Investing for Impact

This is an episode from our ESG Podcast series. In this one, we explore how businesses can benefit from supporting the circular economy and improving their management of electronic waste.

The episode is hosted by Dr Veronica di Bella from our ESG team, who speaks with two representatives of off-grid solar company, M-kopa: Daniel Stoker, Head of Retail, and Sophie Mbugua, Retail Projects and Diagnostics Senior Lead.

The panel discuss a project CDC and M-kopa have worked on, aimed at improving the management of electronic waste, and reflect on how it can help the business, and what they're learning from it.

More on this topic:

For all the latest news from CDC, go to our website, or follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

The African continent has borne the brunt of some of the worst impacts of the pandemic, halting decades of growth, affecting millions of livelihoods and pushing much of sub Saharan Africa into a recession for the first time in over 25 years.

Despite the challenges, the prospect for economies across Africa remain strong, with its young population, the expansion of the free trade area, renewable energy potential and it’s growing digital economy. Private sector investment has always been key to growth and development across Africa and will continue to be so as the continent rebuilds.

Join us for a conversation with Dr Frannie Léautier, Chief Executive of Southbridge Investment, one of Africa’s most exciting investors. In this session we reflect on the impact of the pandemic across the continent on jobs and industries, and economic trends that have emerged.

The episode is presented by CDC's Colin Buckley, with additional input from Peter Maila, a Coverage Director at CDC.

Find out more: 

Global poverty is increasingly concentrated in fragile and conflict-affected settings. A vibrant private sector that creates jobs and opportunities is essential in these environments, to help alleviate poverty, inequality and instability.

These regions struggle to attract commercial investment because opportunities are typically overshadowed by high financial risk, and weak or fragmented institutions.

In this episode we look at what development finance institutions can do to support increased investment in such settings. We hear from leaders at development finance institutions and academic institutions working on these efforts, and take a closer look at on one market building initiative recently launched in Nepal.

Our guests are:

COVID-19 has unleashed a devastating crisis which has tested the resilience of existing global governance structures and exposed massive societal imbalances. Developing countries have borne the brunt of the economic consequences of the crisis, with an estimated 100 million people pushed into extreme poverty.

As the slow recovery begins, we need to challenge the role we ascribe to global governance both in crisis management and crisis recovery, otherwise the most vulnerable will continue to pay the biggest price. International cooperation, trade and investment will be key especially for developing economies.

Join us for a conversation with Oxford University’s renowned governance and international development expert, Professor Ngaire Woods, in which we reflect on the current governance landscape and ask how we can address the weaknesses exposed by the crisis.

This podcast is hosted by CDC’s Head of External Affairs, Colin Buckley and Vivianne Infante, Country Director of Ethiopia, joins the discussion. 

Our Understanding Impact podcast series explores some of the biggest challenges facing developing economies and how impact investment can help overcome them. 

In this episode, we look at the disproportionate economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic on women, and how investors, businesses and financial institutions are responding to it. We hear from four senior leaders working across Africa and South Asia, where we invest - they are: 

Roberta Annan, Founder and Managing Partner of Annan Capital Partners

Our hosts are CDC's Jumai Mohammed and Rob Comba.

For all the latest news from CDC, go to our website, or follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Until now impact investing has seen steady market growth driven by international coalitions and the interests of a handful of global financial giants. That is no longer enough.

In the wake of the coronavirus crisis, which has only worsened global economic and social challenges, impact investing must play a critical role in the recovery if it is to be successful and sustainable. This is especially true for developing countries that are at risk of seeing their progress over the past few decades wiped away. The failure to meet the challenge will be devastating.

Join us for a discussion with Sir Ronald Cohen, Chair of the Global Steering Group for Impact Investment, and Dolika Banda, Non Executive Director at CDC and CEO of African Risk Capacity Insurance. 

The panel is chaired by Colin Buckley, General Counsel and Head of External Relations at CDC, and Nick O'Donohoe, CEO of CDC Group.

As the urgency of the climate crisis intensifies, the most vulnerable populations in developing economies are the most exposed. This includes women, who are disproportionately affected by the impacts of climate change. How can we tackle the biggest challenge in our lifetimes without addressing these inequalities?

Join us for a conversation with renowned climate expert, Dr Tara Shine. Dr Shine is joined in this discussion by Holger Rothenbusch, CDC's Managing Director and Head of Infrastructure, and Colin Buckley, General Counsel and Head of External Relations at CDC.

This podcast episode is taken from a recent CDC Insight event. You can watch a recording here.

Prosperity and sustainable, inclusive growth are the ultimate goals for developing economies. However, despite the global community spending billions each year on economic development programmes, poverty and a lack of opportunity within these countries persists.

But what if there is a way in which we can support these economies to evolve from poverty to prosperity in less than two decades? Innovation expert Efosa Ojomo believes focused and impact driven market innovations could do just that.

Join us for this conversation with Efosa, co-author of The Prosperity Paradox and Senior Fellow at the Christensen Institute on Disruptive Innovation. Efosa is joined on the panel by Nikunj Jinsi, a hugely experienced venture capital investor in developing countries. 

The discussion is chaired by CDC's General Counsel and Head of External Relations, Colin Buckley. 

Over the next two years an estimated 500 million low to middle-income people in India are expected to come online for the first time via smart phones. This provides an opportunity to transform these lives through the provision of vital services – including financial services, education, mobility, and healthcare.

Join us as CDC's Colin Buckley speaks to Roopa Kudva, Partner and Managing Director of Omidyar Network India, and Srini Nagajaran, Head of Asia at CDC. 

We discuss the drivers behind large scale social change, the role of innovation and entrepreneurship, and the opportunities for future growth in India and across Asia.

In this CDC Insight Podcast we hear environmentalist, author, and serial entrepreneur John Elkington in conversation with CDC’s CEO Nick O’Donohoe.They are joined by CDC’s Climate Change Director Amal-Lee Amin to discuss how we move forward in a way that creates a more balanced and sustainable global economy?