Sustainable BusinessRecent posts
Four Reasons Why Transparency is a Strategic Asset for Development Finance Institutions
Open access to information builds credibility, enhances outcomes, encourages collaboration, and attracts investment. For development finance institutions, transparency is not just a value, it’s a cornerstone for achieving sustainable progress while navigating complex financial and operational landscapes.
Energy Efficiency Means Investment Opportunities for Technological Companies
Digitalization offers economic and sustainable benefits, driving efficiency, resilience and innovation in telecommunications, with key opportunities in infrastructure, responsible investment and multi-sector strategies in Latin America and the Caribbean.
In the Face of Sustainability Challenges, Strong Governance Begins in the Boardroom
Boards of Directors must lead mitigation strategies, embedding long-term planning and innovation into risk oversight. IDB Invest empowers directors to transform climate governance into resilience, opportunity, and competitive advantage across diverse sectors.
All-inclusive hotels: A key for Latin America and the Caribbean’s growth
The traditional all-inclusive concept has significantly evolved in recent years to better adapt to changing consumer preferences, demographics and booking patterns. Guest behavior and expectations are being reshaped by a shift in consumers’ mindset towards travel and the disruptive impact of technology. Travelers are increasingly seeking personalization and authenticity in their vacation experiences, more involvement and connection with the local community, and a genuine engagement in environmentally responsible practices—all of this while maintaining full control of their choices and increasingly relying on mobile and electronic devices as a preferred booking method. A revamped all-inclusive 2.0 model is becoming more sensitive to these consumer needs and undergoing an exciting metamorphosis.
How to achieve women’s financial inclusion: The role of financial intermediaries and strong sex-disaggregated data
In light of the number of initiatives developed in Latin America and the Caribbean to help increase the availability and use of sex-disaggregated demand-side (customer) and supply-side (institution) data across the ecosystem, you may think we’ve moved on from asking financial intermediaries: “How big is the women’s market opportunity in Latin America and the Caribbean?” to “Did the women’s market initiative perform as expected”? We have not.
Transparency is good for business
One out of three Latin Americans acknowledges having paid at least one bribe in exchange for some type of benefit related to public services. In tandem with this, major corruption scandals have come to light in recent years, affecting both governments and private companies. Small and large-scale corruption and lack of transparency are present at the individual, government, and business level and adversely impact countries’ productivity and economic growth.
Sustainable Finance: What can the financial sector do to better manage environmental and social risks?
In January 2018, Larry Fink, the CEO of BlackRock published an open letter to the CEOs of publicly traded companies. His message was clear, companies have a responsibility to deliver profit, and make “a positive contribution to society.” Failure to do the latter comes at the risk of losing its license to operate. Consumers can influence through decisions to purchase products from companies that value broader corporate goals of environmental impact, workforce diversity, and community engagement. What may come as a surprise statement from a private equity fund with $6 trillion under management is increasingly the de facto market standard.
Wildlife corridors: Saving lives, biodiversity and money
Latin America and the Caribbean count for 40% of the world’s biodiversity. However, the region has lost a big part of its natural capital during the past decades. For that reason, the IDB, in partnership with the Global Environmental Fund (GEF), recognizes the importance of taking action to support countries and private sector companies in the region to manage their natural resources to generate economic growth.
Development Effectiveness: Adding Value beyond Financing
A new private sector In his recent annual letter to CEOs, Larry Fink, the founder and CEO of the investment firm BlackRock, called on companies to incorporate both profit and purpose into their business strategies. “Society is demanding that companies, both public and private, serve a social purpose. To prosper over time, every company must not only deliver financial performance, but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society.”
