It was an honor for Seneca Impact Advisors to have been invited to speak at the CODE RED: Sri Lanka Climate Summit 2024, where we shared our views on how bankable nature solutions can contribute to the country’s sustainable development. As President Wickremesinghe emphasized in his keynote address, it is critical that the country move forward with its Climate Prosperity Plan, a central component of which is private-sector involvement. Amid pressing fiscal, mitigation and adaptation challenges, private capital will have an increasingly important role to play.

In a global context, annual private-sector financing for climate- and nature-positive projects has the potential to grow seven times to over $200 billion by 2050, as per UNEP estimates. Sri Lanka’s efforts to facilitate international equity and debt investments in sustainable development are aligned with the global community’s goals. In particular, blended finance – where catalytic capital is provided by public and private institutions and impact investors – offers promising potential to galvanize action at the individual project level.

Commercially viable projects that could deliver significant sustainability benefits include agroforestry, waste treatment and other initiatives that promote a circular economy. Seneca will continue to work closely with local and international stakeholders to develop projects that will deliver tangible benefits for the country’s natural landscape and local communities.