The Guidance on Responsible Policy Engagement, captures best practice and offers recommendations for developing and implementing effective policy engagement strategies, supporting banks in implementing Principles for Responsible Banking (PRB) “Principle 4: Stakeholder Engagement.”

The guidance covers practical steps including prioritizing engagement based on regional relevance and risk, participating in local, regional and global industry initiatives, building relationships with a variety of stakeholders, and managing trade association memberships to ensure alignment with sustainability values.

The guidance is centred around four pillars of responsible policy engagement:

• Consistency – Ensuring all policy engagements and participation in industry associations align with and support PRB commitments through a clear governance framework
• Accountability – Establishing clear governance mechanisms and oversight for policy engagement
• Transparency – Explaining how external communications with policymakers align with PRB commitments, and demonstrate how policy engagement support PRB objectives
• Active engagement – Proactively assisting policymakers by sharing financial and sustainability expertise to ensure consistency across business units and markets, and in alignment with goals

Further, this guidance outlines potential solutions to common challenges faced by banks including establishing a clear engagement framework, ensuring oversight across key committees, and maintaining internal consistency in policy positions.

Banks are also encouraged to integrate oversight across key committees and embed sustainability considerations into existing policy frameworks, as robust governance can help align policy engagement with the bank’s overall strategy.

As banks continue to drive the shift toward a sustainable economy, effective policy engagement can help bridge the implementation gap between commitments and action. Download the full report here.