2X Global Launches New Certification Programme to Assess Gender Inclusion in Investments
(L-R) Jessica Menon, CEO of Equilo, Liebe Jeannot, 2X Certification Lead at 2X Global, Christophe de Montille, Principal of Beyond Capital Ventures and Jen Braswell, Founding Director of 2X Global on stage at the 2X Global Summit. Beyond Capital, one of the 2X Certification pilot participants, was certified as 'Best-in-Class'.
Nairobi, Kenya - A new certification programme designed to evaluate gender inclusion in investment, was launched from the main stage at the 2X Global Summit 2024 on September 17, marking a new frontier for gender lens investing.
The launch of 2X Certification was one of the highlights of the Plenary Day of the Summit, which is the annual members’ meeting of 2X Global, the international gender finance membership network and field-building organisation. This year’s edition was co-hosted by MEDA (Mennonite Economic Development Associates).
The launch marked the most significant milestone yet in the development of 2X Certification, which was first announced at the 2022 G7 Summit and has undergone a process of co-creation, industry input and pilot testing over the past two years.
2X Certification builds on the foundation of the organisation’s 2X Criteria, created since 2018 to underpin and assess the 2X Challenge and which has become the global industry standard for assessing and structuring investments that include, empower and create access for women.
“This is really a paradigm shift for gender lens investing. The 2X Criteria have been used over the years by so many investors and remains a really valuable tool for assessing gender equity in investment.
Now, 2X Certification takes our standard-setting work to the next level, allowing investors to go beyond self-assessments to a deeper level of credibility by having third-party verification.
Maintaining that credibility is also why it’s independent of 2X Global membership and is universally available, stated Stella McKenna, Director of People & Programmes at 2X Global.
Designed for a wide range of audience types, 2X Certification drives further credibility through independent, third-party verification and offers a structured pathway towards excellence in gender equity for investors, companies and financial instruments.
2X Certification creates pathways to guide investors as to what ‘good’, 'advanced', and ‘best-in-class’ look like. The mechanism recognises differentiated levels of rigour, offers industry benchmarking, and identifies concrete areas for advancement.
The 2X Certification platform is powered by Equilo.
