Telling our own stories and a COP29 preview

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Subject: Telling our own stories and a COP29 preview

2X Global: Unlocking gender-smart capital at scale

Dear Friend,

The importance of telling one’s story can never be underestimated and so it was a thrill to start the month of October with the publishing of our Annual Report.

The report, which is available to download and read on our website, details the projects and programmes we worked on in 2023.

Just as importantly, it tells the story of our impact, reach and engagement with 2X Global members and the wider field, including what we did to grow our community, drive higher standards in gender lens investing, mobilise billions in capital for women, advance gender-smart climate finance, and much more.

Speaking of advancing gender-smart climate finance, as we approach November, we are looking ahead to COP29, the United Nations’ conference aimed at solving the problem of climate change, set this year for Baku, Azerbaijan, between 11th and 22nd November.

Of particular interest at COP29 will be the negotiations on the New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance (NCQG) for developing countries. This new target for climate finance will set the tone for climate action for years to come, defining the scale of resources required to meet the needs and priorities of the developing countries that are among the hardest hit by climate change impacts.

For us at 2X Global, we will be taking a keen interest in the proceedings at this year’s COP and will continue to bang the drum for integrating gender considerations into climate finance, through both our advocacy and policy development work.

If you have been following our work, you will know that just last month at our annual 2X Global Summit, we launched 2X Certification, our independent, robust certification mechanism to drive higher standards in gender lens investing.

2X Certification builds on the foundation of the 2X Criteria, created since 2018 to underpin and assess our 2X Challenge. Since then, the 2X Criteria have become a widely-used industry standard which 2X Global has continued to make available as a public good.

Now, some of the participants from the pilot phase are sharing their own experiences of what the journey to becoming the first ever 2X Certified entities was like. To learn more about 2X Certification, head over to www.2xcertification.org.

Earlier in 2024, we updated and strengthened the 2X Criteria, incorporating the learnings from the past five years’ of investments under the 2X Challenge and utilising more current data. Following a heavily subscribed session earlier this month, we are hosting one more public training session this year for investors, fund managers and other stakeholders who use the Criteria. This final session for 2024 will be held on November 13th. Interested parties can register here.

Keep reading for a selection of the latest GLI news and insights.

In Community,

2X Global team

News from the field

Mainstreaming gender lens investing. Our CEO Jessica Espinoza spoke to Private Equity International about integrating a gender smart approach when investing in new technology like AI - the piece was all part of PEI's Women In Private Funds report. A report on the mood on the ground from this year’s PRI in Person in Toronto, coming off the back of a period of sustained anti-ESG backlash. A new guidance note from the IMF on how governments can amplify impact by applying a gender lens to economic policy. The potential is right in the middle - Sandrine Henton of EG Capital and Ngatie Kirungie from the Kenya Pension Investment Fund explore the innovation and opportunities in Africa’s mid-sized businesses and how private debt and mezzanine financing can assist. Is linking compensation to impact the missing piece of the puzzle to drive accountability and deep impact? An extensive study of LPs and GPs seeks to find out. In the US, more women than ever are investing in the stock market, finds Fidelity in its 2024 Women & Investing Study, with an increase to 71% of women surveyed. A new report from IDB explores the growing GLI landscape in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Gender and Climate Investing. With COP 29 coming up, this briefing note from Perspectives Climate Research is a useful backgrounder on the New Collective Quantifiable Goal (NCQG) being negotiated at this year's COP. A one-size-fits-all approach to financing that frequently pits climate needs vs development needs, won’t work going forward, says Gates Foundation CEO Mark Suzman, introducing a new white paper from the Foundation outlining principles for strategic climate and development financing. Green jobs are associated with a 7% premium for men and 12% premium for women, but women only hold a third of green jobs worldwide, highlighting the need for education, labour and gender policy to help more women make the transition to green jobs. Octavia Carbon, a Direct Air Capture (DAC) startup based in Kenya, plans to increase carbon capture capacity to 50 tonnes per year. They recently closed a $3.9 million seed round and, with $1.1 million in the advance sale of carbon credits. Taking a gender lens approach to infrastructure will ensure women play a role in the global energy transition while widening the talent pool, says BII’s Katrina Kwan. Digital technology, climate finance opportunities and an environment where “manifold opportunities” outweigh the “macro risks” are all reasons for private investors to look again at the African continent, says BII chair Diana Layfield. A new brief from Water for Women argues that menstrual health is a critical component of climate resilience and must be included in climate financing and policy discussions.

