3 mins in Development Finance/ wk 11
6 min readMar 24, 2021
My weekly reading list for those interested in development finance and Impact investing focused on developing countries.
IFC and World Bank
- (15.03.21) IFC appoints new country manager for East Africa, Malawi | New Business Ethiopia
- (15.03.21) World Bank projects to boost energy access and economy in Liberia | ESI Africa
- (15.03.21) WEST AFRICA: World Bank funds off-grid with $22.5m | Afrik 21
- (15.03.21) IFC steps up African investments | African Law & Business
- (16.03.21) Leading Impact Investors Make Progress Toward Harmonized Impact Measurement with Release of Joint Indicators | IFC
- (16.03.21) New IFC Reports Find Family-friendly Workplaces Can Support Employees, Boost Businesses in Pakistan | IFC
- (16.03.21) IFC, ALEXBANK Partner to Promote Egyptian Farmers’ Switch to Solar Irrigation Systems | IFC
- (16.03.21) IFC, Al Kuraimi to Support Critical Imports in Yemen, Expand Access to Finance for MSMEs | IFC
- (16.03.21) The World Bank Provides $700 million to Support Angola’s Sustainable and Inclusive Growth Agenda | the World Bank
- (17.03.21) IFC and IFC Financial Institutions Growth Fund invest in Adumo | Africa Global Funds
- (17.03.21) IFC and Activa Join Forces to Increase Women’s Access to Insurance in Cameroon | IFC
- (18.03.21) Connecting Power Grids to Improve Electricity Access | IFC
- (18.03.21) IFC Joins with Orange Money to Advance Digital Financial Services in Madagascar | IFC
- (19.03.21) IFC proposes $60m loan to Vietnam’s Thuan Binh wind power | Pinsent Masons
- (19.03.21) HSBC and IFC emerging market green bond fund raises $538m | International Investment
- (19.03.21) Government of Nepal and World Bank sign $24 Million financing agreement to support sustainable forestry and boost green recovery | The World Bank
- (21.03.21) IFC calls Dhaka, New Delhi to sign water treaties to keep rivers alive | Dhaka Tribune
ADB
- (17.03.21) Green Investments, Revenue Mobilization, Big Data Key to Southeast Asia’s COVID-19 Economic Recovery | Asian Development Bank
- (17.03.21) ADB Ventures Announces its First Investments | Asian Development Bank
- (19.03.21) ADB Project in Mongolia Secures $175 Million in Funding from the Green Climate Fund | Asian Development Bank
AfDB
- (2021) PUBLICATION: African Economic Outlook 2021 | African Development Bank
- (12.03.21) African Economic Outlook 2021: Africa’s growth prospects bullish despite COVID-19 constraints and debt burden | African Development Bank
- (15.03.21) AfDB: Africa will reach 3.4% economic growth in 2021 | ESI
- (16.03.21) Angola: African Development Bank funds $530 million electricity project to expand renewable energy and regional connectivity | African Development Bank
- (17.03.21) AfDB supported transmission line to connect central-south region | ESI Africa
- (18.03.21) Uganda: African Development Bank signs $229.5 million financing agreement for the Kampala-Jinja Expressway Project | African Development Bank
- (18.03.21) African Continental Free Trade Area: Opportunities for African fashion entrepreneurs | African Development Bank
- (18.03.21) AfDB supports domestic debt market development in WAMZ | Africa Global Funds
EIB
- (16.03.21) Daily News Wrap-Up: EIB Approves €688 Million to Support Solar and Wind Expansion | Mercom India
- (16.03.21) MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Vital Finance Borrows $5m from EIB for Microfinance in Benin, Mostly for Women | MicroCapital
- (17.03.21) Women mean business | EIB
- (18.03.21) Niger: Team Europe welcomes opening of scheme to ensure drinking water for 400,000 people in Niamey | EIB
- (19.03.21) VIDEO — The EIB Group Climate Bank Roadmap | EIB
EBRD
AIIB
BIO
CDC
- (15.03.21) Ankur Capital raises Rs 330 crore ahead of interim close of second fund | The Economic Times
- (16.03.21) Adani Renewable places lowest bid in SECI’s wind auction | Mint
- (16.03.21) Liquid Telecom rebrands to reflect technology spread | Capacity Media
- (18.03.21) PODCAST — We have a new podcast episode on the economic impact of the pandemic on women | CDC Group|
- (19.03.21) Nepal Invests is launched by CDC, FMO and SDC to accelerate investment in Nepal | CDC Group
DEG
- (15.03.21) Equity Group signs US$100mn to MSMEs | African Review
- (16.03.21) FEATURED: Equity bolsters its support to small and medium-sized enterprises in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda & DRC | The New Times, Rwanda
DFC
- (15.03.21) AC Energy, UPC Solar JV raises funding to develop 100 MW Rajasthan project — pv magazine India | pv-magazine
- (18.03.21) USAID, DFC announce $41 mn financing for renewable energy in India | The Hindu BusinessLine
