3 mins in development finance/wk39 (Sep 21st–27th)

Introduction

During the crisis, I decided to share links to content I’ve recently digested that I think are relevant for those interested in Development Finance and Impact investing in general. Not all articles featured here are about the DFIs, but in my opinion, they address the markets we invest in and/or speak about subjects/ideas that we should be aware of. You will note that I am partial to content on Financial Inclusion, Education and Asia in particular.

I publish this list weekly. I hope you enjoy and please follow me for more updates.

Development Finance

IFC & World Bank

• (25/09/20) Korea Eximbank and IFC Join Hands to Promote Sustainable Recovery in Developing Countries -”IFC”
• (23/09/20) IFC and Imperial Partner to Pilot Modular COVID-19 Screening in sub-Saharan Africa -”IFC”
• (23/09/20) Survey Reveals Extent of the Fallout from the Pandemic on Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Nepal -”IFC”
• (22/09/20) New IFC report urges companies to take action to boost women’s contribution in the hydropower sector -”IFC”

EIB

• (25/09/20) Save the Aral Sea -”EIB”
• (24/09/20) A new fund for a new urban future -”EIB”
• (23/09/20) Webinar: City Climate Finance Gap Fund launch -”EIB”
• (23/09/20) The City Climate Finance Gap Fund — Paving the way for low-carbon, resilient and liveable cities -”EIB”
• (23/09/20) Activating private capital to make cities more sustainable -”EIB”

CDC

• (24/09/20) UK DFI holds virtual visit to Nigeria, assesses COVID-19 impact -”CDC”
• (24/09/20) Opportunities for investment in the private health sector in Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal -”CDC”
• (22/09/20) CDC Group announces joint funding to Greenlight Planet’s solar business -”CDC”
• (21/09/20) Reflections from the Global Impact Summit -”CDC”
• (18/09/20) Watch the recording of our Insight event with the GIIN’s Amit Bouri -”CDC”

Asia Development Bank

• (25/09/20) Improving Sentiment Lifts Emerging East Asian Bonds -”ADB”
• (25/09/20) Webinar Launches Joint Study on Digitalization of Food Supply Chains and Waste Management in the PRC -”ADB”
• (25/09/20) ADB, KfW Partner to Boost COVID-19 Response and Financial Inclusion in Indonesia -”ADB”
• (24/09/20) ADB Supports Thailand’s Green, Social, and Sustainability Bonds for COVID-19 Recovery -”ADB”
• (23/09/20) $500 Million ADB Loan to Help Boost Indonesia’s Disaster Resilience -”ADB”
• (23/09/20) ADB Endorses New 5-Year Partnership Strategy for Indonesia -”ADB”
• (23/09/20) ADB Revises Cambodia’s 2020 Economic Forecast Upward -”ADB”
• (23/09/20) $29 Million ADB Loan to Help Improve Public Service Delivery in Cambodia -”ADB”
• (18/09/20) VIDEO: CNBC Debate: Resetting Asia — Technology, Investment, and Sustainability -”ADB”

Africa Development Bank

• (23/09/20) Africa offers Asian business an abundance of investment opportunities, webinar participants learn -”AFDB”

AIIB

• (11/09/20) Waste-to-Energy Project in Maldives Gets AIIB Support -”AIIB”

FMO

• (24/09/20) FMO’s NL Business co-funds four tech-enabled COVID-19 initiatives for the African health sector -”FMO”
• (24/09/20) Women Included: A gender sensitive approach to agribusiness investment -”FMO”
• (22/09/20) How long will MSMEs still survive COVID? Their request for support continues -”FMO”

DFC

• (16/09/20) DFC and Akola Support Ugandan Women Through COVID-19 Pandemic -”DFC”

DEG

• (14/09/20) Skilled jobs retained in Tunisia -”DEG”

