The International Enterprise (IE) Singapore yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), to help more Singapore companies access in-depth market insights and financing opportunities in emerging markets of Africa, Southeast Asia and South Asia.
The IFC is a member of the World Bank Group. The World Bank is forecasting the growth of emerging markets to reach 4.1% this year, driving their demand for infrastructure to meet economic and social needs.
Combining IE Singapore’s wide network of 13 overseas centres across Africa and Asia, with IFC’s deep financing knowledge and expertise in these markets, both will co-host market-focused workshops for Singapore companies, sharing insights on potential business opportunities, financing landscapes, and financing partners.
These workshops will enable Singapore companies to engage IFC officials who are covering the regions. As part of this collaboration, IFC will also leverage Singapore’s position as a regional infrastructure hub, for example, by hosting pre-bid meetings for Asian infrastructure projects.
The MoU will reinforce IE Singapore’s efforts to develop Singapore as an infrastructure hub, hosting activities such as project development, structuring, and financing, catalysing project opportunities for Singapore companies to meet the infrastructure needs in our region and beyond.
The expansion of Singapore’s companies into emerging markets will help them diversify their sources of growth, and bring much-needed capital and expertise into these markets. IFC’s new development finance strategy, or IFC 3.0, is anchored around the two pillars of creating markets and mobilizing private capital.