<
https://www.nature.org/en-us/newsroom/tnc-announces-new-nature-bonds-project-bahamas/>
"Today, The Government of The Bahamas, The Nature Conservancy (TNC), the
Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and several financial partners launched
a Nature Bonds project that will refinance USD 300 million of The Bahamas’
external commercial debt to help the country improve ocean conservation and
management of its Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to benefit biodiversity and
people, and lessen the effects of climate change.
The Bahamas debt conversion project is a project of firsts. It is the first
time that a private investor, Builders Vision (an impact platform founded by
Lukas Walton), is providing a co-guarantee alongside a multilateral development
bank (MDB). Also, it’s the first time a private insurer, AXA XL, is providing
credit insurance alongside an MDB in support of a sustainable issuance for
nature and climate. In addition, the project marks the first time that
climate-smart MPA commitments are included explicitly in the conservation
outcomes to support climate mitigation and adaptation goals.
By buying back USD 300 million of its external commercial debt using proceeds
from a new competitively-priced USD 300 million loan funded by Standard
Chartered, The Bahamas will unlock an expected USD 124 million of new cash
funding (plus an additional estimated USD 8 million of endowment investment
returns) for marine conservation over the next 15 years without adding to the
country’s debt. The conservation fund endowment, expected to grow to USD 20
million by 2039, will continue funding marine conservation in The Bahamas
beyond the project’s 15-year term. The new financing benefits from a
comprehensive credit-enhancement package: a USD 200 million partial credit
guarantee from the IDB, alongside a USD 70 million collateralized guarantee
from Builders Vision and USD 30 million in credit insurance from AXA XL.
Rothschild & Co served as sole financial advisor to the Ministry of Finance.
The Bahamas has a strong record in marine conservation, with more than 17% of
its nearshore environment designated as part of its National Protected Areas
System. MPAs within this system comprise nearly 6.8 million hectares (16.8
million acres) of the ocean. Like many other small-island, large-ocean states,
The Bahamas needs additional resources to effectively manage and enforce its
existing MPAs, to balance conservation of its marine resources with increasing
demands for use and development of its coastal and ocean space, and also to
help with addressing climate change impacts on the country and its people. This
Nature Bonds project will enable the country to advance its goal of effectively
managing its vast system of MPAs and will provide the single largest amount of
funding to support effective management of The Bahamas’ ocean area."
Via
Fix the News:
https://fixthenews.com/279-breakneck-solarisation/
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