FMO
- (14.03.21) UK and FMO partner to mobilise finance for forests | Africa Global Funds
- (15.03.21) Large scale research project to empower African farmers and agribusinesses to adapt to climate change | FMO
FMO / FinDEV / OeEB
PROPARCO
- (16.03.21) PUBLICATION — Preserving Biodiversity the Private Sector in Action | PROPARCO
- (18.03.21) Seed Co gets S$25m loan | The Herald
- (18.03.21) Mozambique: Societe Generale secures €3mln Proparco loan to support SMEs | Ecofin Agency
Misc Content in Development Finance
- (15.03.21) First green energy project in Burkina Faso for Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) company Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund | Africanews
- (15.03.21) Telcos are Asean’s catalyst to re-energising digital financial inclusion for its unbanked communities, ASEAN Business | The Business Times
- (16.03.21) Advancing Financial Inclusion | Finextra
- (16.03.21) Financial inclusion: how Nigerian small-scale farmers are locked out, and some answers | The Conversation
- (16.03.21) The Next 10 Years of Impact Investment | Stanford Social Innovation Review
- (16.03.21) India to set up development finance body for infrastructure | Reuters
- (17.03.21) India hopes that more money will bridge the infrastructure gap but many believe that may not be enough | Business Insider India
- (18.03.21) PODCAST — How Philanthropic Capital, CDFIs, and Innovative Public and Private Partnerships can be a Powerful Force in the Future of Impact Investing | Causeartist
Misc Technology
- (15.03.21) Tencent Loses $62 Billion, Wiping Out Value of Fintech Business | BNN Bloomberg
- (15.03.21) Hong Kong: Generational opportunities await for fast-rising fintech talent | Finextra
- (18.03.21) Singapore’s Fintech and Remittance Associations Ink MOU | Finews
- (20.03.21) The Recent Fintech Funding Rounds in the Middle East | The Fintech Times
Misc Gender
- (15.03.21) Equity gets Sh8.25bn loan to support women traders | The Star, Kenya
- (17.03.21) Q&A: Gender Lens Investing With Fidelity Portfolio Manager | US News
- (20.03.21) How investing in women and girls can boost Indonesia’s post-pandemic recovery | South China Morning Post
Misc Sustainability
- (15.03.21) Five Ways The Biden Administration Advanced Sustainable Investing In Its First 50 Days, Including Two Last Week | Forbes
- (17.03.21) Chuka Umunna and Guy Opperman among keynotes for Sustainable Investment Festival | Investment Week
- (19.03.21) Climate change was missing from the US-China meeting in Alaska | Vox
- (20.03.21) Vice Is a Hard Habit to Kick as ESG Seeps Into Credit Markets | BNN Bloomberg
Subscription Required
- (15.03.21) IFC proposes $200m loan for Cambodian commercial bank ACLEDA | Deal Street Asia
- (15.03.21) Project Finance Brief: Enel Green Acquires 519 MW Solar Portfolio from Arena Power — Mercom India
- (15.03.21) The Center for ESG and Sustainable Investing Launched by AIF Institute | Environmental Leader
- (16.03.21) Tidal Wave of ESG Funds Brings Profit to Wall Street | Wall Street Journal
- (18.03.21) IFC proposes $11.35m loan to Bangladeshi textile firm Hamza | Deal Street Asia
- (19.03.21) Top 10 tips for ethical investors | Financial Review
- (20.03.21) Big fund houses fail to promote female portfolio managers | Financial Times
- (21.03.21) Indian companies sell shares at fastest rate since financial crisis | Financial Times
Upcoming Webinar
- March 24, 2021: Implementing the AfCFTA — The Need for Deepening Private Sector Engagement and Commitment | African Development Bank (AfDB), UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), International Trade Centre (ITC)
“The panelists will reflect on: measures to promote the benefits of the AfCFTA among the private sector; suitable trade policies and regulations to make the AfCFTA work for the African business community; and steps to increase intra-African trade. They will also explore ways to boost the participation of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), women and young entrepreneurs in the new single market to facilitate growth and enhance job creation.” - April 27, 2021: Ralph De Haas (EBRD) — Managerial and Financial Barriers to the Net-Zero Transition | Bank of Finland Research Institute **Abstract:** We use data on 11,233 firms across 22 emerging markets to analyze how credit constraints and low-quality firm management inhibit corporate investment in green technologies.
- June 22–25 : Sustainable Investment Festival — Registrations open!
If you have suggestions for articles that should be featured in future lists, please drop me a note and follow me on LinkedIn.
