Oxfam Australia and OBOR Management Awarded Grant to Design $20M Equi-Green Fund Investing in SMEs Across Cambodia, Indonesia and Timor-Leste

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Oxfam Australia and OBOR Management Awarded Grant to Design $20M Equi-Green Fund Investing in SMEs Across Cambodia, Indonesia and Timor-Leste
Oxfam Australia and OBOR Management Awarded Grant to Design $20M Equi-Green Fund Investing in SMEs Across Cambodia, Indonesia and Timor-Leste./B2B Asia News.

SYDNEY — At the Impact Investment Summit Asia Pacific on March 26, 2026, Convergence Blended Finance and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) announced the inaugural cohort of the Indo-Pacific NGO Blended Finance Accelerator. 

Among the list of awardees is Oxfam Australia and OBOR Management Co. Ltd., who are receiving a scoping grant to design the Equi-Green Fund, a USD 20 million blended finance vehicle investing in climate-resilient and gender-responsive small and medium enterprises across Cambodia, Indonesia, and Timor-Leste. 

The fund will provide early-stage venture capital and technical assistance to enterprises in sectors such as renewable energy, circular economy, and climate-smart agriculture, addressing the region’s “missing middle” financing gap. The Accelerator will support validation of underlying assumptions, stress test the financial model and capital structure, fundraising, and securing anchor investor commitments.

About the Indo-Pacific NGO Blended Finance Accelerator

The Indo-Pacific NGO Blended Finance Accelerator is a five-year initiative funded by DFAT and implemented by Convergence Blended Finance that aims to strengthen the role of NGOs in blended finance.

According to a press release issued by DFAT and Convergence, NGOs are increasingly exploring blended finance to address the growing gap between available donor funding and the scale of development needs. As many organisations reach a stage where their interventions demonstrate impact but require additional capital to scale, blended finance presents an opportunity to mobilise private investment alongside traditional funding sources.

Convergence Market Data indicates that only 17 per cent of all blended finance transactions have an NGO participating in developing and implementing the transaction, highlighting a clear gap between interest and participation. This can be attributed to barriers NGOs often face when engaging in blended finance, such as limited financial structuring expertise, regulatory hurdles, and challenges securing organisational buy-in.

The Accelerator aims to close this gap by equipping NGOs with the tools and support they need to design, pilot, and scale innovative projects, as impact managers, technical assistance providers and, where suitable, fund managers.

With over 80 applications received, the response underscores the growing ambition of NGOs to participate in blended finance transactions. The demand comes amid persistent financing gaps  and donor funding volatility, particularly in underserved and climate-vulnerable markets. Over 70 per cent of applicants were local NGOs, reflecting strong local ownership and a deep understanding of local contexts. 

Introducing the Other Awardees

In addition to Oxfam Australia and OBOR Management, three other NGOs will receive catalytic grant funding and acceleration support to design, launch, and scale blended finance solutions that mobilise private capital for climate action and gender equality across the Indo-Pacific:

  • Good Return is awarded an expansion grant to support the scale-up of the Good Return Impact Investment Fund II, an evergreen USD 6.9 million blended finance facility supporting underserved micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) across the Asia-Pacific. The fund will partner with financial service providers to expand access to finance for women-led and climate-resilient businesses, using guarantees and lending facilities to catalyse commercial capital. The vehicle aims to support ~5,000 MSMEs over 10 years, with a minimum target of ~70 per cent women-led or women-owned enterprises. The Accelerator will support the General Partner’s first-loss commitment to the fund to help catalyse additional investors, while also strengthening fund management, impact and gender monitoring, and the responsible scale-up of the facility.
  • Save the Children Global Ventures is awarded a proof-of-concept grant to design the Asia Healthcare Fund, a USD 30 to 50 million blended finance vehicle investing in innovative healthcare ventures serving women and children across Southeast Asia and Pacific Island nations. The Fund will provide early- and growth-stage capital to scalable health solutions improving access to diagnostics, nutrition, and community-based care. The fund will aim to improve the health and nutrition of 5 million children and train over 100,000 women health workers, especially by leveraging Save the Children’s regional network and expertise. The Accelerator will help the fund complete key design activities, including setting up the legal structure, completing the operational and governance mechanism, identifying the investment pipeline, and securing investor commitments.
  • Xpand Foundation, Foundation Rai Matak and Pollination are awarded a proof-of-concept grant to design a USD 20 to 25 million blended finance platform to scale community-led agroforestry across Timor-Leste. The platform will provide upfront financing to local partners supporting smallholder farmers to plant and maintain trees on their land. This will create livelihood opportunities for 20,000 farmers, restoring degraded landscapes through the planting of 10 million trees. The platform will generate an estimated 15–25 million tonnes of verified CO₂ carbon credits over the life of the programme while strengthening rural incomes and inclusion.

Following the successful completion of Cycle 1, the Indo Pacific NGO Accelerator will launch its second cycle on June 1, 2026.

This article was adapted from a supplied press release.