At the heart of everything we do is our aim to contribute to a world in which, in 2050, more than 9 billion people live well and within the means of the planet’s resources.
By reaching out to underserved markets, we invest in some of the world’s most challenging business environments. The countries that we work in often have a fragile private sector, little job security and high poverty rates.
Our role extends beyond financing, as we help businesses to operate and grow transparently in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. We do so by investing time, capacity and resources in further understanding how their business and industry – and thus our financing – affect the welfare of local people and the surrounding environment.
We encourage the growth of responsible businesses because they can enable and catalyze social and economic change. In the long-run sustainable businesses provide higher-level jobs, income, and tax generation to strengthen local society. We believe that these elements are key to reducing poverty and inequality. With our clients serving millions of customers, their adoption of good practices can have a tremendous effect on local development, as they often serve as catalysts for other businesses to do the same.
As a development bank, we have the explicit responsibility to make investments that commercial parties perceive as too risky. That can be because the country in question lacks financial infrastructure or is perceived as too 'fragile' by private investors, because it concerns bold but unproven innovations, or because it requires a maturity period longer than what most investors dare to take on.
Read moreWe recognize the importance of growing the green part of our portfolio, but equally important we see the need to ensure that our overall portfolio is aligned with the goals of the Paris climate agreement. For us, Paris alignment means a portfolio that is consistent with a 1.5-degrees pathway.
Read more about our approach
FMO's mission is to empower entrepreneurs to build a better world. Their products and services strengthen local communities, they create jobs and generate taxes and they boost the vitality of economies.
We seek to reduce inequalities by investing in some of the world’s poorest countries. We are pursuing inclusive business aimed at people earning less than 7 USD per day - Base of the Pyramid - often including women and smallholders.
FMO embraces the Paris Cop 21 Agreement on Climate Change. We aim to deliver on our climate ambition by aligning our portfolio of investments with a 1.5 degrees emissions reduction pathway.