Keeping the spotlight on gender and climate finance, news from the field

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Subject: Keeping the spotlight on gender and climate finance, news from the field

2X Global: Unlocking gender-smart capital at scale

Dear Friend,

Global developments continue to weigh heavily on our hearts and minds, and we hold space and light for all the upheavals around us. Amidst the pain of recent events, we are propelled forward by the principles of justice, equity and recognition of our common humanity. These are at the root of our mission and are the spark for our continued energy and commitment as we end our first full year with a slew of events and initiatives to build capacity, advance standard-setting and shift markets in gender finance.

Today marks the official start of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP28), with a call to accelerate global climate action through unity and action. This global convening coincides with the UN Secretary General's 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign that highlights the role of the financial ecosystem in driving progress towards a violence-free world. Against this backdrop, the call to action to advance equitable and inclusive systems that work for all is clear for all.

2X Global representatives and members will be at COP28Dubai shining the spotlight on the nexus of climate and gender finance. On December 4^th, the gender and finance day at COP28, we are co-hosting the session "Gender and climate-smart investing: the key to advancing climate solutions" showcasing innovations and opportunities in the Green Zone. Excitingly, together with USAID, Amazon, Visa Foundation and Reckitt, we will also be revealing the first grantees under the Climate Gender Equity Fund (CGEF).

Earlier this month, we had the attention of global leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco, California. Our board chair Sukhvir Basran spoke about CGEF as the White House announced its Women in the Sustainable Economy initiative, under which the fund is housed.

We also curated enlivening three-day event for both LPs and GPs in Singapore for the 2X Ignite Asia-Pacific GP Sprint, with the support of Australian Aid, Asian Development Bank and UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP). The 2X Ignite team is bringing this energy to Cape Town where we will be hosting a senior women in investments workshop and dinner, in partnership with PE Win, MEDA/Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund, Collaborative for Frontier Finance and Women in African Investments, on December 3rd.

Closer to home, we are delighted to kick off the next phase of 2X Certification, the Learning Lab and Pilot Programme. If you’re a company or fund interested in being selected for a spot in the Pilot Programme, complete the Expression of Interest form online by January 8^th.

If you feel inspired by all you’ve read, there are opportunities to join the 2X Global team. We currently have job openings for a Programme Manager for the 2X Challenge, and for two Programme Associates for CGEF and 2X Certification respectively. We’re also looking to partner with regional research leads for an innovative applied research project at the intersection of gender, climate and the clean energy transition, which we are initiating together with ANDE, with generous support from Canada’s International Development Research Centre. Explore the jobs section of our website for the full details.

In Community,

2X Global team

News from the field

Mainstreaming gender lens investing. Read about how Deetken Impact’s Ilu Women’s Empowerment Fund for Latin America, co-managed with Pro Mujer, has delivered strong returns to investors while its portfolio companies serve a client base of nearly a million, the vast majority of whom are women. Advance Global Capital shares reflections and insights in their annual impact investing report card. As implementing partner for the Mastercard Foundation African Growth Fund, MEDA is spearheading an investment approach that addresses gender disparities in access to finance in Sub-Saharan African countries. As women acquire more wealth, there’s an increasing demand for female financial advisors, making an urgent business case for more women fund managers. This IFC case study outlines lessons from accelerators supporting women-led start-ups in emerging markets. A new gender financing case studies report from the UNCDF has as many as 32 examples showcasing the potential and impact of GLI. Gender disaggregated data is needed to help businesses better understand how issues disproportionately impact women in the supply chain.

