BSTDB Hosts EDFI Spring Meeting on Environmental and Social Standards and Development Effectiveness
Development finance institutions discuss approaches to strengthen impact and sustainable investment
The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) hosted the 2026 Spring Meeting of the Environmental & Social (E&S) and Development Effectiveness (DE) Working Groups of the European Development Finance Institutions (EDFI) in Thessaloniki from 6 to 8 May 2026.
The meeting brought together representatives from 20 development finance institutions and multilateral development banks to exchange experience and discuss approaches to improving the effectiveness and impact of development operations
Discussions focused on strengthening the effectiveness, accountability and measurable impact of development finance operations in a rapidly evolving global environment. Key themes included impact and attribution methodologies, the use of data systems, digital platforms, automation and artificial intelligence, portfolio approaches for financial institutions, and the integration of environmental, social, and development effectiveness considerations across the project cycle. Participants also explored approaches to fostering more and better jobs, enhancing collaboration between E&S and DE functions in due diligence and advancing methodologies for impact measurement, scoring and evaluation.
Opening the meeting, BSTDB’s President, Dr. Serhat Köksal, emphasized the growing responsibility of development finance institutions to deliver tangible and sustainable outcomes: “At a time of evolving global development challenges, development finance institutions must not only invest—but lead. Strong environmental and social standards, combined with credible evaluation and accountability, are essential to achieving meaningful and lasting impact.”, he said and called for deeper cooperation among the development actors.
Todor Dimitrov, Director of the Bank’s Independent Evaluation Office, emphasized the importance of robust evaluation frameworks and closer cooperation: “Challenging times call for stronger EDFI cooperation and rigorous evaluation of impact efficiency. In such times, it is essential to mobilise private investments by evidence-based additionality and innovative risk sharing.”
Mircea Cojocaru, Director, Environmental and Social Sustainability, highlighted the importance of continued alignment across institutions: “Since BSTDB joined EDFI as an Observer in 2009, we have built a strong partnership driven by shared sustainability principles ranging from climate action and transparency to respect for human rights. Looking ahead, more needs to be done to align our approaches and harmonize standards, so that our financing is more effective in accelerating sustainable growth across the Black Sea region”.
The Spring Meeting concluded with a shared recognition of the need to further align methodologies, enhance collaboration and leverage innovation to address complex development challenges and deliver measurable results.
By hosting this meeting, BSTDB reaffirmed its commitment to promoting best practices in environmental and social sustainability and development effectiveness, as well as to strengthening partnerships within the international development finance community.
The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) is an international financial institution established by Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Türkiye, and Ukraine. The BSTDB headquarters are in Thessaloniki, Greece. BSTDB supports economic development and regional cooperation by providing loans, credit lines, equity and guarantees for projects and trade financing in the public and private sectors in its member countries. The authorized capital of the Bank is EUR 3.45 billion. For information on BSTDB, visit www.bstdb.org.
