By: Context

In a context of constrained foreign aid and multilateral assistance, Georgia Levenson Keohane, CEO of the Soros Economic Development Fund (SEDF), argues that the severe financing gaps in emerging markets present a critical opportunity for a new paradigm of local leadership. She contends that this is the moment for private-sector investors and philanthropies to lend their support.

Focusing on Africa, Keohane highlights the continent's paradoxical position: it faces a worsening $2.8 trillion climate financing gap, yet possesses the abundant natural resources and growing workforce to achieve a clean-energy transition that powers inclusive growth. With traditional development finance diminishing, she asserts that non-governmental private capital is urgently needed to back the region's green revolution.

The SEDF, the impact investment arm of the Open Society Foundations, is responding by doubling down on African-led climate solutions. This strategy involves supporting local entrepreneurs, fund managers, and reformers who are building a green economy. Keohane identifies the lack of electricity for 600 million Africans as a major obstacle and a social justice issue, noting that proven solutions like off-grid solar remain slow to deploy due to investor risk aversion—both real and perceived. The SEDF believes the greatest risk is inaction, especially with Africa's population expected to double by 2050, which could lead to a "carbon catastrophe" without clean power.

To date, SEDF has committed $55 million to primarily African-led initiatives and seeks to strengthen local capital-market infrastructure through partnerships. The ultimate goal is to bet on a future where African-led, inclusive, and pro-climate growth generates broad-based prosperity.