Green Forward Talks
Green Finance Access
Going green is a great plan. But how do you pay for it?
6:00 PM Cairo · 5:00 PM Beirut, Ramallah · 4:00 PM Tunis, CET
Helping SMEs access green finance
Maybe you want to upgrade your factory, meet green standards, or make your business more circular. The bigger question is how you finance it. Experts from across the region come together to talk about getting ready for green financing, building a proposal that holds up, and finding your way through the funding that is actually available.
Factory owners, entrepreneurs, business owners and support organisations: this one is for you.
What you will take away
What we will cover, and what you should be able to do differently afterwards.
Getting ready before you meet a bank
How to explain the problem you are solving, show the business works, and put a number on the environmental value.
A proposal that survives scrutiny
Objectives, activities, budget logic and cost justification, expected impact and the evidence behind it, plus the gaps that sink most applications.
How green finance actually works
The kinds of finance and support an SME can realistically pursue, and how to work out which route fits your business.
Where incubators and support come in
What business support organisations, incubators, mentors, networks and funders can actually do for you on the way to finance.
The panel
Seven organisations that worked with SMEs on green finance across the programme, with your questions answered live.
Anas AbuOun
Founder and CEO, Green Gate
Jordan and Palestine
Green Gate is a fintech startup building digital tools that help banks and microfinance institutions work out whether an investment qualifies as green finance. Anas brings more than 12 years in international development, programme management and stakeholder engagement, and leads the company's work helping financial institutions put green finance frameworks into practice across MENA.
Green finance assessment
Dr. Mohamed Abbas
Executive Director, GESR, Misr El Kheir Foundation
Egypt
One of twelve appointed expert members of Egypt's National Council for Education, Research and Innovation under the Presidency. Heads Innovation, Management of Technology and Entrepreneurship at the Ministry of Industry, sits on the Technical Secretariat of the Ministerial Group for Entrepreneurship, and is a Professor of Entrepreneurship. More than 22 years across government, academia, NGOs and the private sector: founded NP INCUBATE, co-founded NilePreneurs, led 13 technology centres and mentored over 1,000 entrepreneurs and startups.
Green finance and SME support
Leen Abubaker
Palestine Director, Flow Accelerator
Palestine
Nine years across innovation management, startup development and programme design, working with early stage and scaling startups and with founders, investors and ecosystem partners to turn ideas into viable ventures. Her focus is inclusive startup ecosystems in resource constrained contexts, opening access to knowledge, networks and capital. Flow delivered the Green Forward masterclass on designing green project proposals.
Green project proposal design
Houda Aloui
Executive Director, SYRES Microcredit Association
Tunisia
A financial inclusion consultant with more than 20 years in microfinance, financial education and the social and solidarity economy, working with micro, small and medium enterprises on reaching finance.
Microfinance, financing plans and small green investments
Hasmig Dantziguian Khoury
Vice President, Lebanese League for Women in Business
Lebanon
A sustainability and ESG professional with 30 years across industries, now consulting under her own brand, PrincipLed. A founding Board Member of the UN Global Compact Network Lebanon, where she chairs the Program Committee, and a former appointed member of Lebanon's Economic, Social and Environmental Council, on its Environment Committee, where she worked on environmentally responsible investment with the relevant ministries.
Financial planning for women led businesses
More speakers to be announced.
Your facilitator
Shada El-Sharif
Founder and CEO, SustainMENA
Over twenty years on the green economy in Jordan and across the region, working with government, business and international institutions on policy, finance, strategy and investment. She contributed to Jordan's Economic Modernisation Vision, on its Green Jordan and Sustainable Resources growth drivers.
- Country Lead for the European Investment Bank's Greening Financial Systems Technical Assistance project
- Green Economy Policy Expert to Green Action in Enterprises (GAIN), implemented by GIZ
- Member of the Rihla Initiative MENA Policy Council, on unlocking green investment and climate finance in the region
- Formerly Green Economy and Investment Lead at the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit, and Director of the Jordan Environment Fund
MPA, Harvard Kennedy School. MEng and BS in Environmental Engineering, Cornell University.
Running order
A forty minute panel, then the floor is yours.
-
Opening and framing
Why green SMEs need finance, what finance ready means, and what you should walk away with.
5 min -
What makes an SME finance ready?
Explaining the problem, showing the business is viable, presenting a credible plan and the environmental value behind it.
10 min -
Preparing a strong green project and proposal
Objectives, activities, implementation plan, budget and cost justification, expected impact and evidence. The common gaps, and how support organisations help close them.
10 min -
Understanding finance pathways and support
The types of finance and support available, how to identify the right route, and the role of incubation, mentoring, networks and funders.
10 min -
Practical lessons and advice for SMEs
One action to take next, or one mistake to avoid, from every speaker.
5 min -
Your questions, answered live
Open floor. Bring the question you cannot get a straight answer to anywhere else.
20 min
About Green Forward
The Green Forward programme, funded by the European Union, aims to foster a green and circular economy in the Southern Neighbourhood region, encompassing countries in the Middle East and North Africa.
It is designed to strengthen the capacity of business support organisations (BSOs) to act as key ecosystem enablers, bridging the gap between policy and SME levels. This initiative is committed to fostering sustainable economic growth and innovation through comprehensive support and collaboration, promoting an inclusive green economy.
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Thu 29 Oct · 6:00-7:00 PM Amman time (GMT+3)
Green Finance Access
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Thu 29 Oct · 6:00-7:00 PM Amman time (GMT+3)
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Thu 29 Oct · 6:00-7:00 PM Amman time (GMT+3)
Green Finance Access
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This website is funded by the European Union, within the framework of the Green Forward programme, implemented at the meso level by SPARK in Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Morocco, Tunisia, and Egypt. Its contents are the sole responsibility of SPARK and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.