Foundations and businesses come together with the World Bank in a variety of ways, from exchanging insights and ideas to working together on joint initiatives. Some of the key ways to partner are outlined below, and you can read more about the kinds of initiatives on which the World Bank works with foundations and the private sector in our stories section.
Trust Funds
Companies and foundations most commonly partner with the World Bank through our trust funds—financing and collaboration arrangements that are established with contributions from one or more development partners. Through trust funds, we take on a specific development challenge or work to find a new way to approach a pressing problem. The trust fund structure brings World Bank senior management together with partners, who provide strategic advice and collaborate on knowledge-sharing.
For information on how to engage with World Bank trust funds, contact the World Bank Group Partnerships Team.
Insights & Opportunities Briefings
Insights & Opportunities Briefings are a good way for foundations and businesses to learn of entry points for partnering with the World Bank or to gain insights and ideas for advancing development goals. Participants include senior World Bank staff, sustainability executives from the private sector, and representatives of philanthropies. Each Briefing focuses on a key development topic—such as climate change, food security, forcibly displaced persons, and human capital—and includes brief presentations and time for questions and answers. The Briefings, which are virtual, are offered three to four times per year.
To learn more about Insights & Opportunities Briefings, contact the World Bank Group Partnerships Team.
Annual and Spring Meetings
The World Bank Group holds high-level meetings twice a year—the Annual Meetings, which take place in the autumn, and the Spring Meetings. These events are attended by heads of state and parliamentarians, along with leaders from civil society, the broader development community, businesses, and foundations Partners participate in regional briefings, press conferences, and fora focused on international development, the global economy, and financial markets. Heads of companies and foundations attend to share insights and to help raise visibility and advocate for shared goals, priorities, and strategies.
Partnership Fund for the Sustainable Development Goals
The World Bank Group Partnership Fund for the Sustainable Development Goals responds to the growing demand for strategic initiatives that advance the achievement of SDG 17, which aims to strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development. In alignment with the World Bank Group’s twin goals of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity, the Fund supports World Bank teams, in close collaboration with client countries, to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through knowledge-sharing, capacity building, data, financing, and partnerships. (Please note that the SDG Partnership Fund is a World Bank-executed trust fund and does not accept external proposals.)
For a look at projects we fund, please download our annual report.
For more information, please contact the Partnership Fund for SDGs Secretariat.