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SEWF social enterprise news roundup – April 2026
Welcome to the monthly SEWF social enterprise news roundup. Each month we curate the policies, research and investment shaping the social enterprise movement globally. This April 2026 edition features investment announcements, policy reform and new programmes across Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America.
Global
B Lab appoints new global board to lead next phase of B Corp movement
Source: B Lab
B Lab has appointed a new global board, chaired by Francine Lemos, former executive director of Sistema B Brasil, as the organisation moves toward a more integrated global structure ahead of the B Corp movement’s 20th anniversary. The eight-member board brings together advocates from across the B Corp network spanning Argentina, Kenya, France, the UK, the US and beyond and will serve as the primary governing body for B Lab’s mission worldwide. As part of the transition, two new executive appointments have also been made, with Clay Brown as Chief Standards Officer and Nicola Millson as Chief Markets Officer, both taking up their roles in April 2026.
Sistema.bio raises USD 53 million to launch FarmCarbon climate finance vehicle for smallholder farmers
Source: Shell Foundation
Sistema.bio, a global biogas technology company operating across Africa, Asia and Latin America, has closed a USD 53 million first round for FarmCarbon, a new climate finance vehicle designed to channel institutional capital directly to smallholder farmers. Backed by BNP Paribas Asset Management, British International Investment and Shell Foundation, the vehicle will finance the deployment of more than 90,000 biodigesters, which convert livestock waste into biogas and organic fertiliser, generating over 9 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent emissions reductions over the next decade. FarmCarbon uses a pre-financing model that allows farmers to access the economic value of future carbon credits upfront, reducing the financial barrier to adopting climate-smart technology.
AFRICA
Tony Elumelu Foundation announces 3,200-strong 2026 entrepreneurship cohort
Source: Tony Elumelu Foundation
The Tony Elumelu Foundation has selected 3,200 entrepreneurs from across all 54 African countries for its 2026 programme, chosen from more than 265,000 applications. Each recipient will receive USD 5,000 in non-refundable seed capital, business training, mentorship and access to investment networks, with USD 16 million in total funding to be deployed across the programme this year. The 2026 cohort is 51% women and 75% aged 18–35, bringing the foundation’s total number of entrepreneurs supported since inception to over 27,000.
World Bank approves USD 500m loan to boost Nigeria’s agricultural sector
Source: Business Insider Africa
The World Bank has approved a USD 500 million concessional loan to support Nigeria’s agriculture sector through the Nigeria Sustainable Agricultural Value-Chains for Growth (AGROW) project, running from 2026 to 2032. The programme targets one million smallholder farmers, focusing on key staple crops and will provide matching grants to agribusinesses that source from smallholder producers, alongside investment in climate-resilient seeds, digital farm registration and improved market access. The World Bank estimates the initiative could also mobilise an additional USD 220 million in private investment over its lifetime.
EIB commits EUR 40 million to Speedinvest for Africa-focused tech investment vehicle
Source: European Investment Bank
The European Investment Bank‘s development arm, EIB Global, has committed EUR 40 million to the first Africa-focused investment vehicle from European venture capital firm Speedinvest, targeting high-growth technology start-ups across key innovation hubs including Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, Morocco and South Africa. The vehicle focuses on technology-enabled services across payments, healthcare, mobility and education, with at least 30% of capital allocated to companies supporting women as founders, employees, or consumers. The fund aims to strengthen commercial and capital links between African and European innovation ecosystems while expanding access to digital and financial services for underserved communities.
ASIA
JIABA food and agriculture social enterprise accelerator launches in Taiwan
Source: Social Enterprise Insights
IKEA Social Entrepreneurship and Social Enterprise Insights have launched the JIABA accelerator programme in Taiwan, targeting social enterprises working in the food and agriculture sector. The two-year initiative will support two cohorts of up to 15 organisations, providing strategic coaching, tailored training, peer learning and validation grants of up to NTD 270,000 per team. The programme is open to applications until 14 June, with a focus on enterprises supporting vulnerable groups such as smallholder farmers, elderly workers and marginalised communities.
Incheon recruits 30 social economy enterprises for growth support programme
Source: Seoul Economic Daily
The Incheon Metropolitan Government in South Korea is accepting applications for the second round of its 2026 Social Economy Growth Support Programme, which will select approximately 30 social economy enterprises for tailored business development support. Eligible participants include social enterprises, cooperatives, village enterprises and self-sufficiency enterprises based in Incheon, as well as pre-entrepreneurs and sole proprietors looking to enter the sector. Selected organisations will receive business model diagnostics followed by one of three tracks of support covering intellectual property and patents, corporate certification, or operational development such as website creation and research capacity.
Impact Fund Denmark invests DKK 145 million in Indian green finance company BlackSoil Capital
Source: Impact Fund Denmark
Impact Fund Denmark has committed DKK 145 million to BlackSoil Capital, an Indian alternative financing company supporting start-ups, small businesses and financial companies that struggle to access traditional bank lending. At least 75% of the investment will target climate-related businesses, including those working in green energy, electric mobility and climate-resilient agriculture, with the remainder focused on inclusive development including financing for women-led businesses. The investment aims to address financing gaps in a sector that accounts for around 30% of India’s GDP and 60% of its workforce.
ICA-AP releases study on gender policies in cooperatives across Asia and Pacific
Source: ICA-AP
The International Cooperative Alliance Asia-Pacific’s Committee on Women has published a study examining how cooperatives across ten countries – Australia, Fiji, India, Jordan, Malaysia, Nepal, the Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka and Vietnam – are addressing gender equality. Led by Professor Rajeshwari C. of IIM Kozhikode, the report maps gender equality policies across national legislation, cooperative-specific law and non-binding frameworks and identifies barriers to progress alongside best practices. The findings are intended to support the development of a regional gender policy framework for cooperatives across the Asia-Pacific region.
