South Asia

Advisory Services

To grow opportunities for the underserved, IFC in South Asia has concentrated on low-income, rural, and fragile regions while building infrastructure and assisting public-private-partnerships; facilitating renewable energy generation; promoting cleaner production, energy and water efficiency; supporting agriculture and sustainable forestry; creating growth opportunities for small businesses; reforming investment climate; encouraging low-income housing; and making affordable healthcare accessible.

Through these strategic interventions in the region, IFC aims to promote economic inclusion at the base of the pyramid, particularly in the low income states of India; help address climate change impacts; and encourage global and regional integration including promoting investments from South Asia into Africa.

IFC funds Advisory programs through its net income along with co-funding from other donors. IFC manages these programs either directly or in partnership with enterprises and institutions.IFC works to enhance the performance and growth of small and medium enterprises in selected sectors of Bangladesh, Nepal. Bhutan, and north eastern states of India. This program titled -SouthAsia Enterprise Development Facility is managed by IFC in partnership with the UK Government and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation. It aims to enhance the performance, competitiveness and sustainable growth of small and medium enterprises in selected sectors in Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and North East India. SEDF works to:

• • expand the access to affordable financial services;
  • improve food security through climate-resilient agriculture;
  • mitigate climate change by promoting clean growth and sustainable financing;
  • promote social compliance to create safe and respectful working environment;
  • create business linkages for small and medium enterprises, institutionalize corporate governance and build business and entrepreneurship skills;
  • improve the business environment in Nepal.

IFC works towards a better environment in which to do business. Bangladesh Investment Climate Fund is managed by IFC in partnership with the UK Government and the European Union. It works with the government, private sector and civil society to make it easier to do business in Bangladesh. BICF works to:

• • assist the Economic Zone regime with international best practice, making zones more efficiently- managed and favorably- regulated and thus more attractive to investors;
  • help simplify business regulation, bringing down cost of doing business - resulting in an expansion of firms and jobs;
  • promote efficiency and transparency in public sector agencies through e-governance, alternative dispute resolution. 

IFC’s Investment and Advisory services work seamlessly to deliver global expertise to clients in the South Asia region  with a focus on supporting commercial banks through immediate and long term financing, combined with advice and capacity enhancements;, strengthening SME finance; supplier linkages across sectors such as readymade garments and agribusiness. Linkage programs and rural development initiatives are important priorities. IFC is working with select clients in India under the IFC Against AIDS program, providing financing and advice to expand their HIV awareness building and training programs.

In India, IFC’s Advisory portfolio currently comprises of 40 active projects. IFC leverages its global industry knowledge to deliver sector expertise in Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Grassroots/Rural Business, Infrastructure, Environment, Access to Finance and Business Enabling Environment.

IFC’s Public Private Partnerships group supports setting up bankable public-private partnerships to enhance access to basic services like infrastructure, health care, education in the region.