Misc Content In Development Finance

• (25/09/20) VIDEO: Tracking Mortality Amidst COVID-19 and Beyond — Progress, Obstacles, and New Directions -”Center For Global Development”
• (25/09/20) Southeast Asia Caught Between the US and China -”The Diplomat”
• (25/09/20) Interview With Tim Macready — “Christian Super”
• (25/09/20) Opinion: Why the SDGs’ defining decade must focus on accountability for those left behind -”Devex”
• (25/09/20) COVID-19 stigma high among certain groups in Asia-Pacific, survey reveals -”Devex”
• (23/09/20) VIDEO: Phenix Virtual Impact Summit 2020 — Fiona Reynolds, CEO, PRI -”Phenix capital”
• (23/09/20) VIDEO: Phenix Virtual Impact Summit 2020 — Johanna Klein, Principal, IFC Asset Management Company — “Phenix Capital”
• (22/09/20) ETHIOPIA IN DEMONETIZATION SCHEME TO TACKLE ECONOMIC WOES -”Ventures”
• (21/09/20) COVID-19 IS A WAKE-UP CALL FOR AFRICAN ECONOMIES TO DIVERSIFY -”Ventures”
• (21/09/20) In Latin America, Impact Finance Demonstrates Remarkable Progress and Untapped Potential — “Standord Social Innovation review”
• (21/09/20) Cambodia’s Microfinance Industry in Troubled Waters -”The Diplomat”
• (14/09/20) Impact investors champion “Trojan Horse” investment products as market leaders focus on scaling “from billions to trillions” — “Institutional Asset Manager”
• (01/09/20) COVID-19: PwC partners with UN Development Programme on private sector strategies for pandemic recovery | -”UNDP”
• (31/08/20) How Academia Can Do More to Advance Sustainable Finance- “Standord Social Innovation review”

Misc content around technology of Interest

• (28/09/20) Banks in the Philippines get diversity (almost) right -”AsiaMoney”
• (25/09/20) The ACT-Accelerator needs $35B more funding. Here’s what’s at stake if it fails -”Devex”
• (25/09/20) The Pandemic Plutocrats: How Covid Is Creating New Fintech Billionaires -”Forbes”
• (27/09/20) WEBINAR: ADFIAP, AFD hold joint webinar on green finance -”ADFIAP”
• (25/09/20) Digital inclusion will be critical to pandemic recovery -”Devex”
• (24/09/20) MILLIONS OF CYBER ATTACKS REPORTED IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA THIS YEAR -”Ventures”
• (23/09/20) The Declaration of Interdependence: Looking Back from 2030, How a World in Crisis Transformed Effectively for a New Digital Age | -”Don Tapscott onLinkedIn”
• (23/09/20) Chinese tech remains hot as Ant readies mega-listing -”Asia Money”
• (22/09/20) Finance Needs to Be Redefined for Good to Serve One Billion of Asia’s Unbanked -”FintechNews”
• (21/09/20) Here Are 6 Great Fintech Writers To Add To Your Reading List -”Forbes”
• (18/09/20) Thailand courts the digital generation -”AsiaMoney”

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The Economist

• (26/09/20) Why are so many governments getting it wrong? -”The Economist”
• (26/09/20) The pandemic is plunging millions back into extreme poverty -”The Economist”
• (26/09/20) What to do about zombie firms -”The Economist”
• (25/09/20) Samunnati raises $20 million in debt from US International DFC, Technology News, ETtech -”The Economist”

Financial Times

• (27/09/20) Singapore charts its way to digital future for trade -”Financial Times”
• (27/09/20) How home tech can be companies’ weakest link -”Financial Times”
• (24/09/20) Why good news could be bad news for Big Tech -”Financial Times”

WSJ

• (25/09/20) A Tale of Two Chinese Economies -”WSJ”

Impact Alpha

• (25/09/20) The Week in impact investing: Dissent -”Impact Alpha”
• (24/09/20) The Brief: “Pro-business” has a new meaning, African reinsurance, solar health centers, Brazil’s urban farms, DWS’ impact shakeup -”Impact Alpha”

Enjoy.

If you have suggestions for articles that should be featured in future lists, please drop me a note and follow LinkedIN.