By Herman Opondo
Financial institutions are being pressed to stop waiting for “perfect data” and instead act on available climate information to drive meaningful emissions reductions, a panel of experts has urged.
A Webinar held Wednesday that brought together climate data specialists, bankers, and civil society voices, highlighted the persistent challenges banks face in tracking emissions from clients, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large corporations. With supply chain emissions (scope 3) often dwarfing direct operational emissions, banks are forced to rely on proxies and models to fill data gaps.
“Too often, the pursuit of perfect data is used as an excuse for inaction,” one speaker said. “We already have tools like Climate Trace that provide real-time insights. Banks have no reason not to start aligning their finance with climate goals,” said Alex MacGillvray. a Data & Society advisor.
Examples from Bangladesh illustrated how misallocations of climate finance can occur when decisions rely on incomplete data. While the garment sector has historically attracted financing, experts said the agriculture sector offers far greater emissions reduction potential.
Speakers stressed that asset-level data—going beyond company-wide reporting—was critical for accurate climate risk assessments. They also pointed to the importance of relationship managers within banks, who can bridge technical insights with client engagement on decarbonization.
But beyond technical and financial debates, the African Coalition of Communities Responsive to Climate Change (ACCRCC) warned that the discussion must not lose sight of communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis.
“Whether banks choose to act on proxies or wait for perfect data, the reality is that floods, droughts, and cyclones don’t wait,” said Henry Neondo, a Policy Influencing Advisor, ACCRCC. “Communities in Africa are already facing the costs of climate inaction. Finance must be climate-aligned not just in theory but in practice, reaching the sectors and regions where it matters most.”
The coalition argued that the data challenge should be framed as both a technical and justice issue. Uneven distribution of high-quality data—often better in developed markets than in Africa—risks reinforcing global inequities in climate finance.
“Emerging economies and rural communities cannot be penalized because their emissions data is incomplete,” Neondo added. “Banks must commit to building local capacity and ensuring that climate finance flows to adaptation and resilience, not only to profitable mitigation projects.”
The debate also touched on the role of central banks and regulators. In Bangladesh, supervised guidelines are already standardizing emissions reporting across banks. Panelists suggested that similar frameworks could be adopted in Africa to improve comparability and oversight.
Ultimately, participants agreed that while emissions accounting is vital, the real measure of success lies in driving down actual emissions and financing resilient futures.
However, Gerhard Mulder, Senior Advisor Green Finance, noted that the task is not just to measure financed emissions but to deliver climate-aligned finance that works in the real world.