Doccuments

13th Conference – Washington. D.C.

March 27, 2019

Date: 27 March 2019
Location: Washington, DC
Host Institution: International Finance Corporation (IFC)

Objectives

The 13th Conference marked the eighth year anniversary from the signing of the Corporate Governance Development Framework (CGDF) during the 2011 World Bank Annual Meetings and was attended by more than 60 DFI representatives and 90 participants overall.  It was a key learning and networking opportunity as it provided a platform for the DFI governance community to engage with venture capital and seed investors as well as governance experts from all across the Washington, D.C. area.

Main Outcomes

  • Emphasis on stakeholder engagement and sustainability as part of an integrated ESG approach.
  • Promotion of new disclosure and transparency tools, which go a long way to make companies’ Annual Reports more comprehensive and targeted.
  • Importance of local networks and training local stakeholders when financing businesses in fragile and conflict-affected states.
  • Need for outside board members who offer broader risk and market perspective, provide leadership, and enhance the founders’ business vision, when investing in early innovation companies.
  • A new IFC Nominee Director Support Center, bringing together experts from various practice areas to provide nominee directors with industry intelligence, assist in the selection and nomination of qualified candidates, and promote the engagement of qualified female nominee directors worldwide.
  • The Working Group will continue to work on bringing together the signatory through its quarterly newsletter, shared training programs, expert advice, project finance governance initiatives and increased collaboration with private equity funds.

Participants