Europe
Big Issue brings social enterprise education into UK primary schools
Source: Big Issue
The Big Issue Group has launched an education programme bringing workshops and assemblies on homelessness, inequality and social enterprise into primary schools across Bristol and London. The programme, which includes sessions led by Big Issue vendors sharing their own experiences, aims to help young people understand the structural causes of poverty and how social business models can address them. Big Issue says it is now preparing to expand the programme to schools across the UK.
EU Commission commits to stronger regional support and social procurement in social economy review
Source: Pioneers Post
The European Commission has published a midterm review of its Social Economy Action Plan, concluding that progress has been tangible while committing to further action to support the sector. New commitments include better support for regional and local authorities, clarification of State Aid rules and promotion of social procurement practices as part of an expanded set of 89 actions running to 2030. The EU social economy now comprises 4.3 million organisations providing 11.5 million jobs, with more than EUR 2.8 billion in investments and guarantees allocated to support the sector between 2021 and 2027.
Better Society Capital sets target to mobilise GBP 20–30 billion in new 2030 strategy
Source: Better Society Capital
The UK social investment wholesaler has launched its 2026–2030 strategy, targeting GBP 20–30 billion in mobilised capital and a positive impact on 15-20 million people over the next decade. The strategy concentrates on four areas identified as having the greatest potential for social investment: housing, economic opportunity, health and climate and energy. Better Society Capital says it will pursue these goals through its own investments and by developing partnerships and structures that draw in institutional, private and government capital at scale.
New report maps social enterprise landscape across Western Balkans
Source: Impact Europe
A new Impact Europe report mapping the impact ecosystem across eight Western Balkans countries finds a sector that is deeply embedded in local communities, often women-led and focused on education, employment, rural development and environmental protection. The majority of social enterprises surveyed employ fewer than five people and rely heavily on grants, with limited access to external finance and impact measurement capacity. While investor interest in the region is growing, the report finds that awareness of financing options remains low and that social entrepreneurship is not yet well established as a concept across the region.
Future Economy study maps young European changemakers’ vision for a sustainable economy
Source: The Possibilists
A new study produced by The Possibilists, Bertelsmann Stiftung, the European Investment Bank Institute and the Vienna University of Economics and Business examines how young changemakers across Europe envision and are contributing to a sustainable and inclusive economic future. The report captures their perspectives, practices and challenges, offering insight into emerging pathways for economic transformation across the continent. Despite widespread concern about the near-term trajectory of the European economy, respondents articulate a hopeful vision for 2040.
LATIN AMERICA
Peru’s natural legacy secures USD 37.5 million funding boost from Green Climate Fund
Source: World Wildlife Fund
The Green Climate Fund has approved USD 37.5 million in grants for a seven-year programme to strengthen climate mitigation and adaptation across more than 15 million hectares of the Peruvian Amazon. The total investment package of USD 74.5 million, including USD 37 million in co-finance, brings together the Government of Peru, conservation trust fund Profonanpe, WWF and eight Indigenous organisations to improve the long-term financial sustainability of 25 protected areas. The programme is expected to avoid approximately 1.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent and support more than 33,000 direct beneficiaries, including nearly 12,000 people adopting climate-resilient livelihood strategies.
IDB Invest subscribes to USD 46 million sustainable bond to support affordable housing in Mexico
Source: IDB Invest
IDB Invest has subscribed to an 800 million Mexican pesos sustainable bond (approximately USD 46 million) issued by Banco Inmobiliario Mexicano (BIM) to expand financing for small and medium-sized enterprises developing affordable housing in vulnerable communities across Mexico. The proceeds will support housing projects for low-income families, responding to a significant national deficit in which more than eight million homes face quality issues and 15 million households live in inadequate conditions. IDB Invest will also provide technical advisory services to BIM, including digital tools for developers and support for structuring a sustainable bond framework.
NORTH AMERICA
Canada’s private impact investing market reaches CAD 17.7 billion in cumulative target capital
Source: Investment Executive
A new report from the Institute for Sustainable Finance and Rally Assets finds that Canada’s private impact investing market reached approximately CAD 17.7 billion in cumulative target capital as of 2025, with target capital in 2025 alone hitting CAD 4.2 billion – nearly nine times the figure recorded in 2021. Private market impact investing product launches also hit a record high of 55 in 2025, a near sevenfold increase since 2021, with almost half run by managers new to the space. Despite strong growth, the report identifies persistent gaps in geographic reach, asset class diversity and social impact areas beyond climate change mitigation.
OCEANIA
Australian Government raises distribution rate for giving funds and expands community charity category
Source: Australian Government Treasury Ministers
The Australian Government has announced it will raise the minimum annual distribution rate for both private and public giving funds from the current level to 6% of net assets, as part of a broader goal to double philanthropic giving in Australia by 2030. Giving funds will also be permitted to average distributions over a three-year period, providing greater flexibility for supporting large or multi-year charitable projects. In addition, 34 organisations have been added to the ministerial declaration for community charities – the largest update to this deductible gift recipient category since it was established in 2024 – enabling them to receive tax-deductible donations once endorsed by the Australian Taxation Office.
Also read:
Social enterprise opportunities – April 2026 
Euclid Network – the European Social Enterprise Network welcomes SEWF23 to Europe! 
Policy that rises to the challenge: SEWF Policy Forum 2025 
From funding to income: How White Box Enterprises is supporting social enterprises to start and grow in Australia, while also generating revenue 
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