Leadership, Culture and Policy, JEDI. Commonwealth heads of government included language on reparations for slavery in the communique for CHOGM, despite the United Kingdom government insisting that it will not pay reparations. A report published last year calculated that the UK owes £18 trillion for its role in slavery in the Caribbean. Good news and bad news coming out PitchBook's 5th annual Sustainable Investment Survey. Investors are still making sustainable investments with a focus on ESG and DEI even in the face of sustained attacks on the segment in recent years - but there is huge reluctance to speak about these investments, leading to a reality very divorced from perception. Tideline's Ben Thornley drills down on the data and impact of this "green hushing" in this LinkedIn post, spotlighting one striking chart from the PitchBook report. This op-ed argues that while investments in girls’ schooling in sub-Saharan Africa have been well-meaning, more needs to be done holistically to help offset gender disparities, including challenging social norms that see women and girls more burdened with unpaid care and funneled into lower-paying jobs. A new project from Cosmopolitan Magazine, How to Succeed in Office, following on from their How to Run for Office initiative, with insights from Pivotal Ventures founder Melinda French Gates. How the WTO’s Trade Policy Review Mechanism can be a tool to assist governments seeking to create more gender inclusive trade and domestic policy. Collaboration between DFIs and donor governments can help remove and reduce barriers to investment in frontier markets - here’s how.

Data and Tools. Two new publications from the Global Emerging Markets Risk Database (GEMS) Consortium provide detailed statistical datasets for emerging markets, meeting the call from investors for greater insights into credit risks in emerging markets. Want to understand Australia’s social enterprise landscape? A new guide out from Social Change Central and the Centre for Civic Innovation, offers an overview. Track the climate finance flows of the world’s MDBs in their annual joint report on climate finance. GSG Impact’s new report is a "how-to guide" for market developers, government and investors on designing and establishing wholesale impact investment vehicles.

Care Economy. S&P and AARP explore the landscape for working caregivers of adults in a complementary pair of new reports coming out of extensive surveys of employees and HR professionals in the US, examining workplace policies and employee perceptions. A new health study examines the invisible cognitive labour which (largely) women do to keep households running.

Resilience (GBVH, Financial Inclusion, Security). A new project in the Lake Victoria region in Kenya is flipping the script for women in the fisheries sector. This policy paper from the Irish Consortium on Gender-Based Violence, tracks the flows of money aimed at ending GBV. Swedfund and Finnfund complete their first direct investment in the Nepalese banking sector, with a $10 million loan each to Siddhartha Bank. Thirty percent of the loan proceeds are allocated to women. Despite the prevalence of gender-based violence, funding aimed at ending GBV is a small portion of the overall global philanthropic flows - estimates are up to US$150 million annually. Inside Philanthropy profiles some of the major funders powering efforts. In El Salvador, Citi has closed on a $15 million social impact and trade loan for Banco Cuscatlán aimed at channelling credit to SMEs. It’s part of Citi’s goal to enable access and create economic opportunity for 15 million low income households, including 10 million women.

Community Calendar

5 November

Follow the progress of the NCQG through the Fourth technical expert dialogue under the ad hoc work programme on the new collective quantified goal on climate finance.

6 November

Tune into The Earthshot Prize Awards Cape Town 2024, spotlighting incredible African innovation.

5-8 November

AfriLabs, the largest largest network of technology and innovation hubs across Africa, is hosting their Annual Gathering in Cape Town. Learn more.

18-19 November

The G20 Leaders' Summit will be hosted in Rio de Janeiro, with the presence of the leaders of the 19 member countries, plus the African Union and the European Union.

29 November

This year, the Asian Philanthropy Conference invites leaders to Tokyo to promote collaboration in tacking social issues in the Asian Region. Join the conversation.

5 December

The British Chamber of Commerce in Japan is inviting its members and guests to explore gender equity as a pathway to sustainable investments. Register here.

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Subject: Telling our own stories and a COP29 preview