Japan’s International Cooperation Agency leads investments in sustainable development with a rare resource these days: trust.

USAID’s retreat under the Trump administration has left many projects, and impact funds, in Latin America with unfunded commitments. JICA, by contrast, is boosting commitments in a region the organization views as essential to global development.

“There is so much great potential in this region,” Kogure, who leads the private sector investments in the region for JICA, told ImpactAlpha in a video interview on the sidelines of last month’s Latin American Impact Investment Forum. Companies, funds and financial institutions in Latin America have a strong commitment to social justice, financial inclusion and climate changes, she says. From Brazil to Mexico, she says, the private sector is “a driving force to change society.” 

Participants at the FLlI were courting Kogure on the heels of JICA’s commitment of up to $1.5 billion to the JICA Trust Fund, a fund managed by IDB Invest, to co-finance projects in conservation, waste management and water sanitation, financial inclusion, gender equality, social justice and rural development across Latin America and the Caribbean.

The boost in lending capacity also comes as JICA looks to grow its investment in impact funds in the region. JICA has backed four funds in Latin America, including a November investment of $15 million in the third fund of Monterrey, Mexico-based Dalus Capital, and an earlier investment in a climate solutions fund from São Paulo-based GEF Capital Partners.

“We are always looking for good impact fund managers, and we want to do more now.” Kogure says in uncertain times, building relationships is key. JICA’s mission, she says, “is leading the world with trust.”