Achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development demands substantial financial resources, with an estimated annual funding need of approximately $3.3 to $4.5 trillion USD. To bridge this gap, innovative financing strategies are crucial—diverse and ranging in the realms and trade-offs of financial returns and impact. These emerging strategies encompass venture philanthropy, focusing on building capacities in social enterprises; blended finance, combining public and private funds to leverage larger investments; and SDG-aligned corporate finance, directing corporate investments towards achieving the SDGs.
In this context, Desai & Associates (D&A), in partnership with the UN DESA and AVPN, commissioned this SIPA Capstone team to map the landscape of impact investing in Asia. The research frames insights around impact investor typologies and enabling environment conditions for governments to catalyze impact investments. It considers drivers creating opportunities for private equity firms, asset managers, venture capital firms, philanthropic organizations, foundations, NGOs, and development finance institutions/multilateral development banks (DFIs/MDBs). The diverse investors interviewed reflect a spectrum of capital deployment towards impact investments, contributing to a broader vision of sustainable development. The research offers valuable insights to investors seeking to diversify their portfolios towards impact-aligned projects and recommendations to policymakers on creating an enabling environment for impact investments to thrive. Ultimately, it suggests five pillars for UN DESA and its Member States to enhance the catalysis of impact investments, bridging the investment gap in Asia.
