WASHINGTON — A year ago FinDev Canada consisted of Managing Director Paul Lamontagne and one other employee, working out of a WeWork in Montreal. But the Canadian development finance institution recently marked its first birthday in a proper office with about 15 staff.
FinDev spent the year in startup mode, working to build Canada’s capacity to work directly with the private sector for the first time. It has learned from others, created a development impact framework, and made its first two investments. FinDev Canada is an independently governed subsidiary of Export Development Canada, with Global Affairs Canada as its shareholder. Much of its initial work involved figuring out how to coordinate with its parent agency to share services to remain lean, and with its shareholder to advance Canada’s feminist international assistance policy.
About the author
Adva Saldinger@AdvaSal
Adva Saldinger is an Associate Editor at Devex, where she covers the intersection of business and international development, as well as U.S. foreign aid policy. From partnerships to trade and social entrepreneurship to impact investing, Adva explores the role the private sector and private capital play in development. A journalist with more than 10 years of experience, she has worked at several newspapers in the U.S. and lived in both Ghana and South Africa.
