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This report by EAVCA and Intellecap, supported by FSD Africa and FMO, analyzes the FinTech ecosystem in East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, and Ethiopia). It identifies key enablers such as high mobile penetration and gaps in traditional financial services, evaluates various FinTech business models—including lending, payments, insurance, and investment management—and examines regional investment trends, funding challenges, and the role of strategic partnerships between banks and mobile network operators.

This report analyzes digital credit innovations in sub-Saharan Africa, focusing on five key countries. It identifies seven primary innovation models—including telco-based lending, scoretechs, and invoicetechs—designed to overcome barriers like lack of collateral and poor credit history. While telco-based lending has significantly expanded access, the report notes risks of over-indebtedness and highlights the need for patient capital, regulatory sandboxes, and improved data privacy to ensure the sustainability of these models.

This synthesis report analyzes insurance innovation in eight Sub-Saharan African countries, identifying low penetration and structural barriers—such as high mobile data costs, a STEM skills gap, and low consumer trust—as primary constraints. It argues that while regulatory frameworks are not the main barrier, supervisory systems need upgrading and regulators should adopt more proactive market engagement to support insurtechs and reach underserved segments like MSMEs and rural populations.

The Financial Inclusion for Refugees (FI4R) project, launched in 2019 by FSD Africa in partnership with FSD Uganda, Access to Finance Rwanda, and BFA Global, aims to provide financial services to forcibly displaced people (FDPs) and host communities. The project focuses on overcoming barriers such as insufficient documentation and perceived risk to enable refugees to access loans, savings, and digital payments.

The Venture Finance Portfolio document provides a detailed overview of various investment funds and venture-building platforms supported by FSD Africa and FSDAi. These entities focus on scaling climate-tech, gender-lens investing, and financial inclusion across Africa, utilizing a mix of equity, grants, and debt to catalyze private capital and drive sustainable economic growth.

This fact sheet describes the partnership between FSD Africa and the Digital Frontiers Institute (DFI) from 2016 to 2021, aimed at closing the digital finance skills gap in low-middle income countries to improve the scale and sustainability of digital payment systems.

This fact sheet by FSD Africa provides a country diagnostic of the insurance markets in Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, and Rwanda, highlighting a significant risk-protection gap and the limited capacity of these markets to support large-scale infrastructure investment.

This report, Chapter Four of a broader study by the Macroeconomic and Financial Management Institute of Eastern and Southern Africa (MEFMI) supported by FSD Africa, evaluates the governance and operational risk management frameworks for public debt in 12 MEFMI member countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. It examines legal frameworks, managerial structures, debt strategies, reporting, and auditing, highlighting a general lack of comprehensive business continuity plans and procedure manuals, which increased operational risks during the shift to remote work.

This executive summary details a study on sovereign debt management in the MEFMI region during the COVID-19 pandemic. It finds that the crisis led to sharp GDP contractions and a significant increase in the average debt-to-GDP ratio (rising to 70.6% in 2020). Countries responded with policy rate cuts, tax exemptions, and increased reliance on Local Currency Bond Markets (LCBMs). While international initiatives like the G20's DSSI provided critical relief, the pandemic exposed a lack of business continuity planning and operational risk management in debt offices.

This briefing by E-Consult, coordinated by FSD Africa, examines the potential for establishing onshore financial centres in Africa to attract international capital and skilled employees. It evaluates existing hubs like Mauritius and Johannesburg and assesses the prospects for cities such as Nairobi, Kigali, Lagos, and Accra to become globally significant financial centres.

The Value for Money (VfM) Framework is a guide developed by FSD Africa to provide a consistent, practical structure for assessing and reporting on how resources are used within the Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) network. It employs an evaluative reasoning approach based on the 'Four Es' (Economy, Efficiency, Effectiveness, and Equity) and cost-effectiveness, using predefined criteria and performance standards (rubrics) to make robust judgements from mixed-methods evidence.

This practical guide, developed by FSD Africa in collaboration with Oxford Policy Management, provides a structured framework for Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) programmes to design, assess, and report on Value for Money (VfM). It moves beyond simple indicators to an evaluative approach based on explicit criteria and performance standards across five dimensions: economy, efficiency, effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and equity.

The Economics for Nature (E4N) report details a six-year global partnership (2016-2022) led by the Green Economy Coalition, the Green Growth Knowledge Partnership, the Capitals Coalition, and WWF France. The programme aimed to shift economic systems toward 'nature positive' models by making the value of natural capital visible in business, finance, and government decision-making. The report outlines key tools developed, lessons learned regarding the challenges of mainstreaming natural capital, and four 'frontiers' for future systemic economic reform to protect biodiversity and human wellbeing.

The Resilient Agriculture Innovations for Nature (RAIN) challenge is a joint initiative by the Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) and Shockwave Foundation to identify and scale nature-positive agricultural innovations in East Africa. The program provides selected entrepreneurs and organizations with mentoring, leadership training, communications support, and funding of up to 50,000 USD to make their projects 'funding-ready' for private investors.

The Resilient Agriculture Innovations for Nature (RAIN) challenge is a joint initiative by the Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) and Munich Re Foundation to identify and scale innovative, nature-positive agricultural solutions in East Africa. The program provides selected not-for-profit organizations with mentoring, leadership training, and financial support to make their initiatives 'funding-ready' for private investors and donors.

The Green Outcomes Fund (GOF) is a pioneering climate finance instrument launched in January 2020 to incentivise investment in South Africa's green small, medium, and micro-enterprises (SMMEs). By using an outcomes-based payment model, the GOF provides grant funding to Catalytic Finance Partners (CFPs) who deploy private capital into green SMMEs, with reimbursements triggered by the creation of verified green outcomes, primarily permanent direct jobs.

This research paper by Pierre Sauvé argues for the modernization of industrial policy to center on the services economy. The author contends that while current industrial policies remain rooted in 20th-century manufacturing paradigms, services now drive global innovation, productivity, and competitiveness, acting as essential inputs for all economic sectors.

This research paper by Pierre Sauvé argues for a paradigm shift in industrial policy, moving from a traditional focus on manufacturing to one that prioritizes the services economy. The author contends that services are no longer merely residual activities but are essential inputs that drive productivity, innovation, and competitiveness across all economic sectors, including agriculture and manufacturing.

This fact sheet describes the advisory and capacity development services provided by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) to help low- and middle-income governments and regional bodies establish legal and policy frameworks for responsible private sector investment in agriculture.

This fact sheet outlines the International Institute for Sustainable Development's (IISD) initiatives to promote inclusive and resilient food security through advisory services, policy analysis, and collaborative research projects focusing on sustainable agriculture, gender equality, and trade.