2026 Seminars

Despite significant investment in poverty reduction, progress toward SDG 1 (No Poverty) remains uneven. Increasingly, governments, development finance institutions, humanitarian organisations, investors, private sector actors and communities recognise that lasting impact requires moving beyond delivering solutions for communities toward building solutions with communities. At a time when humanitarian needs are increasing, development finance is constrained and climate-related shocks are intensifying, strengthening community-led solutions through innovative partnerships and financing is no longer optional ,it is essential for achieving sustainable poverty reduction. Despite growing recognition of the importance of locally led development, critical questions remain about how to translate this ambition into sustainable impact. What does meaningful community leadership look like in practice, beyond consultation and participation? How can locally led initiatives be strengthened to become investment-ready and scalable? And what roles should development finance institutions (DFIs), philanthropy, private sector actors, governments, and civil society play in unlocking finance, fostering partnerships, and creating enabling ecosystems that empower community-driven solutions to deliver lasting poverty reduction?

This session brings together leaders from development finance institutions, humanitarian and development organisations, the private sector, donors, and community organisations to explore how each actor contributes to creating sustainable pathways out of poverty. A defining feature of the discussion will be the inclusion of a community representative as an equal contributor, ensuring that lived experience informs the dialogue alongside perspectives from finance, policy, and practice. By sharing firsthand insights on the journey from vulnerability to resilience, the community voice will demonstrate how locally led solutions are conceived, implemented, and sustained, while challenging traditional development narratives by positioning communities not as recipients of aid, but as collaborators, innovators, and co-designers of lasting change. The session will further explore how private sector expertise, value chains, innovation and investment can complement humanitarian and development efforts by strengthening locally led enterprises, creating sustainable livelihoods to address poverty.

The discussion will combine localisation, economic inclusion, and resilience-building, positioning these as essential and mutually reinforcing elements for achieving long-term poverty reduction at scale.

Session Objective

To explore how governments, development finance institutions, humanitarian actors, private sector partners and communities can collectively create enabling systems that allow locally led solutions to deliver sustainable poverty reduction.
 

Core Discussion Areas

• Community Leadership and Local Decision-Making: What genuine locally led development looks like.
• From Local Innovation to Scalable Solutions: How community initiatives become investable and sustainable.
• Financing Community Resilience: Leveraging development finance, philanthropy, and private capital to unlock investment in locally led development.
• Building Collaborative Ecosystems: Aligning humanitarian actors, governments, private sector, donors, and communities through shared decision-making, risk-sharing, and resource mobilisation.
• Driving Systems Change Through Partnerships: Fostering cross-sector partnerships that move beyond pilot projects to achieve sustainable, scalable impact on poverty reduction.

Expected Outcomes

• A shared vision on how community leadership, cross-sector collaboration, and innovative financing can accelerate progress towards SDG 1 (No Poverty).
• Greater alignment on financing and investment approaches that enhance the scalability, sustainability, and resilience of community-driven solutions.
• Identification of collaborative opportunities for joint action, including blended finance, strategic partnerships, and scalable initiatives that drive systems change.