-Experiential learning accelerates internal financing capabilities more effectively than traditional training. Simulating real financing design processes enabled teams to internalize financial logic, language and structuring faster than classroom-based approaches. -UNDP teams hold strong latent potential for innovative financing, but require structure and safe spaces to activate it. FINAGO FEST revealed a high volume of viable ideas that had not surfaced due to lack of structured experimentation spaces. -Direct interaction with non-traditional financial actors sharpens solution quality. Engagement with fintechs, insurers, cooperatives and microfinance actors helped teams ground their ideas in feasibility, risk and market logic. -Narrative clarity is as important as technical soundness in financing instruments. Teams improved significantly when forced to translate complex financial mechanisms into clear, compelling value propositions. -Experiential formats foster cross-programmatic collaboration. The exercise broke silos across programme areas, enabling shared ownership of Financing for Development (FfD) as an office-wide agenda.

The handover focused on institutionalization and continuity, rather than closing the exercise as a one-off event. Following FINAGO FEST, the Accelerator Lab worked with programme teams and senior management to identify pathways to embed the methodology and outputs into ongoing work. Key handover elements included: -Consolidation of proposals into an internal portfolio of financing ideas. -Identification of promising teams and concepts for further technical accompaniment. -Agreement to transform FINAGO FEST into a recurring capacity-building mechanism. -Continued engagement with external financial actors to support prototyping and refinement. The Accelerator Lab remains positioned as a facilitator and enabler, supporting teams as they move from ideas to structured financing initiatives.

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The learning challenge focused on capabilities, confidence and readiness, which are not captured by traditional quantitative indicators. Existing data on Financing for Development does not reflect how staff understand financial instruments, collaborate across teams, or translate ideas into bankable proposals. We therefore relied on: -Observational and experiential data generated during the Shark Tank simulations. -Qualitative feedback from participants, jurors and external partners. -Patterns in proposal quality, narrative clarity and feasibility across teams. These data types addressed gaps related to: -Internal capacity maturity. -Practical understanding of financial instruments. -Ability to engage external partners confidently. -Organizational readiness to scale innovative financing approaches.

The frontier challenge was not a lack of knowledge, but a gap between theory and practice. Innovation methods were necessary to simulate real-world complexity and expose teams to the constraints, trade-offs and dynamics of financing design. Experiential learning and systems thinking helped unpack: -How different actors (government, financiers, insurers, beneficiaries) interact within financing structures. -Where ideas fail due to narrative, risk or operational weaknesses. -How internal processes and silos limit innovation. Facilitation and sensemaking transformed individual learning into collective insight, enabling teams to see Financing for Development as a system rather than a set of isolated tools.

The combination was essential. Experiential methods created immersion, new data emerged from real-time decision-making and feedback, and unusual partners introduced perspectives absent from internal discussions. This interplay enabled: -Honest stress-testing of ideas against market logic. -Rapid learning loops that surfaced blind spots. -Mutual learning between UNDP teams and external actors. -Insights into how UNDP can position itself as a platform for financial innovation. These outcomes would not have been possible through training sessions or bilateral consultations alone.

Thank you