BACKGROUND

Major shifts in the international development financing landscape have created new opportunities and options for countries to access alternative funding beyond the traditional sources to finance development priorities. In addition, new instruments have been developed to leverage the involvement of the private sector in infrastructure financing, such as public-private partnerships (PPPs) and blended finance. Blended finance is emerging as one of several modalities that the governments can promote to catalyse additional private-sector or commercial investment in development priorities. However, for blended finance to make a material difference towards the financing of development priorities, governments must develop a strong understanding of both the theory and practice behind this collaborative approach. As part of its support to countries, MEFMI will offer training on blended finance to enhance participants’ understanding of how governments can promote the strategic use of public funds to catalyse private sector participation in the countries’ development agendas, through blended finance facilities.