- The partnership combines the catalytic capital capabilities, convening platforms, and innovation networks of the Temasek Trust Collective with the World Bank Group’s global development expertise, reach, and country-level insights to help promising solutions move from pilot to scale.
- Both organisations will explore co-financing and innovative financing approaches to mobilise additional resources, initially focusing on climate and energy, water, agriculture, and health.
- A regional Knowledge Node will be established at Temasek Shophouse in Singapore to connect philanthropic partners with development expertise, networks, and opportunities, and to help promising solutions move from pilot to scale.
BANGKOK, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 12 October 2026 – Temasek Trust and the World Bank Group today signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a strategic partnership aimed at harnessing the complementary strengths of philanthropy and development finance to advance shared development priorities. The MoU was signed on the sidelines of the inaugural World Bank Group Philanthropy Forum held as part of its Annual Meetings in Bangkok.
The partnership combines the Temasek Trust Collective’s catalytic capital capabilities, convening platforms, and innovation networks with the World Bank Group’s global development expertise, reach, and country-level insights. Together, they will strengthen cross-sector collaboration and help promising solutions achieve impact at scale.
Paschal Donohoe, Managing Director and Chief Knowledge Officer, World Bank Group, said: “As development needs grow and resources come under pressure, partnership matters more than ever. Philanthropic organizations bring deep expertise and innovative solutions that align closely with our core missions and jobs agenda. The Philanthropy Hub will connect ideas, resources, and partners to take those solutions to scale, and to deliver for people and communities around the world.”
Desmond Kuek, Executive Director and CEO of Temasek Trust, said: “Today’s development challenges do not fit neatly into silos – and neither can our response. Philanthropy can move early, take risks, and unlock the partnerships and capital needed to turn bold ideas into lasting impact. Working in concert with the World Bank Group and its Philanthropy Hub, we can bridge systemic gaps, scale what works, and forge new pathways for collective action.”
Under the MoU, Temasek Trust and the World Bank Group plan to collaborate across three areas:
- Convening and knowledge exchange: Bringing together governments, development institutions, businesses, philanthropies, and other partners to deepen collaboration, learning, and partnership development around shared priorities. This includes mutual participation in platforms such as the World Bank Group Philanthropy Forum and the Philanthropy Asia Summit; engaging senior leaders in high-level dialogues; and facilitating dedicated exchanges on World Bank Group missions, including Mission 300 and Water Forward, as well as approaches to co-funding, building coalitions, and developing country compacts.
- Shared knowledge and insights: Connecting philanthropic partners more effectively with World Bank Group platforms, expertise, programmatic support, and institutional knowledge. The collaboration may also facilitate country-level engagement by providing insights into local development challenges, innovations, and opportunities, together with guidance and connections to relevant stakeholders, knowledge, and partnerships. By building shared knowledge and a repository of effective solutions, the parties aim to help translate promising pilots into replicable and scalable models that can advance impact outcomes.
- Coordinating partners and capital towards shared priorities: Identifying capital mobilisation approaches to support larger, more coordinated, mission-aligned partnerships. Temasek Trust and the World Bank Group will also assess how their respective philanthropic networks and partners can be better aligned around common interests, while sharing knowledge on models for deploying and aggregating capital to support development solutions. Any specific financing arrangements or projects would be considered separately and remain subject to each party’s mandates, policies, procedures, resources, and approvals.
Initial priority areas include water, agriculture, health, climate, and energy, with potential collaboration linked to relevant World Bank Group initiatives.
Knowledge Node at Temasek Shophouse
In 2027, under the strategic partnership and as part of the Philanthropy Hub, Temasek Trust will establish a Knowledge Node at Temasek Shophouse in Singapore. It will connect philanthropic partners with a wide range of World Bank Group datasets, expertise, and relevant networks to support evidence-building and collaboration and will help promising solutions progress towards wider adoption.
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About Temasek Trust
Temasek Trust is the philanthropic arm of Temasek Holdings, with community stewardship goals of protecting the planet, uplifting communities, connecting people, and advancing capabilities. By forging new pathways in philanthropy and impact investing with like-minded partners, Temasek Trust advances catalytic philanthropy as a force for good. Through the Temasek Trust Collective, an ecosystem of organisations united by a shared purpose of building better for every generation, Temasek Trust builds capacity, convenes partnerships, mobilises capital, and catalyses solutions to drive positive impact. For more information, visit 
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