(TAP) - "Go Green Tunisia," an initiative launched by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to promote the green transformation of Tunisian small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups, was presented Friday in Tunis. This was at an event organised by the bank on the theme "Go Green- B2B SMEs and Consultants".

Implemented by the EBRD, this initiative is part of the High Impact Partnership on Climate Action (HIPCA) funded by the Netherlands and Finland with a view to supporting the efforts made SMEs and startups to address climate change challenges while improving their competitiveness and sustainable growth.

The programme is geared towards improving the governance of SMEs in areas of environmental and climate risks, encouraging enterprises to meet climate objectives and adopt a green strategy, reducing energy consumption through energy, water and material efficiency audits and cutting carbon and environmental footprint of products. This in addition to improving the competitiveness and sustainable growth of SMEs and startups through consulting and expertise projects in addition to training local consultants to launch consulting projects.

Through this initiative, the EBRD will broaden the range of "Green" counselling products made available to SMEs and step up the proportion of recipient SMEs in a bid to help them adopt strategies and business practices with a positive impact on the climate.

The EBRD will either provide advice to enterprises through local consultants or sectoral expertise through international advisers, in line with the needs of selected businesses.

Anis Fahem, the National Director of the EBRD 'Support to SMEs Programme said the "meeting is intended to present the EBRD's initiative to the 150 participating companies, explain procedures to join it and help them get in touch with green economy consultants (energy efficiency, waste management, waste water management, environmental audit, ISO 14001, ISO 50001, etc.), so as to support them in achieving the sustainable development of their companies."

Technical assistance to develop,studies and action plans needed for the green transformation of enterprises will be made available through EBRD donations.

In a second stage, the bank will underpin green investments of enterprises through financing lines structured with local banks and grants of up to 15% to 20% of these investments.