The “Impact Investment & Blended Finance for Development Agencies & Foundations” (IIBF) program has run successfully since 2018 in small, in-person cohorts with participants from across the globe. IIBF is offered in partnership with Roots of Impact, the Center for Sustainable Finance and Private Wealth (CSP) at University of Zurich, and Convergence. It exclusively targets executives from catalytic capital providers such as development agencies, foundations, and other public or multilateral organizations who strive to effectively apply blended finance and impact investment to close the huge SDG financing gap. This includes insights on innovative approaches such as Impact-Linked Finance and other outcomes-based solutions that enable high-impact enterprises to access funding to scale.
IIBF allows for an intensive and highly interactive learning experience that has received excellent ratings to date: 99% of the participants rated the program “excellent” or “very good”. Since its inception, the program has welcomed 200+ participants from organizations such as USAID, SDC, Global Affairs Canada, Shell Foundation, Porticus, Swiss Re Foundation, IFC, SECO, FAO, Aqua for All, and many more. Top experts, inspiring live cases, and enthusiastic speakers, many of whom have been committed to the program since 2018, ensure that the participants receive cutting-edge knowledge, bust common myths, connect with like-minded peers, and get equipped to kick off or intensify their own blended finance activities.
The main takeaways will be:
– Understanding the huge potential of the private sector – both companies and investors – to contribute to international development.
– See impact investment and private sector resources as a promising source of capital to be integrated into public and philanthropic strategies.
– Identify new ways of capacity building, catalytic capital and funding mechanisms to scale high-impact enterprises.
– Overcome market failures and structural challenges by blending different types of capital more effectively.
– Gain a deeper understanding of impact, alignment of interest and additionality to design the right incentives and the optimal mix of capital sources.
– Inspire colleagues and peers with state-of-the art tools and best practices.
The program features renowned experts, for example:
– Karen E. Wilson, London Business School
– Aakif Merchant, Convergence
– Matthieu Pegon, IDB Invest
– Paddy Carter, British International Investment
– Audrey Desiderato, Mirova Sunfunder
– Bjoern Struewer, Roots of Impact
– Dr. Falko Paetzold, Center for Sustainable Finance & Private Wealth at University of Zurich
– Tom Adams, 60 Decibels
All relevant information, flyer, testimonials, application link and more can be found here: https://ibf-uzh.ch/education/
Location: Zurich, Switzerland
Training date: September 11 to 13, 2024
