cooperation with policymakers, regulators, local governments and enterprises. In terms of financial support for the implementation of the "double carbon" goal, Wang Dongsheng's specific suggestions are as follows:
First, it is suggested to improve the awareness level of economic entities on climate change and promote market participation. It is suggested that financial institutions strengthen cooperation with relevant governments, regulators, industry associations and professional consulting institutions, actively build an industry exchange platform and share emerging solutions and best practices to deal with climate change. "By promoting the sharing of relevant resources, data and analysis tools, help enterprises improve their awareness of climate change and enhance the synergy of low-carbon transformation." Wang Dongsheng suggested.
Second, it is suggested that financial institutions promote the cooperation between enterprises in the real economy and stakeholders, help enterprises assess the impact of climate change and improve their ability of climate risk management. "Fairness" should be taken into account when setting the risk exposure and exit plan and timetable of high-energy consumption industries.
"On the basis of fully understanding the realistic conditions and challenges of enterprise transformation, help enterprises set expected targets consistent with the scientific emission reduction path according to their own emission reduction targets, the possible risks of accelerating transformation, the impact on enterprise credit and other factors." Wang Dongsheng pointed out that financial institutions should assist enterprises to formulate strategic plans to deal with climate risks suitable for their characteristics, and formulate financing solutions to help them implement them.
Third, it is suggested to accelerate the exploration of transitional financial products and bridge the gap between traditional green financing and sustainable financing. For industries with unclear transformation path and low financing participation under the existing technical conditions, such as heavy industry, manufacturing and agriculture, the financial industry needs to explore and provide more types of transformation financing products, such as expansion of transformation bonds, sustainable development linked bonds, supply chain financing and trade financing. Wang Dongsheng said that these products can be linked to climate related KP to stimulate and drive the public and private investment required to achieve net zero emissions.
Fourth, it is suggested to actively promote the formulation of a broader product definition, including all low-carbon transformation activities, to help fill the financing gap. For example, Wang Dongsheng said that we can learn from the practice of the "fast infra" initiative to create a label for sustainable development infrastructure, so that project investors, development enterprises and owners can clearly understand the positive impact of infrastructure assets on sustainable development, "On the one hand, encourage governments and development enterprises to design more projects with sustainable development standards as the core; on the other hand, encourage the adoption of higher standards at all stages of the infrastructure life cycle".
give consideration to "fairness" and be "pragmatic"
In the process of promoting low-carbon transformation, how to realize "fair transformation" also needs to be scientifically evaluated according to the actual conditions and foundation of the enterprise itself. At the same time, we should also weigh the risks that may be encountered in the transformation process.
Wang Dongsheng told Chinese reporters of securities companies that although the "net zero" goal will help countries determine the path of sustainable development, it still needs to make a trade-off in terms of cost, social and industry acceptance. "Therefore, the process of transition to net zero emissions must take into account 'fairness' and be pragmatic." He stressed.
Taking the EU as an example, its goal is to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The net zero path proposes not to approve new oil and gas field development projects, nor new coal mine construction or extension projects. This means that if these industries cannot redeploy capital to renewable energy, they will face rapid phase out. At the same time, affected by the global shortage of energy supply such as natural gas and coal, European energy prices have soared since 2021, making many EU countries miserable.
"It can be seen that the net zero target cannot be one size fits all. We should take into account the emission reduction responsibilities and emission reduction capabilities of different groups and industries, and also consider the transitional resettlement of affected employees in eliminated industries." Wang Dongsheng further pointed out that on the basis of fully understanding the realistic conditions and challenges of entity enterprise transformation, and according to the enterprise's own emission reduction targets, the possible risks of accelerating transformation, the impact on enterprise credit and other factors, the practical approach is to help enterprises set expected targets consistent with the scientific emission reduction path, Assist in the formulation of climate risk response strategies suitable for their characteristics, and formulate financing solutions to help them implement.
However, as the current transitional finance is still in its infancy worldwide, a widely recognized definition or standard has not yet been formed. Wang Dongsheng also said that from the policy or regulatory level, it is necessary to clarify the definition of "transformation", green classification standards and transformation classification standards as soon as possible, so as to assess whether specific economic activities meet a certain climate or environmental goal.
"This will not only improve market transparency, boost investor confidence, reduce the risk of 'green drift', reduce transaction costs, but also help to increase capital flows." Wang Dongsheng said.
Support Rural Revitalization
in addition to the relevant proposals on financial support for the implementation of the "double carbon" goal, the proposal brought by Wang Dongsheng at this CPPCC meeting also puts forward four suggestions on the sustainable development of rural economy and the protection of ecological environment
First, it is suggested to take more measures to support youth entrepreneurship. Provide financial support and capacity-building training for rural entrepreneurs. Wang Dongsheng pointed out that it is necessary to improve their entrepreneurial knowledge, enterprise management and marketing capabilities, help the sustainable development of entrepreneurial subjects, and establish a mechanism to promote entrepreneurial leaders with corresponding capabilities to lead the common development of small and micro enterprises, cooperatives and farmers.
Second, it is suggested to increase support for rural characteristic industries. For example, through professional support, market-oriented operation, e-commerce operation and other capacity-building training and providing opportunities for going out to study, we can improve the collective economy and entrepreneurs' brand awareness and marketing promotion concept, expand marketing channels, and continuously develop products and market channels on the basis of existing resources.
Thirdly, it is suggested to establish a technical index system of rural ecological infrastructure based on the ecosystem approach guidelines to guide the construction of rural ecological infrastructure network. "Although China's urbanization rate has exceeded 60%, the vast rural areas are still the largest carrier of ecological civilization construction." Therefore, Wang Dongsheng suggested that relevant departments should organize the preparation of rural ecological infrastructure technical index system based on ecosystem approach as soon as possible to guide the construction of rural ecological infrastructure network.
Fourth, it is suggested to promote the application of ecosystem approach in rural development planning. Improving biodiversity and ecosystem integrity is regarded as the main consideration goal of the construction of land and space ecological network. "On the premise of ensuring the production function of basic farmland and strictly abiding by the ecological red line, the rural development planning should be conducive to the expansion of the habitat of rare and endangered species and the improvement of the ecosystem, and help to lead the control and construction of water, field, forest and Grass Ecosystems in rural areas." Wang Dongsheng suggested.
