Year
2020

This content is also available in: Español, Português, Français

This report provides insights into the current policy landscape and regulatory environment for impact investment in Bangladesh, identifying the challenges that have hindered the growth of the impact investment sector in the country, such as the absence of a supportive ecosystem and inadequate policy frameworks. Through the analysis of the current state of the impact investment ecosystem, the report highlights the need for a clear and comprehensive policy framework, increased awareness and understanding of impact investment, and capacity building for investors and investees. It also stresses the potential of impact investment to promote sustainable development in Bangladesh and calls for increased government support and private sector engagement to foster the growth of the impact investment ecosystem. It finalizes by recommending the development of a national impact investment strategy, the establishment of a dedicated impact investment fund, and the creation of a platform for knowledge sharing and collaboration among stakeholders to create an enabling environment for impact investment in Bangladesh.

READ MORE

"This Guide was developed for impact and mission-driven investors (“Investors”) operating in emerging markets to provide concrete, practical pathways for investing with a gender lens. The adoption of Gender Lens Investing strategies amongst investors in emerging markets in turn increases the amount of capital deployed towards women-led and gender inclusive businesses. Specifically, this Guide offers pathways for investment professionals, limited partners (LPs) and general partners (GPs) at impact and mission-driven Venture Capital (VC) and Private Equity (PE) firms that are investing in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Other actors that may also find the Guide useful are limited partners (LPs), asset managers, foundations, family offices and development finance institutions (DFI) that are providing capital to SMEs in emerging markets (Please see Figure 1: Who is this Guide for?). While the investor examples and data presented in the Guide originate from Investing in Women partners and countries of focus, the lessons learned apply broadly to investors operating in emerging markets.

There is no singular or linear path to investing with a gender lens, and there is no single ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to meet the needs and theses of all investors. With that in mind, the Guide outlines various options for investing with a gender lens. We know that gender lens investing is not an “all-or-nothing” scenario. There are multiple ways to integrate progressive practices, including ways that are not resource-intensive. This Guide outlines entry points for investors at any point in their gender lens investing journey and provides various options for decisive actions that can be taken at any stage of the investment process.

There is no single prescribed starting point. Investors can customize their approach to getting started and/or to deepen their involvement. The Guide builds on – and contributes to – a rapidly growing body of knowledge shared within the fields of gender lens investing and development, and is intended to spur action and learning. Recognizing that new resources are continually emerging, this Guide delves into the “how” of gender lens investing and is designed to complement the work of our partners and colleagues cited throughout this paper."

READ MORE

"This Guide was developed for impact and mission-driven investors (“Investors”) operating in emerging markets to provide concrete, practical pathways for investing with a gender lens. The adoption of Gender Lens Investing strategies amongst investors in emerging markets in turn increases the amount of capital deployed towards women-led and gender inclusive businesses. Specifically, this Guide offers pathways for investment professionals, limited partners (LPs) and general partners (GPs) at impact and mission-driven Venture Capital (VC) and Private Equity (PE) firms that are investing in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Other actors that may also find the Guide useful are limited partners (LPs), asset managers, foundations, family offices and development finance institutions (DFI) that are providing capital to SMEs in emerging markets (Please see Figure 1: Who is this Guide for?). While the investor examples and data presented in the Guide originate from Investing in Women partners and countries of focus, the lessons learned apply broadly to investors operating in emerging markets.

There is no singular or linear path to investing with a gender lens, and there is no single ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to meet the needs and theses of all investors. With that in mind, the Guide outlines various options for investing with a gender lens. We know that gender lens investing is not an “all-or-nothing” scenario. There are multiple ways to integrate progressive practices, including ways that are not resource-intensive. This Guide outlines entry points for investors at any point in their gender lens investing journey and provides various options for decisive actions that can be taken at any stage of the investment process.

There is no single prescribed starting point. Investors can customize their approach to getting started and/or to deepen their involvement. The Guide builds on – and contributes to – a rapidly growing body of knowledge shared within the fields of gender lens investing and development, and is intended to spur action and learning. Recognizing that new resources are continually emerging, this Guide delves into the “how” of gender lens investing and is designed to complement the work of our partners and colleagues cited throughout this paper."

