Initiatives

  1. Financial inclusion

  2. Impact insurance

  3. Sustainable investing

Social finance


The financial sector is an influential player in the world of work. Investments, loans and insurance can be powerful drivers to create jobs, improve working conditions and enhance resilience. The ILO’s Social Finance Programme engages with the financial sector to explore how it can contribute to decent work and social justice.

Our engagement with the financial sector is three-fold, dealing with different sets of players in the financial sector: We also amplify the insights and recommendations by engaging with networks and industry associations.

Latest updates

  1. News

    The ILO and IFC launch a second year-long Community of Practice among insurers to reduce the protection gap for women

    17 March 2023

  2. Project

    Targeting women in insurance

    10 March 2023

  3. Project

    Feasibility study and design of an impact bond to reduce child labour in Côte d’Ivoire

    07 March 2023

List all

Highlight

  1. Annual Report

    Read the Social Finance 2021 Annual Report

    The Annual Report 2021 highlights the achievements of the Social Finance Programme over the past year. The report covers developments in Social Finance's three streams of work: financial inclusion, impact insurance and sustainable investing.

Projects with a social finance component

Global

Project name: Support CFC’s Development of a Social and Environmental Management System
Responsible unit/department: Social Finance
Web link: https://www.ilo.org/DevelopmentCooperationDashboard/#a28xobn
Type of intervention: Innovative financial services
Starts on: 12/4/18
Ends on: 3/31/20
Social Finance theme: Sustainable investing

Global

Project name: Building capacity for social compliance of investments in agriculture in Africa (AATIF)
Responsible unit/department: Social Finance
Web link: https://www.ilo.org/DevelopmentCooperationDashboard/#ai21hxm
Type of intervention: Technical assistance, capacity building
Starts on: 7/1/12
Ends on: 7/14/21
Social Finance theme: Sustainable investing

Global

Project name: Partnership with Insurance for Rural Resilience & Economic Development (INSURED)
Responsible unit/department: Social Finance
Web link: https://www.ilo.org/DevelopmentCooperationDashboard/#btj0h1b
Type of intervention: Technical assistance, capacity building
Starts on: 11/8/18
Ends on: 12/31/21
Social Finance theme: Impact insurance

Global

Project name: A Global Action Network to make agriculture insurance work better
Responsible unit/department: Social Finance
Web link: https://www.ilo.org/DevelopmentCooperationDashboard/#ado75e2
Type of intervention: Capacity building
Starts on: 10/1/14
Ends on: 12/31/19
Social Finance theme: Impact insurance

Global

Project name: Change Management to achieve impact with insurance - Phase II
Responsible unit/department: Social Finance
Web link: https://www.ilo.org/DevelopmentCooperationDashboard/#a2r6p31
Type of intervention: Innovative financial services, capacity building
Starts on: 4/1/16
Ends on: 11/30/19
Social Finance theme: Impact insurance

Global

Project name: Partnership for improving Prospects for host communities and forcibly displaced persons (PROSPECTS)
Responsible unit/department: Policy
Web link: https://www.ilo.org/global/programmes-and-projects/prospects/WCMS_725066/lang--en/index.htm
Type of intervention: Capacity building
Starts on: 7/1/19
Ends on: 6/30/23
Social Finance theme: Financial inclusion

Global

Project name: Joining Forces To Promote Impact Insurance
Responsible unit/department: Social Finance
Web link: https://ilo.org/DevelopmentCooperationDashboard/#a2b2urq
Type of intervention: Innovative financial services, capacity building
Starts on: 6/1/18
Ends on: 5/31/21
Social Finance theme: Impact insurance

Global

Project name: Le rôle de l’Economie Sociale et Solidaire dans le développement durable, et l’avenir du travail et de l’emploi
Responsible unit/department: Social Finance
Web link: https://ilo.org/DevelopmentCooperationDashboard/#a2sa6ka
Type of intervention: Research
Starts on: 12/2/15
Ends on: 12/31/19
Social Finance theme: Financial inclusion
Disclaimer: The boundaries shown on this map do not imply endorsement or acceptance by the ILO.