Védís joins NDF as the organisation’s first Gender Specialist, a newly created role within the Portfolio Management department. She brings over ten years of experience with the international development sector, including collaborations and projects across Sub-Saharan Africa, and six years with the GRÓ Gender Equality Studies and Training programme at the University of Iceland. Védís holds a BSc degree in International Business and Politics, and postgraduate degrees in Cultural Anthropology and Gender, and soon in Geography focused on Natural Hazards. Originally from Iceland, she is fluent in Icelandic, English, Danish and Spanish.

“I am truly grateful for the opportunity to join NDF and to further advance the organisation’s dedicated work on the intersection of climate and gender. I look forward to contributing to NDF’s leadership in this space and to being part of a Nordic organisation that is committed to socially inclusive climate resilient development.”

Vivienne Zerrudo

Vivienne takes up the position of Results and Reporting Specialist. Prior to this, she worked as an Associate Results Management Officer at the Asian Development Bank (ADB), contributing to corporate results reporting, performance analysis, and the annual Development Effectiveness Review. Vivienne also provided guidance to operational teams on project results frameworks and reporting systems, and has experience as a consultant on evaluations and impact analysis for ADB and other development organisations. With a degree in Environmental Science and further studies in Public Policy with AI, she has also strengthened her expertise in results measurement and reporting by working in development finance and impact-focused institutions. Vivienne is from the Philippines and speaks English and Tagalog.

“Joining NDF marks an exciting new chapter. I believe our best work happens when teamwork meets accountability — turning our results data into a story of real-world impact. I look forward to collaborating with my talented colleagues and contributing to our strategic goals.”

Ritva Kauppi

As our new Principal Counsel, Ritva brings nearly 20 years of legal experience in sustainable development and cross-border financing, including 11 years at Finnfund, where she developed her expertise in financing and impact investing. Most recently, she joined NDF from the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO), where she worked closely with the Special ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æs team. Ritva holds both a Master of Arts and a Master of Laws from the University of Turku, during which she focused on contract law and financing. She also completed a one-year court training at the Savonlinna District Court. Ritva is a Finnish national from Imatra, so she speaks both Eastern and Western Finnish dialects, as well as English. She is also proficient in Swedish and German.

“Maya Angelou’s words resonate deeply with me: ‘Do the best you can until you know better. Then, when you know better, do better.’ Joining NDF feels like a continuation of that ethos. I’m motivated by the chance to bring what I’ve learned so far into the impact-driven organisations, while continuing to ‘do better’ together with colleagues who are equally committed to meaningful impact.”

Hoai Mai

Hoai has started as a Finance & Data Trainee after completing an internship in Financial Planning and Analysis at Bolt in Tallinn. Prior to this, Hoai worked as an Assistant intern in Ho Chi Minh City, promoting innovation and entrepreneurship through startup competitions and investor engagement initiatives. Currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Finance, Hoai holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Business, which sparked her interest in how capital can be structured to generate both financial returns and measurable social impact. Originally from Vietnam, Hoai speaks Vietnamese and English, and has a basic proficiency in Chinese and Japanese.

“I am pleased to contribute to NDF’s mission of accelerating sustainable development and climate action in developing and emerging economies. I am motivated by the opportunity to strengthen evidence-based decision-making in impact finance and to work alongside dedicated colleagues committed to advancing sustainable and inclusive development.”

The Persistent ACV ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ is an early-stage climate investment fund designed to invest in the most innovative and impactful climate companies in Africa. The ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ also capitalises on Persistent’s custom Venture Building support to help those companies. The ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ’s objective is to drive Africa’s Energy, Agriculture, and Resource Transitions. The ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ targets a total size of USD 70 million. The ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ has a blended capital structure that provides private investors with first loss and priority return protection.

