Investing for Impact

India is among the earliest adopters of artificial intelligence (AI). In fact a study from the Boston Consulting Group puts the country third behind the USA and China in terms of its uptake of AI. People in India seem positive about the technology's potential too. Nearly three quarters of respondents to a survey conducted by PwC said they felt optimistic that AI can deliver social and economic impact. So where can this impact come from? And what role can investment play in helping deliver it? In this podcast, we aim to find out. We speak to: - Manish Singhal, Founding Partner of Pi Ventures - an investment fund that backs companies using AI. - Geetha Manjunath, CEO and Co-Founder of Niramai - a company that has developed a product that uses AI to detect early stage breast cancer. - Nishith Rastogi, CEO and Co-Founder of Locus - a business that uses AI to provide logistics solutions for firms.

In this podcast Dr. Veronica Di Bella from CDC E&S team interviews David Lerpiniere, head of waste resources and development at Resource Futures. Together they explore current challenges, opportunities and best practice on plastic waste management from a private sector perspective. This is the 7th edition in a series of podcasts by CDC Environmental and social Responsibility team. E&S podcasts are aimed at raising awareness and sharing learnings and experiences around environmental and social performance.

Impact investing is an industry that's grown massively in recent years. So much so, in fact, that the Global Impact Investing Network (The GIIN) estimates that there are now $228 billion in impact assets, while other estimates put the same number in the trillions. With more and more big name investors getting involved in impact investing, has the movement now gone mainstream? And, if so, will the trend last? In this podcast we seek answers to those questions. We speak to: - Abhilash Mudaliar, Director of Research at the Global Impact Investing Network - James Purcell, Head of Alternative and Sustainable Investments at UBS - Fran Seegull, Executive Director of the US Impact Investing Alliance

The potential of technology in supporting development is huge. We've already seen that, particularly through examples such as mobile money and off-grid solar systems, which have been adopted by millions of people in developing countries and are used every day. So, where else are companies using technology to help development? In this podcast, we look at examples across a range of different sectors, from education to gas and services. We also get an understanding of the potential limitations of technology by speaking to an academic who has concerns over the impact blockchain might have on development. This episode features interviews with: - Fausto Marcigot, Chief Technology Officer, PayGo Energy - Adam Grunewald, CEO, Lynk - Adesuwa Ifedi, Vice President, Policy and Partnership, Bridge Academies - Michael Pisa, Policy Fellow, Center for Global Development

In this podcast Lara Martin from CDC Group interviewed Cindy Berman (ETI), Shami Nissan (ACTIS), and Larissa Luy (IFC) and discussed modern slavery in the context of private sector investments. What is Modern Slavery? Why it is important? What can you do about it? This is the sixth edition in a series of podcasts by CDC Environmental and Social Responsibility team. E&S podcasts are aimed at raising awareness and sharing learnings and experiences around environmental and social performance.

The stats on the advantages of women's economic empowerment need little introduction. McKinsey, for example, say that if women's participation rates were the same as men's it would add $26 trillion to global GDP by 2025. So, how can investors and businesses find these opportunities to support women's empowerment? In this podcast, we look at different examples from across the value chain - from Board level, to employees and customers. The episode features interviews with: - Tamsin Jones, co-founder, TheBoardroom Africa - Marcia Ashong, co-founder, TheBoardroom Africa - Ritu Kumar, Director, Environmental and Social Responsibility, CDC Group - Shami Nissan, Head of Responsible Investment, Actis - Rajeev Ahuja, Head of Strategy, RBL Bank Find us on Twitter @CDCGroup

This is a co-produced Development Finance and CDC podcast. Two billion people are living in countries affected by fragility, conflict and violence. Fragility and conflict have a huge impact on poverty, so in these countries businesses are particularly important because of the economic and job opportunities they can create. Growing a successful company in such a country is easier said than done, however. In this podcast, we aim to understand the challenges facing people trying to build businesses in these extremely challenging environments and find out how they are overcoming them. We hear from Teza Bila, the Managing Director of Congo Invest Consulting in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Michael Mithika, who's leading the World Vision Fund, which covers fragile states such as the DRC and Azerbaijan. We also speak to Thierry Artaud, the Managing Director of M-Birr a mobile payment platform in Ethiopia - a country no longer classified as a fragile but one that still faces its fair share of challenges.

In our 5th CDC E&S podcast we interview Philip Powell (Director of Eco-Livelihoods) to discuss the challenges around land acquisition and livelihoods restoration in the context of development finance. During this podcast we attempt to answer some difficult questions including how to deal with land legacy issues, when can we say that livelihoods have been restored, or how to budget for a livelihoods restoration.

This is a co-produced Development Finance and CDC podcast. Over the course of this 10 minute episode, we take a closer look at organisations that many people aren't that familiar with: development finance institutions (DFIs). We hear about what DFIs do and what more they could be doing in future. We hear from Nanno Kleiterp, the Chairman of the European Development Finance Institutions, Mussa Chayenda who works for a business that has received DFI investment, and we also speak to the academic Sir Paul Collier from the International Growth Centre.

Here we meet one of the inspiring women working at one of our investee companies in Africa. Monique Gieskes has an impressive CV. She’s the regional director for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) at textile company Vlisco, she’s on the Board of Feronia, a large agribusiness, and she’s the president of the UN Global Compact in the country. As a senior Congolese businesswoman, Monique draws on her experience to discuss the barriers to women’s economic empowerment in the country and how they can be overcome.