CEB publishes 2021 Social Inclusion Bond Report and updated framework

PARIS – The Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) today published an impact report on its two Social Inclusion Bonds from 2021, together with an updated Social Inclusion Bond Framework for future issuance. The impact report provides detailed information on the allocation of the proceeds and social impact of the projects financed. 

“As the social development bank for Europe, the CEB has always focused on the social impact of its lending activity, leading by example,” said CEB Governor Carlo Monticelli. “The 2021 Social Inclusion Bond Report and the updated Social Inclusion Bond Framework highlight the Bank’s capacity to select worthy and impactful projects.”

Thanks to its exclusively social mandate, the CEB is ideally positioned to issue social bonds and allocate the proceeds to projects with high social value.

The proceeds of its sixth and seventh social inclusion bonds issued in April and June 2021, namely the €500 million issued with a seven-year maturity and $500 million with a three-year maturity, financed projects in the following key sectors of activity for the Bank:

• Social housing for low-income persons
• Education and vocational training
• Health
• Supporting MSMEs for the creation and preservation of viable jobs.
  

Key figures:

• To respond to acute needs in several European countries, 3,957 social and affordable dwellings were constructed or renovated.
• In the field of education and vocational training, 827,719 students benefited from new or modernised facilities.
• In the health sector, 555,195 people received medical care.
• Thanks to financing to MSMEs, 1,869 new jobs were created and 123,885 preserved in eight countries.

Overall, twenty-one projects across 19 countries benefitted from the proceeds of the two social bonds in the areas of action closely aligned with the CEB’s strategic priorities, as well as with several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

As a leading social bond issuer, the CEB also updated its Social Inclusion Bond Framework to align with the latest market standards and practices.

The updated framework clarifies the target population for each category, while the Use of Proceeds categories remain unchanged. The CEB also updated its approach to the management of proceeds to a portfolio approach to reflect the dynamic nature of its loan portfolio.

Sustainalytics provided the Second Party Opinion on the framework and confirmed its alignment with the Social Bond Principles 2021.

The CEB is committed to transparent reporting on the allocation and impact of eligible social loans that are financed by its social inclusion bonds. In 2023 it will start reporting on the entire portfolio of social bonds and eligible social loans (per ICMA Social Bond Principles categories), and show the proportion of financed and refinanced loans.