What Canada Forum for Impact Investment and Development does

CAFIID (Canada Forum for Impact Investment and Development) is a Canadian member-driven non-profit organization that serves as a field-building platform for impact investing professionals, development finance institutions, NGOs, and investors focused on emerging and frontier economies. Its stated mission is to mobilize impact investments that treat social/environmental impact and financial return as coexisting priorities, primarily across Latin America, Africa, and Asia. The organization operates through three branded communities of practice — Gender Lens Investing (GLI, formed 2021), Impact Measurement and Management (IMM), and Climate Finance — each with designated coordinators and member rosters.

CAFIID's core offerings are organized around a Membership Program (annual dues for individuals and organizations), a Knowledge Centre resource library, an Events calendar spanning virtual webinars and in-person CAFIID Connects gatherings (Nairobi, Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa), a Career Centre job board, a Mentorship Program, and the recurring State of the Sector report on Canada's impact investing ecosystem. There is no proprietary technology platform; delivery relies on a Squarespace website and Zoom for virtual events. The technology posture is explicitly non-technological — the organization describes itself as a community platform rather than a software product.

The business model is subscription-recurring membership dues supplemented by grants from development finance and government partners, notably the Government of Canada's Investment Readiness Program and FinDev Canada. Distribution is direct-membership plus grant-funded programming, with no disclosed pricing or membership counts. Strategic alliances with MEDA (Board Chair Lindsay Wallace), Quinn+Partners, Dalberg Advisors, Toronto Centre, Global Affairs Canada, IDRC, and Supivaa Advisory underpin event programming and knowledge outputs. Headcount, founding date, revenue, and funding rounds are undisclosed.

Name

Canada Forum for Impact Investment and Development

Legal name

Canada Forum for Impact Investment and Development

Website

https://cafiid.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CAFIID is a Canadian member-driven non-profit that convenes impact investing professionals, DFIs, and NGOs through membership dues, communities of practice (GLI, IMM, Climate Finance), events, and knowledge resources focused on emerging and frontier markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Waterloo

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: CAFIID operates as a member-driven organization with annual membership dues from individuals and organizations. The organization provides exclusive access to past webinars, resources, networking events, and professional development opportunities through committee participation.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

CAFIID is a member-driven organization that provides a community platform uniting Canadian professionals, organizations, and investors working in emerging and frontier economies on impact investing. It delivers value through annual memberships granting access to networking events, webinars, professional development committees, a knowledge/resource library, a job board, mentorship, and three communities of practice (Gender Lens Investing, Impact Measurement and Management, and Climate Finance). Revenue is generated primarily through membership dues.

