Upstream Investing: Don Purka shares how IFC goes deeper in emerging markets

Development Finance has always needed to evolve with the needs of the time, but where is it succeeding or failing?  I am joined by Dalburg’s Kusi Hornberger, author of Scaling Impact and Convergence CEO Joan Larrea to talk about how Development Finance can play a better role in driving impact and how blended finance, in particular, can be a useful tool in getting more projects financed in the developing world.

Elizabeth Robberechts, Chief of Energy and Infrastructure at IDB Invest, joins the podcast this week to talk about how they look at investments and investment opportunities in Latin America and the Caribbean.  She shares how the Inter American Bank’s investment arm is prioritizing climate finance in the region, including investment into climate adaptation, and key sectors and geographies where they would like to invest in going forward.  

The concepts of Web3 and Regenerative Economics is new to many of us, but both can play a key role in addressing climate change.  Anna Lerner, CEO of the Climate Collective, shares how digital technologies will play a transformative role to unlock climate action at scale.

The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) is the political insurance arm of the World Bank Group and provides a number of financial products for project developers working in the toughest environments.  Olga Calabozo Garrido, who leads MIGA’s work in Latin America and the Caribbean, shares how they evaluate and price risk in the region and how they add value to private investors who are keen to invest in climate focus projects. 

Accessing climate financing at scale can prove challenging because of a lack of track record or visibility to attract the right investors. Ian Callaghan, originator of the Climate Finance Accelerator concept, explains how the Climate Finance Accelerator looks to address this ‘missing middle’ through country specific programs and developing a sustainable pipeline of bankable, low-carbon projects. Learn about the Climate Finance Accelerator, funded by the UK’s Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, in this episode.

Don Purka, Principal Investment Officer for Energy at IFC, describes how IFC's shift to investing "upstream" in emerging markets to address the market conditions that have hindered investments in the past. We talk about energy investments in Africa and the role that IFC has played in catalyzing industries that have crowded in other investors.  

What is Britain doing to address international climate change?  Geoff Manley, from the newly minted British International Investment, talk about the development finance institution’s approach to investment and how Britain is approaching international climate investing.

What is FinDev Canada and what does it do?  Since its inception a few years ago, FinDev Canada has been committed to making impactful investments in Africa and Latin America.   Lori Kerr, CEO of FinDev Canada, joins the podcast to share priority areas for the organization and what they aim to build in the years to come. 

The US DFC is a relatively new Development Finance Institution since it evolved from its predecessor, OPIC.  This has meant a greater emphasis on climate, a wider range of financial instruments at their disposal (such as equity and TA) and presents new opportunities for project developers.  Nadia Khawar, Director for Business Development in the Office of Structured Finance and Insurance at DFC, shares how DFC operates, where it is keen to invest and how they can work with Canadian projects in emerging markets.

Why is Natural Capital investing so important?  IDB’s Natural Capital Lab lead Greg Watson shares the priorities of the IDB around investing into nature based solutions and the financial instruments they support to make NBS investing a reality.