Supporting early-stage climate initiatives

The Persistent ACV ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ, established by Persistent in collaboration with FSD Africa Investments (FSDAi), a specialist financial sector investor established by FSD Africa and the UK’s FCDO. The goal is to address the gap in climate financing by combining equity investment with custom Venture Building services to help climate ventures move from early traction to scalable, impactful businesses. The ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ aims to achieve substantial climate, socio-economic, and gender impact in Africa.

NDF has a catalytic role as an anchor investor and has invested USD 12.5 million to the ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ, consisting of an Equity contribution of USD 10 million and a Grant contribution of USD 2.5 million to the Venture Building Facility. The Venture Building Facility will finance Persistent’s Venture Building services to ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ portfolio companies. Other anchor investors of the ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ are African Development Bank’s Sustainable Energy ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ for Africa (AfDB SEFA) and FSD Africa investment (FSDAi). Additional investors participating in the ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ’s first close are: The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), The Soros Economic Development ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ (SEDF), Impact ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ Denmark (IFDK), The Schmidt Family Foundation and The Cottier Donze Foundation.

“As a catalytic investor, NDF is pleased to support the Persistent ACV ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ, providing concessional capital to early-stage climate initiatives. NDF also supports the Persistent ACV Venture Building Facility in its work to expand the African start-up landscape and establish promising climate ventures with strong sustainability and impact potential. Persistent has a strong track record in supporting local innovation and ownership through their Venture Building model, which they are now scaling beyond energy into other climate-relevant sectors, bringing clear value to the market. The Persistent ACV ÌÇÐĹÙÍøvlogÍøÍøÒ³°æ’s specific focus on gender equality and local innovation aligns closely with NDF’s mandate, while its ambition to drive decarbonisation, strengthen community resilience, and improve access to essential products and services for underserved and marginalised communities across Africa reflects the impact we seek to achieve,” says Satu Santala, NDF Managing Director.

“The climate crisis is impacting those who are most vulnerable in the world, in particular in the poorer countries. The necessity to act is greater than ever; at NDF, we feel deeply the responsibility that the financing the Nordic countries have provided through us, has a real impact, and that we also leverage the strengths and abilities that we have to drive solutions to the most difficult challenges, and leading the frontier of solutions,” says Satu.

Read more about Strategy 2030

Nordic collaboration for climate solutions

Our guest, Morten Houmann Blomqvist, has a long history with NDF and has been a member of the Board back in 2020, and now he serves as the Chair of the Board. “Much has changed since then, but not the climate crisis,” says Morten. “NDF and the Nordic countries have an important role to play. Our international engagement and our private sector can deliver a lot into the global landscape of fighting climate change,” he continues.

NDF’s Strategy 2030 highlights advancing Nordic climate leadership, closing the adaptation gap, and strengthening our efforts in nature-positive and biodiversity investments, and mobilising innovative solutions.

“Maximising the added value of NDF’s risk tolerant, concessional finance is a superpower we have – the kind of financing we have and our ability to catalyse initiatives, and take more risks than commercially based financiers,” says Morten.

In the conversation, Satu dives deeper on the NDF Strategy 2030 and her vision: “I see the Nordic countries and NDF as frontrunners in the world to test, pilot and scale to mobilise more funding in the future despite reduced ODA levels around the globe. If we want to adapt to climate change, the cheapest and fastest way to adapt is actually protecting nature and environment. Nature-based solutions are the best ways to protect, for instance, cities against flooding, or agriculture against droughts. Combining nature conservation with climate change adaptation is an area that needs further investments.”

The ambitious way forward

As a climate financier, NDF has the opportunity to be innovative and agile in the way we finance. The conversation concluded to reflections from our guests about opportunities for NDF moving forward, and how to best lead the frontiers of climate and development finance.

NDF’s Strategy 2030 prioritises geographically Sub-Saharan Africa, where 60% of our investments are directed to, especially to lower-income countries in the region.

“One area is to further deepen our partnerships with African partners and African countries, and seeing where we can support deepening of African capital markets to further enhance the sustainability of financing with domestic investments as well,” highlights Satu.

Listen to the latest podcast episode