Product overview

CAFIID is a member-driven organization that functions as a community platform rather than a unified software product. The core offering includes membership programs providing access to networking, professional development, and resources. The organization operates multiple communities of practice (Gender Lens Investing, Impact Measurement and Management, Climate Finance) that serve as knowledge-sharing sub-brands. Supporting offerings include a Knowledge Centre with resource libraries, an Events calendar with webinars and networking sessions, a Career Centre job board, Mentorship Program, and the annual State of the Sector Report. These products work together to unite Canadian professionals and organizations committed to mobilizing impact investments in emerging and frontier economies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Membership Program Annual membership program for individuals and organizations in impact investing, providing access to networking events, professional development committees, webinars, resources, newsletter promotion, and job board access. Members hold voting rights and receive full access to all member benefits.
• Knowledge Centre Online resource library providing access to content on Impact Investing, Gender Lens Investing, Impact Measurement and Management, Climate Finance, and State of the Sector reports for members and the broader public.
• Events and Webinars Calendar of events including CAFIID Connects networking gatherings, Community of Practice sessions, Annual General Meetings, and educational webinars on impact investing topics, delivered in-person and virtually via Zoom.
• Gender Lens Investing Community of Practice Community of Practice formed in 2021 supporting members to deepen Gender Lens Investing knowledge, networks, and practices. Represents over 30 members working across Latin America, Africa, and Asia.
• Impact Measurement and Management Community of Practice Community of Practice platform for sharing tools, approaches, and case studies of Impact Measurement and Management in Canada and beyond, including informative sessions and peer support.
• Climate Finance Community of Practice Community of Practice focused on climate finance topics and initiatives within the impact investing ecosystem.
• Career Centre Job board providing employment and professional development opportunities within the impact investing sector for members and the broader public.
• Mentorship Program Professional development initiative connecting members with mentorship opportunities in impact investing, particularly supporting emerging professionals and future leaders in the field.
• State of the Sector Report Annual publication documenting Canada's impact investing ecosystem and the mobilization of private capital for the SDGs in emerging markets.
• GLI Case Study Series Case study series showcasing Gender Lens Investing work of CAFIID members including Equality Fund, IDRC, MEDA, Deetken Impact, FinDev Canada, and others.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 80 participants at major events like CAFIID Connects Nairobi
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Canadian High Commission in NairobicoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 September 2024Host venue for CAFIID Connects Nairobi event bringing together over 80 participants to discuss gender lens investing trends and launch CAFIID's second round of GLI case studies.
• Quinn+PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 June 2024Hosted CAFIID's Impact Measurement and Management Community of Practice event on scaling impact investing. Jason Sukhram leads Quinn+Partners' impact practice and serves as IMMCOP moderator.
• Supivaa Advisory Group LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with CAFIID to organize CAFIID Connects Nairobi event on Gender Lens Investing trends, held at the Canadian High Commission in Nairobi. Supivaa is a women-led international consultancy supporting strategic growth across emerging markets.
• Global Affairs CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeading development organization identified as a critical ally in promoting gender lens investing to their network of partners and scaling GLI practices globally. Part of Canada's foreign affairs and development efforts.
• International Development Research Centre (IDRC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of Canada's foreign affairs and development efforts. IDRC generates research on what works to foster structural changes for equal opportunity and rights, investing in portfolio of research projects to bring gender lens to business models.
• Dalberg AdvisorscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial impact strategy consulting firm. CAFIID GLI CoP sessions feature Dalberg partners presenting on GLI and broader social impact ecosystem work. Supported donors and DFIs on investment strategy design.
• MEDA (Mennonite Economic Development Associates)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLindsay Wallace, Senior Vice President Strategy and Impact at MEDA, serves as Board Chair of CAFIID. MEDA is a Christian organization that creates business solutions to poverty through economic, educational, and health improvements.
• Canadian Association of International Development Professionals (CAIDP)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on conference 'Development Cooperation in a Time of Geopolitical Instability' at Carleton University. CAFIID organized a GLI panel as part of this conference.
• Toronto CentreminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-hosted virtual panel session on Agricultural and Financial Systems' Adaptation to Climate Change with MEDA for Canada's International Development Week.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Toniic: A global impact-investing membership network of high-net-worth individuals and foundations deploying capital for social and environmental impact. Toniic shares CAFIID's member-driven, peer-learning model and focus on impact-investor education and field-building.
• Convergence: Global network for blended finance that convenes investors, DFIs, and funders to catalyze private capital for development. Convergence is a direct peer in the impact-investing convening space and serves overlapping DFI and emerging-market member segments.
• Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE): A global network of organizations that support entrepreneurship in emerging markets. ANDE mirrors CAFIID's field-building and convening model and shares a DFI/development-funder stakeholder base focused on emerging economies.
• Impact Investing Institute: UK-based independent non-profit accelerating the scale and quality of impact investing through research, events, and convening. It is a direct conceptual peer to CAFIID, operating as a national field-builder for impact investing in a single geography.
• Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN): The leading global membership community dedicated to increasing the scale and effectiveness of impact investing. GIIN is the closest direct peer to CAFIID, offering similar convening, research, and standards functions but at a global scale with significantly larger membership and budget.
• Impact Capital Managers (ICM): US-based membership association of private-equity, venture, and private-debt impact investment fund managers. ICM is a direct peer serving a comparable institutional impact-investor constituency with a convening and standards mandate.

Broad incumbents

• US SIF (Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment): US membership association for sustainable, responsible, and impact investing. US SIF is a broad-incumbent peer operating in the same field-building and convening category as CAFIID but at significantly larger scale in the US market.
• Acumen: Global non-profit impact investor and field-builder focused on tackling poverty through patient capital and leadership development. Acumen is a broad-incumbent peer sharing CAFIID's emerging-market focus, DFI partnerships, and field-building orientation.
• Ceres: US-based sustainability non-profit mobilizing investor and business leadership on climate and sustainability. Ceres is a broad incumbent in the impact/sustainable-investing field with overlapping membership among institutional investors and DFIs.
• Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI): UN-supported network of institutional investors committed to incorporating ESG and responsible-investment principles. PRI is a broad incumbent in the impact-investing standards and convening space with materially larger institutional reach than CAFIID.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Canada Forum for Impact Investment and Development