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One of the most important international events this fall was the G-20 Summit, the eighteenth meeting of the G-20 heads of state, held September 9–10, 2023, in New Delhi, India.

Neha Bhatnagar

Natalia Gladkikh

PhD in Psychology, Leading Expert Institute of Social and Economic Design at the Higher School of Economics

In its turn, impact investing became one of the most discussed topics of mutual interest, as countries are sincerely interested in global, shared visions and solutions while facing climate change and natural disasters. For example, during the summit, agreements related to climate and biofuels were concluded, and an agreement was reached to increase renewable energy capacity. India, the US and Brazil have formed an alliance that aims to reduce emissions by trading biofuels made from animal waste and plants, as well as from other similar sources.

As an initiative of the India Impact Investors Council (IIC), the discussion on this topic continued at the Impact Forum in Copenhagen, the flagship event of the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN). As part of the forum, the IIC organized a special section dedicated to impact Investments in India.

This kind of active involvement is no coincidence. Today, India is playing an important role in building the global impact investing narrative, while at the same time keeping its own unique investment landscape. According to a report by IIC, despite the global recession and uncertainty, nearly 285 impact enterprises managed to attract USD 2.9 billion worth of investment in India in 2023 alone. These investments directly contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth), SDG 9 (industry, innovation and infrastructure) and SDG 10 (reduced inequalities).

The driving force behind India’s social impact investments in 2023 has been the climate technology sector: 1 out of 3 investments in this field were directed towards a startup. Innovative startups focused on climate change mitigation, such as the production of green hydrogen and smart batteries, received the most funding.

Given the limited public resources, the Indian Government and non-profit organizations are actively working to bring more players into the impact investment sector. Neha Bhatnagar, Vice President, Partnerships & Founding Team Member, India Impact Investors Council and key speaker of the session “G20 and Beyond: Impact Insights from India,” told Positive Changes about how this sphere works and her impressions of the GIIN Impact forum.

Let’s start with the India Impact Investors Council. Please tell us what your organization does.

IIC is a member-based industry body. Its objective is to help build the impact investing eco-system, present a compelling and comprehensive Impact story for India and strengthen impact investing in India. You could say that we are a “one-stop-shop” service for impact investors. The Impact Investors Council has been created with the objective of bringing global impact investors focused on India under the same roof.

India has a compelling impact destination story. We have a single political democratic entity, we offer opportunity for large-scale investments and easy access to data showcasing number of deals and exits, a strong judicial process is in place, there is a vast sectoral play alongside availability of multiple financial instruments. Hence, to enable foreign investments, a catalyst like IIC plays an imperative role in bringing it all together.

India-focused investors can be roughly classified into three categories: the first is those who have never invested in India, but are looking for reliable information and partners. The second category is that of investors who have been investing in the country for many years, but are still choosing the strategy: focusing on direct investments or acting through asset managers. The third category includes experienced investors looking for new credible partnerships.

Can you please name some of the IIC partners?

We are supported by 70 active impact investors and ecosystem players who are committed to investing in India and creating impact.

These include big global players such as the Rockefeller Foundation, Lemelson Foundation, British International Investment, FMO, UBS Optimus Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, Michael and Susan Dell Foundation. IIC’s network is also supported by leading investors like ABC Impact, Avaana Capital, Elevar Equity, Neev Fund, Northern Arc, Stride Ventures, Vivriti Asset Management, Asha Ventures and many more[2].

India is playing an important role in shaping the global impact investing narrative, while at the same time keeping its own unique investment landscape.

At the Global Impact Investing Network forum, IIC represented the India story, and we managed to bring around 19 India-focused limited partners in the room to share strategies. As an industry body, our members form the essence of our existence, and hence, this was a significant win for our organization.

I was just about to ask you about the impact forum by Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) held this fall, where you were among the speakers. What was on the agenda this year?

I would like to start by giving you a little context on IIC and GIIN relationship. The GIIN, a stalwart nonprofit organization, is committed to amplifying the reach and impact of investments with a global perspective. The GIIN convenes investors, offers guidance on impact measurement, and fuels the growth of impact investing through training and awareness initiatives.

On the other hand, as I mentioned before, the IIC represents the vanguard of impact investors in India, champions of businesses that not only seek financial success but also aim to uplift underserved communities, often those dwelling below the poverty line.

Together, the GIIN and IIC forge a partnership grounded in shared values and goals. Firstly, it’s increasing awareness. Both organizations are dedicated to expanding awareness of impact investing among a diverse range of investors, including domestic and international stakeholders. Secondly it’s elevating impact measurement. IIC and GIIN, both advocate for standardized impact measurement practices to underscore the weight of impact achieved by investors. Thirdly, it’s knowledge and data – acknowledging the importance of data-driven growth, both organizations recognize the need for knowledge and information-exchange platforms.

The GIIN annual forum is one of the most anticipated platforms for the global impact investing community. The main purpose of the forum is to provide networking opportunities and exchange information.

The GIIN annual forum is one of the most anticipated platforms for the global impact investing community. The main purpose of the forum is to provide the ecosystem with networking opportunities and exchange information. The speakers and sessions are handcrafted to deliver the most crucial information and showcase the most effective solutions emerging from the impact investing ecosystem.

As always, this year’s GIIN forum was themed, and its theme was the oceans of the world.

It was a pleasant surprise to witness GIIN’s dedication towards the intersection of climate and oceans. Sectors traditionally highlighted at such convenings are zero hunger, agriculture, housing, financial inclusion, and health. It was decided to stay ahead of the curve with such timely topics as emerging pools of capital, new solutions in the Global South, the “blue economy”, biodiversity & climate intersection, regeneration, AI’s implications for impact investing, and much more.

