CDP's first operation in Mongolia: $20 million for sustainable cashmere

CDP's first operation in Mongolia: $20 million for sustainable cashmere

Meeting the challenge of sustainability and promoting growth opportunities in Italy's partner countries. These are CDP's objectives in development cooperation, an activity that is expanding to new businesses that are geographically distant but strategic for a key sector for Italian industry like fashion.

An example of this is the $20 million loan provided to Khan Bank, Mongolia's leading credit institution, part of an operation worth more than $200 million executed together with other development banks.

Fifty per cent of the resources will go to women- and youth-led SMEs, micro-enterprises and farms. The other half will go to the sustainable cashmere supply chain, a sector that is important for Italy both in terms of textile machinery exports and the sourcing of valuable raw materials. With a 40% market share, Mongolia is the world's second largest manufacturer of cashmere, a sector that is facing increasing difficulties due to climate change and the consequent harsh winters and prolonged droughts.

This initiative – CDP's first in the area – will contribute to the sustainability of the Italian fashion supply chain and the growth of Mongolian SMEs, and will also help solidify relations between the two countries.