In early 2026, Oxfam in Cambodia and OBOR Management were selected as one of four awardees under the Indo-Pacific NGO Blended Finance Accelerator, securing a 540,000 USD grant the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and Convergence to design the Equi-Green Fund (EGF). The funding will support the design of the EGF, a proposed 20 million USD blended finance vehicle to invest in climate-resilient and gender-responsive SMEs across Cambodia, Indonesia, and Timor-Leste.

This achievement builds on years of enterprise development through Oxfam’s Impact SME (I-SME) project, which supported more than 40 enterprises to strengthen their models and become investment-ready. Many of these businesses showed strong growth potential but struggled to access financing, stuck in the “missing middle,” too advanced for grants yet too small or impact-focused for commercial finance. The Equi-Green Fund was conceived to bridge this gap.

Developed with OBOR Management, the fund will provide patient and flexible capital to SMEs that are often overlooked by traditional finance. Oxfam’s role is to build a strong pipeline of impact-driven SMEs, manage the Technical Assistance Facility (TAF) to strengthen their investment readiness and business resilience, while ensuring that gender equality, social inclusion, and climate resilience remain at the core of investment decisions.

The Equi-Green Fund is an opportunity to build new pathways for capital to reach enterprises that create social and environmental impact, while positioning Cambodia as a leader in the future of development finance.

Beyond Oxfam, the initiative also signals growing recognition that innovative financing approaches emerging from Cambodia can attract international support and investment. It demonstrates the role development organizations can play in connecting impact enterprises with the capital they need to grow and scale.

Over the next two years, Oxfam and its partners will design and launch the fund, aiming for first close and initial investments by the end of 2026. More than a single financing vehicle, the initiative demonstrates how blended finance can mobilize resources for impact and encourage collaboration between donors, investors, enterprises, and governments.

Ultimately, the Equi-Green Fund reflects Oxfam’s evolution from supporting enterprises to shaping the financing systems that allow them to grow, scale, and thrive.