Remember the fanfare two years ago when rich countries promised new money to respond to the destructive impacts of the climate emergency? Well, the paltry climate finance deal at COP29 contained precisely zero concrete commitments on loss and damage. Chiara Liguori on how the hopes of poorer countries and communities were raised – only to be brutally dashed.
Four ways to boost investment in women-led small businesses
Oxfam’s conversations and projects with entrepreneurs across the globe reveal a big gender gap in access to finance, says Windy Massabni. Women in business tell us that better support for them will include loan guarantees, alternative credit scoring systems and building the gender awareness of lenders.
When the farm is gone – but the loan remains: how can we build climate-resilient microfinance?
When floods destroyed one Pakistani farmer’s crops and income, they also destroyed her ability to get and repay the credit on which she, like millions of smallholders, depends. Rita Abiodun looks at a programme that offers much more protection from climate shocks to microfinance users.
It’s time for the World Bank to show it truly cares about unpaid care
The next funding cycle for the World Bank’s International Development Association could top $100bn – and, says Fiana Arbab, we must keep a close eye on the fraction of that being committed to transforming the lives of the billions of women doing care work.
After half a century of misguided policies, here’s how the World Bank and IMF can work for the poor…
It’s time both the World Bank and IMF abandoned the short-term fixes and austerity that have repeatedly failed people in developing countries, says Anthony Kamande. With their joint annual meetings back on African soil for the first time in five decades, he sets out six ways both institutions can make real and lasting change: from debt restructuring to encouraging social spending and taxes on the wealthiest.
Is the IMF listening enough? It’s time to make real engagement part of its mandate
Nabil Abdo and Nadia Daar introduce a new Oxfam report, which sets out how the IMF needs to do much more to deliver meaningful engagement with civil society