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Innovative Financing for Women at the Nexus of Climate and Entrepreneurship Skoll World Forum Side Event

Exeter College, Oxford

At the Skoll World Forum 2026, the Gates Foundation and Shell Foundation co‑host a half‑day side event focused on unlocking finance for women entrepreneurs and farmers facing climate challenges, particularly in sub‑Saharan Africa.

Past Event

The event brings together philanthropies, investors, financial institutions and practitioners to examine how innovative financing mechanisms can better serve women at the intersection of climate resilience, entrepreneurship and agriculture, at a time when official development assistance is declining and climate risks are intensifying.

Discussions explore practical ways to mobilise domestic and international private capital, align philanthropic and commercial funding, and close the gap between the types of capital available and the needs of women‑centred climate solutions.

The programme features a series of panels and interactive working sessions:

  • Practitioner case studies highlight climate‑smart business models improving incomes for women farmers and entrepreneurs, with insights from M‑KOPA, One Acre Fund, Savannah Circuit and GAME, moderated by Shell Foundation.
  • An investor panel, moderated by the Gates Foundation, examines barriers to capital deployment and innovative structures to unlock investment, with perspectives from Kaleidofin, Cooperative Bank of Kenya, Catalyst Fund and Livelihood Impact Fund.
  • Ecosystem investment deep dives explore proven de‑risking structures and blended finance instruments, featuring leaders from SunCulture, Mirova SunFunder, FINCA, Financial Deepening Trust of Africa and Triple Jump, alongside Shell Foundation and the Gates Foundation.
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