Were you able to accomplish your goals at the forum?

Yes. It was a success! IIC’s agenda at the GIIN forum was to enable a corridor for India-focused asset owners and asset managers. To give investors a room to share their strategies for India, and provide the Indian asset managers with the opportunity to showcase innovation through their prism. At IIC’s India Room’s session, which was extremely interactive, we enabled the delegates to not just acquaint the fellow attendees with their work but showcase the intersection of India impact investing with the G20 summit. We were joined by 60 delegates, including 21 General Partners (GPs) which comprised 15 members of the Impact Investors Council (IIC) and 19 influential Limited Partner organizations from 12 countries.

In general, what do you think is the role of global organizations such as GIIN?

Global organizations like GIIN, or the Global Steering Group (GSG) play the role of a ‘motherboard’ for the global impact investing community. They are designed to bring global stakeholders under one roof. By creating National Advisory Boards, leadership summits and hosting annual conferences, these organizations are trying to address internal regulations and legal issues in the countries, and are doing their best to improve the need of the hour – to act as an intermediary, enable equal access to the information, measure impact, increase pools of capital and provide access to reliable data, which is globally the biggest challenge.

The reason to celebrate for the impact community was the biggest takeaway of the declaration. All 83 paragraphs of the declaration were passed unanimously.

In September this year, India hosted another global event – the eighteenth summit of G20 Heads of State. Has it had an impact on the local impact investment market?

Absolutely! The event was actively covered by the international media. This was the first time India hosted the G20 summit and proudly covered around 200 meetings in more than 50 cities ahead of the G20 summit day.

To answer your question, the reason to celebrate for the impact community was the biggest takeaway of the declaration. All 83 paragraphs of the declaration were passed unanimously with a 100 percent consensus along with China and Russia in agreement.

Its main priorities were global political, economic and environmental challenges: the need for the fragile global economy to remain flexible and responsive to world events. It included deep concern around peace and prosperity for the planet, a strong sustainable and balanced inclusive growth, emphasizing India’s commitment to addressing both the global problems of the South and the problems of vulnerable groups within the country.

In combination, it definitely became a sensation. And this is, among other things, the recognition of the role of impact investment as an effective tool for solving socio-economic problems and achieving sustainable development goals. After all, SDGs are directly dependent on impact investment: if you want to close a socio-economic gap, you fill it with the help of impact investors.

Definitely! Having been a part of an industry body catering to 1/5th of the global population, for almost 10 years, one has realized the immense importance, need and demand for such convenings, globally!

Such platforms allow impact leaders and their organizations with a common goal of ‘profit with purpose’ to come together and address challenges that are unresolved, educate themselves, address issues around accessing authentic data, share respective national and world governments’ policies and finally solve problems together.

Let me give an example of another recent summit that enabled the entire impact spectrum to communicate, organized by the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs of Indonesia with the support of the ASEAN Secretariat of the United Nations ESCAP and the OECD, in Bali. While India is not a part of the ASEAN nations, IIC was invited to represent the country at the forum. I spoke on inclusive businesses enabling knowledge exchange with the ASEAN nations and building a stronger inclusive world. The summit also organized targeted rapid networking sessions specially curated for the social entrepreneurs.

If you illustrate it as a spectrum, you will have the investors at one end, and social entrepreneurs on the other. To bridge the gap, such cross-sector networking is essential, enabling more opportunities.

IIC has lined up many such platforms for 2024. (1) In April, we are bringing the India Room to Singapore, replicating our GIIN effort. Agenda will be to forge Singaporean LP-to-Indian GP relationship and showcase India impact investing narrative. (2) In May, we are inviting Nordic funds to India for a 2-city roadshow through which we hope to enable a stronger bond with the Nordic countries and in the process build stronger impact investing opportunities. (3) In September, IIC will be hosting India’s largest impact investing platform, our flagship conference called Prabhav’24, which is our 5th edition of the convening. Last year we were joined by close to 800 delegates from nearly 25 countries, 180 speakers and 40 hours of extremely relevant content. We are trying to make it bigger and better this year. (4) In October, IIC will yet again be representing the India Room at the GIIN forum in Amsterdam.

One last question. I can’t help but ask you about the social impact assessment. It is one of the most important things for all of the social economy market and impact investing players. Do the participants of the global forums and platforms see new trends in this area?

Certainly, the landscape of social impact assessment is rapidly evolving, and participants in global forums and platforms are actively observing and adapting to new trends. They are increasingly acknowledging the need for standardized frameworks and metrics to measure and communicate social impact effectively. There is a growing emphasis on transparency, accountability, and the integration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into decision-making processes.

In 2017, recognizing the need for a deeper understanding, I personally collaborated with Duke University on an in-depth study on social impact assessment in India. This collaboration aimed to explore the intricacies of impact assessment within the Indian context and identify effective approaches despite the absence of a common platform.

Navigating this landscape has been a complex task. With no one-size-fits-all solution, impact investors often operate with diverse goals and metrics, making it challenging to establish a common standard.

Despite these challenges, IIC remains committed to fostering a culture of impact measurement and reporting within the industry. We believe that ongoing dialogues, collaborative efforts, and continued advocacy for standardized frameworks will pave the way for more effective social impact assessment practices in the future.

We thank Esha Saini, Research Associate at the India Impact Investors Council, for assisting in organizing this interview.