Banque Zitouna: Driving Sustainable Growth and Energy Transition in Tunisia
Since 2024, Banque Zitouna has engaged in a comprehensive strategic review to shape its new 2025–2030 strategic plan. Following a thorough evaluation of its previous plan’s achievements and an in-depth analysis of the regulatory, economic, technological, and societal shifts transforming the banking sector, the Bank has defined a clear vision articulated through several key strategic pillars. These include strengthening its market position, enhancing resilience through rigorous risk management, developing human capital, and integrating Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) criteria at the core of its strategy.
Two years into this roadmap, initial results are already evident. Far from being a peripheral element, ESG has emerged as a genuine driver of performance and long-term sustainability, underpinned by the conviction that financial solidity and positive societal impact must advance hand in hand. The stated ambition is clear: to achieve sustainable, responsible growth that creates value for clients, employees, shareholders, and, more broadly, for the Tunisian economy.
ESG Priorities Translated into Concrete Actions
To realize this ambition, Banque Zitouna has translated its ESG orientation into structural projects spanning both its sustainability initiatives and governance frameworks. The Bank has initiated a comprehensive ESG approach, supported by a dedicated reporting framework, to progressively integrate ESG criteria into its operations and enhance transparency with stakeholders.
In parallel, the Bank has launched the development of its carbon footprint assessment and established a dedicated platform for monitoring its carbon emissions. These tools will enable precise measurement of greenhouse gas emissions and the setting of concrete decarbonization targets. These initiatives align the Bank with regulatory requirements and international standards, while preparing it for the next stages of its ESG journey.
On the governance front, dedicated committees oversee adherence to the highest banking standards, while compliance with Islamic finance principles remains central to all its products. This architecture ensures that ESG commitments are deeply embedded at every level of the institution.
Concrete Commitments to the Energy Transition
On the ground, Banque Zitouna has developed a dedicated financing policy for impact investments, particularly in renewable energy. The Bank relies on a contractual framework established with key industry players, including equipment suppliers, certified installers, and engineering firms. It offers turnkey solutions with competitive financing terms, enabling it to operate across both regulatory regimes of the renewable energy market: self-consumption and the authorization regime.
Self-Consumption: A Flagship Partnership with STEG
In the self-consumption segment, the Bank’s partnership with the Société Tunisienne de l’Électricité et du Gaz (STEG) around the PROSOL and PROSOL ELEC programs stands out as a flagship initiative. The initial agreement (2024–2026), valued at 440 million Tunisian dinars, was fully utilized by July 2026, enabling the installation of solar systems for nearly 57,000 households. The partnership has been renewed for 2026–2028, with an envelope of 980 million dinars expected to equip an additional 140,000 households.
Authorization Regime: Pioneering Renewable Power Projects
In the authorization regime, Banque Zitouna paved the way as early as 2019 by financing one of the first renewable electricity production projects in Meknassy. Since then, the Bank has actively participated in successive project calls, or “rounds,” launched by the Ministry of Energy to select power plants whose electricity output is destined for sale to STEG. The Bank has supported numerous winning projects from Round 5 and is already positioning itself for Round 6, where it intends to finance a significant share of the selected projects.
Furthermore, the Bank is structuring its participation in the financing of a large-scale photovoltaic project in southern Tunisia, with implementation scheduled between late 2026 and early 2027.
These commitments underscore a clear message: for Banque Zitouna, sustainability is not merely a promise, but a trajectory already in motion.
