Sintali signed a partnership with CADECOCRUZ and SGS to grow the EDGE green building standard in the Bolivian market. Through this partnership, CADECOCRUZ will act as the local representative in Bolivia and provide support to companies wanting to obtain certification through the EDGE program. CADECOCRUZ will also develop capacity at the local level to increase the uptake of green buildings by delivering trainings and workshops to government officials, banks and professionals.
EDGE (“Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies”), an innovation of IFC, is an internationally recognised green building standard that focuses on resource efficiency. With other 47 million square meters of certified floorspace globally, EDGE is becoming one of the fastest growing internationally recognized certifications for green buildings in the world.
‘This is not about aesthetic touch-ups and words, but about planning actions based on consensus with the institutions that know our challenges and needs first-hand. Today we mark a new milestone. EDGE is born in Bolivia, the first specialized business program for green and sustainable construction in the country, focused on providing support, products and services to all actors in the value chain,” said María Carolina Gutiérrez Brehmer, president of CADECOCRUZ.
To launch this partnership, CADECOCRUZ hosted a series of events throughout Santa Cruz and La Paz in October 2022. The agenda included a multistakeholder event in Santa Cruz called “The New Era of Sustainable Infrastructure,” which was held at the CADECOCRUZ facilities. Sintali Co-Founder Eleni Polychroniadou attended these events, speaking on the factors that drive market transformation and introducing international case studies to the market.
“The green building sector represents a significant opportunity for investment and for decarbonisation. CADECOCRUZ has a strong institutional capacity to drive change in the Bolivian market. By partnering together, we hope to help deploy green buildings at scale across Bolivia and transform the market in an accessible and viable way, ” said Eleni Polychroniadou, Co-Founder of Sintali.
Bolivia’s construction market was valued at $3.1 billion in 2021 and is projected to grow at a 4% AAGR between 2023-2026. Currently 67.5% of the population live in cities and it is estimated that by 2030 this will increase to 80%.
About CADECOCRUZ
CADECOCRUZ, also known as the Chamber of Construction of Santa Cruz dates back to 1985 to protect the interests and rights of the construction industry and to promote improvement and development within the sector. CADECOCRUZ is a benchmark institution of recognized prestige, with financial solvency and a leading role in the departmental and national leadership; which provides its associated sectors, through strategic alliances with other organizations, a range of business development services, which have contributed to the strengthening of companies in the sector.
About Sintali
Sintali is an environmental verification body, which was founded to verify the impact of the built environment around the world. Sintali acts as a global certification partner for IFC’s EDGE green building program, transforming the built environment and creating a pathway to ensure that every building on this planet is green. With deep expertise in the development of green building standards and corporate sustainability, Sintali brings transparency and rigor to the sustainability realm. For more information, visit www.sintali.com
About SGS
As the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company, SGS is recognised as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 89,000 employees, SGS operates a network of more than 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world. SGS’s reputation for independence, excellence and innovation has established the company as the market leader in providing services that improve efficiency, reduce risk and deliver competitive advantages for customers. For more information, visit www.sgs.com
About EDGE
An innovation of IFC, EDGE helps property developers to build and brand green in a fast, easy and affordable way. EDGE is supported by free software that encourages solutions to reduce energy, water and the energy used to make building materials by at least 20 percent, which is the standard for EDGE certification. The program has been generously supported by the following donors: Austria, Canada, Denmark, ESMAP, EU, Finland, GEF, Hungary, Japan and Switzerland. For more information, visit www.edgebuildings.com.
