As the climate crisis accelerates and the need for bold, innovative financing becomes more urgent, how can development institutions step in to deliver real, transformative impact? What does it take to turn ambition into action to help the world’s most vulnerable communities?
The Nordic Development Fund (NDF) is one answer to this challenge. Established in 1988 by Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, NDF is a joint Nordic international finance institution supporting innovative climate solutions in lower-income countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America through flexible, concessional, and risk-tolerant financing. In 2025 alone, NDF approved EUR 68.1 million in new financing, including EUR 35.1 million as grants and EUR 33.1 million as equity investments.
DevelopmentAid, in collaboration with the Nordic Development Fund, invites consulting companies, NGOs, suppliers, contractors, and individual consultants to join the webinar “Towards Strategy 2030: NDF on the frontier of catalytic climate and development finance” which will take place on April 23 at 4 pm (Brussels) / 10 am (Washington, DC).
During this live event, Satu Santala, Managing Director of NDF, and Malena Rosman, Director of the Portfolio Management Department at NDF, will discuss the goals of NDF’s newly launched Strategy 2030, and how these will be operationally implemented to develop and scale impactful climate and development projects to benefit those most vulnerable to climate change.
Key takeaways
- Gain insights into NDF’s strategic goals and priorities for climate and development finance
- Learn how NDF leverages Nordic agility, innovation, and risk-taking to unlock transformative climate and development solutions
- Engage with the speakers via an interactive Q&A session
Speakers
Satu Santala, Managing Director of NDF
Satu has been the Managing Director of NDF since 2024. Before joining NDF, she served as Associate Vice-President of the External Relations and Governance Department at the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). She brings extensive experience in international relations and development, having held a range of roles at the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs since 1994. Most recently, prior to IFAD, she was Director General for Development Policy. She has also served as Executive Director at the World Bank, representing the Nordic and Baltic countries. She holds a Master’s degree in Political Science from Åbo Akademi in Finland.
Malena Rosman, Director of the Portfolio Management Department at NDF
Malena is the Director of the Portfolio Management Department at NDF. She has over 15 years of experience in international development cooperation, specializing in catalytic financing for development. Before joining NDF in 2024, she held senior roles at the Swedish Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), including Director for Corporate Management and Deputy Head of the Unit for Guarantees and Catalytic Financing. She has also served as Deputy Head of the Development Department at the Swedish Embassy in Tanzania and worked with UNDP in New York. Malena has also worked in corporate finance and business development at the international IT group, Tieto, as VP Finance for the Forest, Energy, and Healthcare business areas across Europe and Southeast Asia. She holds a MSc in Business Administration and Economics from the International Program at Uppsala University.
Host
Ion Ilasco, External Relations & Events at DevelopmentAid
