First appeared in
Asian Development Bank
100 Climate Actions from Cities in Asia and the Pacific
A new green loan program has been initiated in Ulaanbaatar to assist citizens with purchasing environmentally friendly houses and for energy efficiency improvements.
A new green loan program has been initiated in Ulaanbaatar to assist citizens with purchasing environmentally friendly houses and for energy efficiency improvements.
In Mongolia’s capital city, three of the country’s commercial banks have collaborated to begin a new green loan program. The green loans can be used by citizens to cover the purchasing of household items such as electric heaters, building retrofitting materials and water-saving toilets in an effort to reduce air and water pollution.
As well as the green loans, residential housing loans are being offered to residents. Citizens can choose amongst 10 different blueprints of single house dwellings which meet the criteria of the loans such as size and energy efficiency standards. This pilot loan program will begin with accepting 60 applications and if proven effective, the financing will expand into the Ger area, where the main source of the Ulaanbaatar’s air pollution comes from.
$60
MILLION OF GREEN LOANS HAVE BEEN FINANCED
MILLION OF GREEN LOANS HAVE BEEN FINANCED
These initiatives are helping Mongolian banks to gradually build their green lending portfolios. As of 2019, over 2,700 green loans equal to over $60 million were financed by member banks of the Mongolian Sustainable Finance Association.
The green loans assist citizens with purchasing environmentally friendly houses and incorporating energy efficiency improvements (photo by ADB).
The Challenge
Mongolia’s capital city needs to reduce air and water pollution and in order to drive these sustainability measures, three of the country’s commercial banks have collaborated to begin a new green loan program.
Co-Benefits
Economic The loans are subsidised by the National Committee for Environmental Pollution Reduction and are offered to citizens at half of the normal interest rate.
Environment The loans have financed initiatives such as renewable energy projects, water conservation, air pollution reduction and biodiversity protection.