Opportunity

According to Humanitarian Action, “in 2025, humanitarian partners are appealing for over US$47 billion to assist nearly 190 million people facing life-threatening and urgent needs across 72 countries.”

This amount of capital, however, is dwarfed by the economic losses attributed to extreme weather and geophysical hazards, reported to exceed USD $4.2 trillion between 2004 and 2023.

While precise data on the volume of goods and services delivered by SMEs to address these challenges is limited, the United Nations Global Marketplace reports that in 2023:

UN procurement from Least Developed Countries (LDCs) totalled $5.0 billion, or 20.1% of the UN’s total procurement volume.
Procurement from suppliers in 32 Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs) and 50 Small Island Developing States (SIDS) reached $3.5 billion.

Using this as a rough analogue for market demand in frontier and emerging markets, we estimate that the total value of goods and services delivered by organisations like Vivaldi is at least USD $8 billion annually. This figure is likely significantly higher, considering that many unfulfilled projects—rejected due to lack of pre-financing—remain out of scope in current data.

The vacuum left by retreating multilateral donors only increases the urgency for new financing models. With USAID funding evaporated and other donors reassessing global priorities, mechanisms like FIFF are no longer optional—they are essential for the continuity of humanitarian and health interventions.

Solution

A Finance Innovation Facility for Frontier Markets (FIFF) is proposed: an innovative pre-financing mechanism targeted at pre-vetted operators and projects delivering critical health, sanitation, and humanitarian infrastructure and services in frontier and emerging markets.

Key features:

Blended finance model drawing on both public and private sector capital, with concessionary and commercial returns as appropriate.
Funds are deployed by the facility manager to qualified and experienced local operators who already hold contracts from major agencies.
Repayment occurs upon successful project delivery and payment by contracting agencies.

Early feedback from prospective donors and supporters also highlights the potential to integrate decentralised finance and metacurrencies.

These could enhance transparency, mitigate currency risks, and address operational challenges.

Prospective Portfolio

Vivaldi has a growing pipeline of prospective FIFF-eligible operators and projects in frontier and emerging markets. These include:

Colombia (2020–2024)
- 73 projects in the health sector
- 108 operators delivering services for government agencies and INGOs
Global (2023–2024)
- 60 UNOPS projects identified
- 72 operators across multiple regions executing these projects

Vivaldi has validated the need for pre-finance with several of these operators. Excerpts from letters of supportdemonstrate why project finance is critical and how it would enhance effectiveness and impact.

Humanitarian Project Finance Facility

Humanitarian Project Finance Facility