The Southern African Times is pleased to release an exclusive interview with Dr Leverne McFarlane, Chief Economist of the CARICOM Development Fund (CDF), conducted at the African Caribbean Sustainability & Investment Summit, held at Queens Gate House in London.
In this wide-ranging conversation, Dr McFarlane offers a rare and incisive look into how Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) are being repositioned as agents of inclusive and sustainable growth across Africa and the Caribbean. The dialogue comes amid rising scrutiny of development finance, as traditional donor countries continue to scale back their commitments to emerging markets.
 Watch the full interview here:
👉 YouTube: Dr Leverne McFarlane on DFIs & Pan-African Investment
At the heart of the conversation lies a key challenge: the disconnect between DFIs and the very communities they are designed to support. Dr McFarlane emphasises that while development finance plays a crucial role in areas such as climate resilience, enterprise development and infrastructure, the broader public often remains unaware of these efforts. Bridging this gap, she notes, requires breaking down technical language, increasing public engagement and ensuring that DFIs remain accessible and accountable.
The conversation highlights a significant turning point in African Caribbean cooperation. Afreximbank’s entry into the Caribbean financial space was discussed as a strategic move that led to the establishment of the Green Growth Resilient Sustainable Facility (GRSF). Designed in collaboration with Afreximbank, the fund aims to mobilise substantial capital towards climate-smart development and resilience infrastructure across the Caribbean. The facility also benefits from Afreximbank’s technical expertise, enabling it to be tailored to the unique context of Caribbean economies rather than imposing a one-size-fits-all model.
This partnership exemplifies how shared priorities can transcend geography, with Dr McFarlane emphasising that bridging the Atlantic is as much a matter of strategy as of distance. The Caribbean and African regions share common vulnerabilities and aspirations, and the success of such initiatives reflects the possibility of meaningful interregional cooperation grounded in mutual respect and shared experience.
Addressing concerns around the effectiveness of DFIs, Dr McFarlane pointed to a recent example: the Caribbean Community Resilience Fund. Initially capitalised by the CDF with a modest investment, the fund has since multiplied its capital base several times over through a blended finance approach. This model, combining concessional funding with private capital, enables the fund to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across the region—entities which are often excluded from formal lending ecosystems despite being key drivers of economic activity.
To ensure this reach, the fund is managed by Signos Capital, a private equity firm with a strong regional track record. Dr McFarlane explains that this decision was deliberate. Rather than attempting to administer SME financing through a regional finance institution, the CDF chose to work through a private sector actor that understands the realities of local markets and can engage SMEs in a more direct and responsive way.
The fund operates with both equity and debt instruments, offering below-market financing terms. While Dr McFarlane did not disclose exact interest rates, she confirmed that the rates are notably lower than typical commercial offerings, designed to ensure that even micro-enterprises can benefit from access to capital.
Though still in its implementation phase, the fund is expected to generate employment across CARICOM member states and support a range of priority sectors including renewable energy, climate-smart agriculture, resilient housing and water management. These sectors were identified for their high potential to drive economic diversification and community-level resilience.
Dr McFarlane also addressed the importance of disaster response, noting that the CDF maintains a standing emergency response facility. While the deployment of such funds is subject to governance protocols, she stressed that emergency responses are initiated without delay and designed to provide critical support to affected communities.
Trade integration between Africa and the Caribbean also featured prominently in the discussion. Dr McFarlane spoke of opportunities in sectors as diverse as food systems and cultural industries, citing similarities in cuisine and production methods that could form the basis of new value chains. However, she cautioned that such trade must be backed by infrastructure and innovation, particularly in payments systems.
Afreximbank’s Pan African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), now being adapted for use in the Caribbean, represents a breakthrough in this space. PAPSS enables real-time, cross-border transactions in local currencies, reducing dependence on foreign exchange and making trade between the regions faster and more affordable.
The diaspora, often hailed but rarely mobilised effectively, was another focal point. Dr McFarlane acknowledged the untapped potential of the African and Caribbean diasporas and stressed the need for structured engagement. Platforms like the African Caribbean Sustainability & Investment Summit are valuable for showcasing initiatives, but real diaspora participation will require tailored mechanisms such as diaspora bonds, dedicated investment vehicles and direct partnerships with DFIs.
She issued a clear call for a more human-centred approach to development finance—one that understands communities not simply as beneficiaries but as participants. This, she argued, will require not only rethinking how development is financed, but also how it is communicated, delivered and governed.
In a time when traditional development models are in flux, this interview offers critical insight into the future of south–south cooperation and the emergence of new development paradigms shaped by African and Caribbean institutions themselves. As DFIs recalibrate their mandates and instruments, partnerships such as those between Afreximbank and CARICOM offer compelling models of what a collaborative, regional development future might look like.
The conversation with Dr McFarlane is a reminder that in reshaping global development, the answers may not lie in new donors but in new relationships. And as African and Caribbean stakeholders reassert agency over their own development paths, the role of DFIs will be key—not just in mobilising finance, but in catalysing transformation rooted in dignity, autonomy and mutual respect.
