NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

To meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the world will need to raise three times more sustainable financing than we are currently investing. With government budgets facing deficits, development aid withdrawing, and the financing gap widening, the role of private sector capital has never been more crucial.

Asia and Africa could be poised for strong economic growth if the opportunities presented in the next decade are effectively leveraged for maximum impact. “There is scope for Asia and Africa to see synchronised, sustainable growth if we establish optimal alliances between the regions,” says Bridget Fury, Head of Oppenheimer Generations Philanthropies. “Both continents have huge potential to augment their economic and social potential and to build on their recent successes by sharing different experiences of growth and development.”

One of the solutions to closing the SDG financing gap may lie in the impact investing space. The field of impact investing challenges the long-held views that social and environmental issues should be addressed only by philanthropic donations, and the private sector should only focus on achieving financial returns. Today’s impact investment market offers diverse and viable opportunities for investors to advance social as well as environmental solutions through investments that also produce financial returns. More and more mainstream investors are now looking at the opportunities offered by entering the growing impact investing market where they can generate positive and measurable social and environmental impact alongside financial returns.

To nurture asset owners and capital managers into becoming effective impact investing practitioners, two funders’ associations the Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN) and the African Venture Philanthropy Alliance (AVPA), have launched an inaugural Africa-Asia Impact Investing Fellowship. “This fellowship will build the capacity and knowledge of 60 Fellows in emerging fields such as Innovative Finance, Impact Management, and Leadership in Complexity,” says Naina Subberwal Batra, Chairperson and CEO of AVPN. “By equipping an emerging generation of impact investors, we aim to ultimately increase the flow of investment capital to support Africa and Asia’s social sectors.”