Lenz & Staehelin with IFFEd committing to USD 1.5 bln for global education in LMICs
The International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd), advised by Lenz & Staehelin, committed to USD 1.5 billion for global education and skills in lower-middle-income countries (LMICs) for 2024-2025, the biggest one-off boost to education funding in decades, as announced today by UN Secretary-General António Guterres and UN Special Envoy for Global Education Gordon Brown at the UN Summit of the Future in New York.
Lenz & Staehelin’s team
Lenz & Staehelin’s team comprised Benoît Merkt (pictured), François Rayroux, Delphine Meylan and Benjamin Moret.
IFFEd
IFFEd is an innovative public-private partnership registered in 2023 as a Swiss foundation based in Geneva. Through the use of contingent capital from donors, IFFEd makes it possible for multilateral development banks (MDBs) to provide loans for education to LMICs five times more efficiently than the conventional MDB model based on paid-in capital. Founding donors Canada, Sweden, and the United Kingdom have contributed USD 342 million in guarantees and capital plus USD 100 million in grants, whilst major global philanthropic partners have provided IFFEd seed capital.
IFFEd’s Founding CEO Karthik Krishnan (pictured below) commented stating:
Setting up future generations for economic success requires investments in human capital development across all stages from early childhood education to upskilling and reskilling. Every $1m invested through IFFEd’s guarantee-grant instrument unlocks $7m of education and skills projects. Every dollar invested in education and skills in LMICs creates $4 (4x) in economic and health benefits each year.