READ MORE

"The COVID-19 pandemic has launched the world into unprecedented turbulence and uncertainty. The micro, small and medium sized businesses (MSMEs) that underpin employment and growth in frontier economies have felt the impact on multiple dimensions. By extension, the capital providers that have invested in and financed these enterprises are equally challenged as they seek to support their portfolios in these uncertain times. Even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a dearth of capital for MSMEs in LatAm of nearly $1 trillion. COVID-19 has exacerbated this situation and has the potential to undermine many gains made in income and gender equality, growth and employment over the last years. The survey looked into who the impact-orientated capital providers are that finance MSMEs in LatAm; how they look at impact, in particular gender; what their portfolio of small businesses is; what the portfolio’s performance pre COVID was; what their financial and non-financial needs post-COVID look like; and whether any changes and opportunities are arising from the current situation?"

READ MORE

"El estudio identifica las barreras al financiamiento de paisajes sustentables a través de los pequeños productores en México, en específico en la Selva Maya, Yucatán; la Selva Lacandona, Chiapas, y Mascota, Jalisco. Además propone recomendaciones para superar estas barreras.

Incluye tres objetivos secundarios:
(i) entender los instrumentos e iniciativas financieras que existen y que estén enfocados a prácticas productivas sostenibles;
(ii) identifica las barreras al financiamiento para prácticas productivas sostenibles que enfrentan los pequeños productores, y
(iii) desarrolla recomendaciones para superar estas barreras."

READ MORE

"Bangkok is the vibrant capital city of Thailand, known for being a popular tourist destination. The city’s population, which accounts for 15% of the country’s population, and its significant urban sprawl make it the country’s largest and a critical part of the national economy. ANDE identified and collected data on 267 ecosystem players actively supporting entrepreneurs and small businesses in Bangkok."

READ MORE

"The concept of entrepreneurial ecosystems has been used as a framework to explain entrepreneurial activities within regions and industrial sectors. Despite the usefulness of this approach, the concept is undertheorized, especially with regard to the evolution of entrepreneurial ecosystems. The current literature is lacking a theoretical foundation that addresses the development and change of entrepreneurial ecosystems over time and does not consider the inherent dynamics of entrepreneurial ecosystems that lead to their birth,
growth, maturity, decline, and re-emergence. Taking an industry lifecycle perspective, this paper addresses this research gap by elaborating a dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystem lifecycle model. We propose that an ecosystem transitions from an entrepreneurial ecosystem, with a focus on new firm creation, towards a business ecosystem, with a core focus on the internal commercialization of knowledge, i.e., intrapreneurial activities, and vice versa. Our dynamic model thus captures the oscillation that occurs among entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs through the different phases of an ecosystem’s lifecycle. Our dynamic lifecycle model may thus serve as a starting point for future empirical studies focusing on ecosystems and provide the basis for a further understanding of the interrelatedness between and coexistence of new and incumbent firms."

READ MORE

"With the support of the Australian Government, GALI is working to increase understanding of acceleration and early-stage ventures in the Asia-Pacific. This knowledge brief includes application and one-year follow-up data from 473 ventures operating in emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region to better understand short-term impacts and key challenges. In addition, three accelerators from the region are profiled to give a closer look at how programs are adapting to meet local needs."

READ MORE

"Over the last decade, the maturation of the business landscape has opened new opportunities in Africa, especially the entry of accelerator and incubator programs (AIPs). These AIPs are consistently adapting their models to respond to the ever-changing needs of the ventures they support, and there is a need for existing literature to keep abreast with this dynamism in order to strengthen programming and the ecosystems in which AIPs operate. This knowledge brief explores characteristics of AIPs in East Africa, focusing specifically on Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. It highlights existing practices and perceptions among AIPs to better establish a common understanding of the current AIP landscape, best practices, and key challenges."

READ MORE

"The question of if and how business support programmes – particularly accelerators and incubators – can play a role in entrepreneurial growth in South Africa is at top of mind for donors and government alike. And while there is some evidence that these programmes do have an impact on early-stage businesses, there is less clarity on how they can best serve the needs of often-overlooked women entrepreneurs. This brief provides a regional review of the intersection of gender and acceleration in South Africa, drawing on GALI’s global findings while highlighting primary analysis of entrepreneur data collected by Catalyst for Growth (C4G), a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) platform for programme monitoring, analytics, and reporting in South Africa."

READ MORE