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The OPIC Blog
Can financial innovation save the world? Elizabeth Littlefield weighs in.June 01, 2012A recent piece in The Atlantic explores investors’ growing interest in Impact Investing. The piece describes impact investors and those “who want to use finance to make more food, cleaner water, better healthcare, smarter children and a richer bottom-of-the-pyramid.” It sounds like a tall order, but OPIC has long understood that investing in common challenges such as access to education, financial inclusion, housing, health 
Myths about Helping Small and Medium Enterprises in Post-Conflict CountriesMay 23, 2012Post-conflict economies share striking similarities regardless of region or era. Their economies are dominated by small and medium enterprises (SMEs), usually in the informal sector. Their banking systems have collapsed or credit has retreated to large companies and well-connected players. The rule of law is in shambles. Once a cash economy is functioning, populations are settling and some basic security 
A pivotal year for foreign affairs, a banner year for OPIC: Read the fiscal 2011 annual reportMay 22, 2012OPIC recently published its annual report for fiscal 2011, a year that OPIC President and CEO Elizabeth Littlefield describes as “a pivotal year for foreign affairs and a banner year for the U.S. Government’s development finance institution.” Littlefield’s full letter is preinted below, and the complete annual report is available on OPIC.gov. When I embarked on my first full year at Monthly News Wrap-Up: April 2012May 04, 2012Last month we started recapping some of the most important stories from the industries and geographies in which we operate. This month we are continuing this series and we start with the recent Global Philanthropy Forum, which generated extensive discussion about the ways private investment and public-private partnerships can be used to address major social and environmental challenges. The Global Putting the “Impact” in InvestingApril 25, 2012The recent Global Philanthropy Forum in Washington D.C. drew hundreds of participants from the worlds of finance and philanthropy, underscoring the growing interest in focusing private investments on projects that will advance a social good. The forum, which featured a special address from OPIC President and CEO Elizabeth Littlefield, generated considerable discussion about the roles of the private and public OPIC’s Monthly News Wrap-Up: March 2012March 29, 2012We frequently share the important pieces of journalism we find on our Facebook and Twitter feeds. Starting this month, we will also begin recapping on our blog some of the stories we consider most important to helping solve critical development challenges. This month there has been increased discussion over ways to encourage more economic development in Afghanistan in order to Three things most people do not know about global developmentFebruary 27, 2012OPIC President and CEO Elizabeth Littlefield delivered the keynote address February 24 at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute (GPPI) annual conference, where she spoke about the changing nature of global development and the private sector’s growing role as a force for good in the world. She also outlined three things that many people do not know about development: We’re winning. Haitian Prime Minister visits OPICFebruary 15, 2012Haitian Prime Minister Garry Conille met with OPIC President Elizabeth Littlefield and other members of OPIC’s senior staff on February 9 to discuss the challenges of Haiti’s reconstruction and the prospects for new development. Conille (pictured) and his delegation were in Washington to explore ways in which the United States could contribute to Haiti’s reconstruction efforts in the wake of the 
“We must do both:” Littlefield says development must focus on people and the planetDecember 12, 2011OPIC President and CEO Elizabeth Littlefield spoke at the U.N. Climate Change Conference earlier this month, where she addressed the particular challenges of promoting sustainability in the developing world. She stressed that expanded access to natural resources and more efficient use of those resources must be twin priorities. Littlefield’s comments challenged a common perception that rapid, so-called “dirty” development was 
Video: “If you don’t innovate you’re not going to win.”December 09, 2011In this interview from the December, 2011 U.N. Climate Change talks in Durban, South Africa, OPIC President and CEO Elizabeth Littlefield outlines OPIC’s progress since it identified renewable resources as the agency’s number one sector priority a year ago. She also explains how partnerships between the public and private sectors can be effective in solving the world’s biggest environmental challenges. |
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