Supports NGOs with catalytic grant funding and acceleration support to unlock private capital for climate and gender equality initiatives in the Indo-Pacific.
Overview
The Indo-Pacific NGO Blended Finance Accelerator is a five-year, AUD 10 million initiative launched by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) in partnership with Convergence Blended Finance. The Accelerator supports NGOs to design and scale blended finance solutions that unlock private capital for climate action and gender equality in the Indo-Pacific.
Blended finance activity is growing in the Indo-Pacific region, yet funding still falls far short of what is needed to meet development goals. A major gap is the lack of investable, high-impact vehicles. NGOs are well-placed to help fill this gap, bringing local knowledge, technical expertise, and trusted community relationships. However, their role in blended finance remains limited, currently NGOs sponsor only about 6% of global blended finance deals. Persistent barriers include:
- Limited understanding of blended finance concepts and structuring approaches
- Limited expertise and resources for financial structuring and navigating regulatory restrictions
- Resource constraints and governance complexity that hinder feasibility studies and vehicle design
- Restricted access to private investors and specialized technical service providers
The Accelerator is designed to address these barriers by providing catalytic grants and dedicated acceleration support to help NGOs design and launch blended finance vehicles. In doing so, it aims to build a pipeline of investable solutions enabling them to take on roles not only as technical assistance providers, but also as impact managers and, where appropriate, fund managers. In doing so, the Accelerator will help mobilize private capital at scale, expand development impact, and set an example for the wider NGO community.
Some examples of NGO’s use of blended finance from our portfolio include Conservation International’s Restoration Insurance Service Company (RISCO), The Nature Conservancy’s Blue Bond, and Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bukit Barisan Selatan (BBS) Landscape Fund.
Join us for a virtual information session on June 15 2026. Register here.
