In this section, we will update you with announcements from the ecosystem of inclusive business, pre-selected according to their relevance for inclusive business ventures.
For current training opportunities, networking events, and calls for application, search our opportunities page.
The world’s first impact fund for financing clean and modern cooking solutions in developing markets has been launched by the Spark+ Africa Fund, in partnership with 12 development finance institutions, foundations, family offices, and pension funds. Spark+ raised $40-million in its first round of funding, aimed at financing pioneering companies that offer life-improving biomass, biogas, ethanol, electric, and LPG-based cooking technologies to low-income consumers.
Nuveen, a leading global investment manager with over $1.3 trillion of assets under management, recently announced the final close of the Nuveen Global Impact Fund, LP and affiliated entities (the “Fund”). The Fund, which is the first private equity impact fund raised by the company, has secured a total of $218M from a diverse mix of global investors, with the aim of generating strong financial returns and addressing two of the greatest sustainable development challenges: climate change and inequality.
Indonesian women are playing a major role in small and medium enterprises (SMEs), Chair of Women-20 (W20) Hadriani Uli Silallahi said. “In Indonesia, SMEs provide 67 percent of job creation. Women play a very big role in creative work or becoming entrepreneurs," Silallahi noted at the seminar on 'Women's Entrepreneurial Empowerment Through Inclusive Business,’ which was held on 22 March.
Cambodia's new investment law has been praised by investors and businesses alike because of its robust incentives. It was enacted to spur industrial diversification that will help Cambodia withstand global crises and raise competitiveness. In addition, Cambodia has set up a new SEZ, the i4.0 SME Cluster, which embraces Industry 4.0 and inclusive business operating modes.
In Vietnam, a program to promote sustainable business will support about 10,000 firms between 2022 and 2025. It will implement three main groups of tasks: developing an ecosystem to support sustainable business, assisting enterprises to do business sustainably, and managing their operations in a socially responsible manner. The programme also includes a focus on Inclusive Business.
Launched in 2017, the Village Enterprise Development Impact Bond has helped 95,000 East Africans out of poverty during the pandemic, supporting more than 14,000 first-time entrepreneurs in Kenya and Uganda.
Singapore-based Impact Investment Exchange (IIX), the creator of the $150m Women's Livelihood Bonds, has launched the Orange Bond Initiative, a global coalition to create what they call the world’s first gender-lens investing asset class. The coalition intends to develop a set of criteria and standards equivalent to those used for green bonds, making the gender-lens orange bonds an “asset class” of their own, IIX says.
Filipino senatorial candidate Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro on Wednesday, March 2, encouraged the private sector to partner up with local fishermen and include them in their value chain in order to increase their income and livelihood opportunities. On the part of the government, the former Tarlac congressman added that it should continue promoting inclusive business models by providing incentives to companies that engage with farmers and fisherfolk and include them in their value chain.
A growth equity fund based in Singapore is raising US$100 million to bridge what the IFC has identified as a $1.5 trillion SME financing gap for women entrepreneurs. The Southeast Asia Women’s Economic Empowerment Fund (SWEEF) employs a gender-lens to unlock the power of diversity and address gaps and structural challenges in the market. The fund will invest in high-growth enterprises in Southeast Asia targeting competitive returns.
In 2018, the National Advisory Board (NAB) of Bangladesh became a member of the Global Steering Group for Impact Investment. NAB recommended developing the Bangladesh Impact Investment Strategy & Action Plan to ensure a planned and effective scale-up of the impact investing ecosystem. Roots of Impact and LightCastle Partners were appointed as the consultants to provide strategic support and recommend implementation guidelines.