Gender and Climate Investing. This climate resilient agriculture project in Cote D’Ivoire can impact the livelihoods of around 70,000 small farmers, 90% of whom are women - read our recently published case study on how the Green Climate Fund’s Women Adapt project is doing it. From the inaugural Africa Climate Summit, African leaders call for scaling up of climate ambition and for the world to honour the $100 billion promise made at the COP summit in Copenhagen. How does the current system of climate financing need to be transformed to accomplish a just climate transition in Africa? This policy brief shares ideas. FinDev Canada’s Energy Entrepreneurs Growth Fund is increasing access to clean and affordable energy for those off the grid in Sub-Saharan Africa. Climate concerns predominate for those in the investment management industry, reports Russell Investment in its ninth annual ESG survey. Insights on how to break bottlenecks in the energy sector to make it more gender equitable. Cambridge University’s Centre for Sustainable Finance has a new policy brief out, which explores how private sector capital can be unlocked to save the planet. Gender must not be sidelined in climate negotiations, stresses this op-ed in the Interpreter. Climate change affects everyone but not equally. Women are disproportionately impacted but a growing body of evidence shows that women can drive more ambitious climate action.

Leadership, Culture and Policy. No surprise - women do their research, speak up and ask more insightful questions, improving the quality of decision making when they serve on boards. The role of the state-owned investment company Temasek in developing a supportive ecosystem for impact investing, is examined. The increasing emergence of women-owned banks is profiled, looking at what these financial institutions are doing to improve access to capital for women entrepreneurs.

Resilience (GBV, Financial Inclusion, Security). Representation of and participation by LGBTQI+ people in elections improves the quality and strength of democracy, finds a new study from the UNDP. Multilateral development banks have signed on to a new initiative which has been launched to close the financial inclusion gap - the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Code. A groundbreaking, IFC-supported new gender bond from Tanzania’s NMB Bank is empowering women entrepreneurs like Grace Patrick Kimaro. A blueprint for how digital financial service providers, policymakers, regulators, and funders can play a role in influencing agent networks to be more inclusive of women and other vulnerable customer segments.

Care Economy. Women’s unpaid, ‘invisible’ labour is worth at least 8.5% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Brazil, according to researchers from the Brazilian Institute of Economics of the Getulio Vargas Foundation. A new ILO study suggests that greater investment in care services - particularly childcare, could yield a 3-to-1 ROI for the economy, suggesting that care should be treated as an investment rather than a cost.

JEDI, Power, and New Economic Systems. The UK’s social investment market has made some progress but not enough and not fast enough, says Lord Victor Adebowale, nearly two years on from his commission’s report on social inequality. What Villages Capital has learned from more than a decade of its peer selection approach to social impact investing. This guide for investors provides a framework for investing with an LGBTQI+ lens. A business case for disability inclusion and concrete steps which investors can take to strengthen financial inclusion of persons with disabilities. This is how Pivotal Ventures is taking a different investing approach to help change the face of what power looks like in venture capital.

Community Calendar

1 December, 2023

2X Global will be participating in ‘Women entrepreneurs: the key to advancing climate solutions’ an interactive session at COP 28 focused on the financing gap for women entrepreneurs. Register now or watch the livestream.

3 December 2023

2X Global, PE Win, MEDA, Collaborative for Frontier Finance and Women in African Investments are organising a senior women in investments afternoon workshop and dinner in Cape Town. Contact Nathasha to register your interest.

4 December, 2023

Join 2X Global at COP 28 in the Technology & Innovation Hub in the Green Zone for our session on Gender and climate-smart investing: the key to accelerating climate action.

4-6 December, 2023

Senior international LPs and GPs come together for Africa's leading private capital event, to network and explore the most pertinent market trends, challenges and innovations on the continent. Explore speakers and the agenda.

7-8 December, 2023

This year’s Milken Institute Middle East and Africa Summit will focus on “Navigating Complexity through Collaboration,” to identify solutions for the critical issues facing the region. Learn more.

12-13 December, 2023

The two-day AVPN South Asia Summit will delve into how philanthropy and impact investing can be brought together to craft solutions to help countries in the region achieve the SDGs. Find out more.

Thank you to our partners and supporters

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Subject: Keeping the spotlight on gender and climate finance, news from the field