At the September TEN Online Gathering, Samuel Williams and Fionnuala Shakespeare introduced Christian Aid's Resilient Futures Fund. This is a new initiative designed to address a significant financing gap for climate resilience focused businesses in sub-Saharan Africa.

Many small and medium-sized enterprises  are too large for microfinance but too small or risky for conventional commercial lending. Without access to affordable capital, businesses that could contribute to climate resilience and local economic development can struggle to grow.

The Resilient Futures Fund aims to address this “missing middle” through:

  • Affordable, flexible loans alongside technical support, including unsecured lending where appropriate.
  • A phased approach, beginning with a £500,000 proof-of-concept pilot (2026–27), with the longer-term ambition of building a £20 million fund by 2030.
  • Blended investment, with 90% of the initial fund invested through specialist fund managers and 10% directly into suitable enterprises within Christian Aid’s network.
  • A focus on impact, with investments assessed against seven principles: climate resilience, human dignity, decent work, inclusion, community and land justice, peace and good governance, and learning and adaptation.
  • The fund is intended to demonstrate how philanthropic capital can help unlock finance for enterprises that are currently underserved by mainstream lenders, while generating learning for future investment.

The Gathering included an opportunity to explore how the model works, what types of businesses it is looking to support, and how opportunities are identified.

It's an exciting development and a fresh approach by Christian Aid, which gives an opportunity to support early stage, smaller, high risk initiatives than would normally be possible. 

The presentation and recording are available below. Those interested in applying for funding should study these and send proposals to Jerry in the first instance. 

Watch video recording here

NEW website: https://www.resilientfuturesfund.co.uk/

LinkedIn Page: Resilient Futures

Email: [email protected]

Presentation
PPTX (2.94 MB)
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