Blogs Navigation
Sustainable BusinessRecent posts
Listen, Manage, Learn: This Is How We Address Your Concerns at IDB Invest
The Management Grievance Mechanism serves individuals, communities, and groups seeking to voice their concerns on environmental or social issues related to projects financed or under consideration.
Aristotle’s Wisdom and Synergies at IDB Group
The philosophical maxim about the whole and the parts is the perfect metaphor for illustrating how we work together to multiply the impact of our institutional efforts to build a better world.
Are Financial Institutions Ready to Face Climate Risks? This Is What We Found Out
An IDB Invest survey shows they require guidance and a solid legal framework to navigate a complex landscape. Experts recommend focusing on three pillars: governance and culture, implementation and engagement, and transition planning.
What can Latin American countries learn from Korea in energy efficiency?
*By Narae Lee If you dig a hole through the center of the Earth, starting from Montevideo in Uruguay, you would get to Seoul, the capital of South Korea. Korea and Uruguay are the antipodes, meaning that they are diametrically opposite to each other. Korea is indeed one of the farthest countries from Latin America, seemingly not having many things in common with the region either. However, the Asian tiger has recently increased its visibility on the other end of the planet through Korean companies and celebrities in mass culture and sports, but most importantly by sharing its development experience.
Wish there were more hours in the day? Distance learning can maximize time and earning potential
Doesn’t it always seem like there aren’t enough hours in the day? How can we possibly fit it all in? The same is true for young people in Latin America and the Caribbean - especially those in lower income or vulnerable communities. For the high school graduates, many aren’t able to go directly to university for financial, family or other reasons. For example, Estacio, a large private university in Brazil, estimates that approximately 40% of high school graduates in Brazil go directly to university. Many others start a job, or a family or both.
Can innovations in healthcare technology leapfrog to better solutions?
In our experience at the IDB, healthcare systems in many countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) suffer from severe resource constraints. Competing health priorities, budget restrictions, staff shortages and general technological deficiencies leave large segments of the population without basic treatment.
The Caribbean Private Sector: How to expand lending
“All cassava have the same skin, but all don’t taste the same way,” is a Caribbean proverb which serves as a reminder that while people may appear alike on the outside, each is quite unique on the inside. The saying, which first originated in Guyana, speaks about the individuality of people, yet it also resonates with me as a development professional when thinking about the diversity of the Caribbean economies. From what I have seen, each country in this region offers a distinct mix of cultural richness, entrepreneurialism, sector expertise, biodiversity, natural resources and much more.
Why invest in health?
On September 18, 2013, I co-led along with Geetha Tharmaratnam (The Abraaj Group) a webinar for the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) Investors’ Council on opportunities in the health sector to address critical needs in emerging markets. Most countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have universal public healthcare systems, however, the infrastructure, especially outside of capital cities and for higher complexity needs, is typically insufficient. There are long wait times for services, limited geographic access to specialists and often long payment cycles for private providers serving lower income patients. These combined factors result in a lack of access to quality care in a timely fashion.
Five ways the IDB is scaling up green private sector investment
Recently several colleagues and I traveled to Copenhagen, Denmark, to participate in the Global Green Growth Forum (3GF) Annual Summit along with 450 other leaders from government, private sector and civil society. I had the opportunity to address three panels and used the forums to discuss ways the IDB’s private sector is tackling the climate crisis.