|
The Development Finance Forum is an international network of
independent practitioners whose goal is to help build the field of
development finance. Among the many development finance networks and
practitioner forums that exist, no other group reflects such a diverse
membership of CEOs of leading institutions with a commitment to a
"double bottom line" approach, where equal priority is placed on
institutional scale and sustainability and on innovative, rigorous methods
of addressing poverty alleviation.
Members of the Forum are dedicated to using capital and other
development-oriented tools to create economic opportunity for poor and
low-income people. Membership implies an interest in professional exchange,
respect for a variety of development finance strategies and approaches, and
a commitment to develop the field through disciplined practice and honest
reflection. The Forum's members include practitioners from Africa, Asia,
Eastern Europe, Latin America, and North America.
The Forum views development finance institutions as financial
intermediaries that are also positioned to play broader economic
development roles. Economic development refers here to a broad range of
interventions that promote livelihood opportunities, increase the economic
and social position of the poor, and recognize the importance of the
economic and ecological context of practitioners' work.
While capital provision must be the distinguishing and central tool of
development finance, the Forum views capital as the glue or attractor
around which other tools — including organizing demand, technical
assistance, information services, environmental remediation, and sectoral intervention — adhere and are made more effective.
While Forum members do not lose sight of the primary role of credit and
savings provision within their institutions, they want to create a practice
and a conversation that can expand the field beyond solely financial
interventions. The Forum terms this broader perspective "Capital
Plus."
Since the Forum's inception in 1997, it has gathered annually to exchange
ideas, build a learning network, and discuss organizational development
themes common to the institutions managed by each of the participants.
Among the issues explored have been the roles of boards of directors and of
social entrepreneurs who manage such organizations, the meaning and
measurement of social impact, the management of organizational growth, the
management of mission within the context of various capitalization
strategies, raising and leveraging socially-motivated equity, the role of
subsidy, and the non-financial tools that development finance institutions
employ in their efforts to alleviate poverty.
The Forum's discussions have generated several papers for publication - the
first being an executive summary of Capital
Plus published in 2004 by the Aspen Institute.
:: DFForum Update
|
