Oct 2, 2026

BEI Weekly Update - 2nd October 2026

by

David Landsman

by

Dear Members and Friends,

Our events this week shine a light on the interconnected world we now live in and how we at BEI aspire to take a broader view.  The panel discussion we hosted with the Middle East Association on the Strait of Hormuz demonstrated starkly how you can’t do trade in isolation from geopolitics, while revealing how complex - and elusive - the big challenges really are. Solutions are available, even if going back to the status quo ante is rarely a credible option.

In a very different way, our first webinar with AIIB reaffirmed our view at BEI that when some doors are closing (at least in part), others are still open, even when hiding in plain sight. Participation in the webinar was impressively broad and bodes well for the next in our series with AIIB. We have plans to introduce more new elements into our programme, without going slow on the “business as usual”.

Next week, BEI is heading to Scotland on Tuesday for “Financing Water’s Journey to Bankability”, a breakfast event ahead of day 3 of the IWA World Water Congress in Glasgow. Our panel of experts from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), C40, Climate Sense and Lorimer Advisory will share different perspectives on what it takes to unlock investment for water projects across an asset’s lifecycle. You can register here. Please also note, our second IWA panel, “Modelling the Margin: UK Water Availability in a Changing Climate”, has been postponed and we will look to reconvene it in London at a later date.

Next week on Wednesday 7 October, we’re hosting “The Power of Social and Emotional Learning: What happens when we get Early Years Education right?”, an in-depth discussion focused on embedding Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) in early years education and its wider societal impact. There is still time to register: click here.

On Thursday, our next Market Opportunity Overview looks at the Dominican Republic, where speakers will explore the trade and investment opportunity pipeline, support available to UK organisations and practical guidance on doing business in this growing Caribbean market. We are holding this webinar in partnership with the Roundtable of Commonwealth Countries in the Dominican Republic, and we will hear from its President, Fernando González Nicolás, alongside Gerson Pérez, Country Head - Central America, Dominican Republic and Mexico at UK Export Finance (UKEF), Zanoni Severino, Investment Director at PRODOMINICANA and Nicole Toribio, Executive Vice President of the British Chamber of Commerce in the Dominican Republic. Click here to register.

Finally, I wanted to share a piece from our member, HL Safeguarding. Dominik Opalinski, Partner at Hunters Law and Head of Governance and Safeguarding at HL Safeguarding, explores how boards can strengthen their oversight of safeguarding by looking beyond policies, training figures and incident reporting to ask a more fundamental question: how would we know? You can read the piece here.

Safeguarding is a consistent theme across many sectors in which our members are involved and we also have a number of members with relevant expertise to offer. Many members will already be familiar with the Safeguarding Leads Network, which we have been pleased to support. You can learn more about SLN by getting in touch with Iulia, here: sln@britishexpertise.org.

We look forward to seeing you in Scotland or London next week. Until then, best wishes for the weekend,

David Landsman

Executive Chair

British Expertise International

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External Events & Resources:

Tuesday 6th October 2026 08:15 – 11:00 BST: Financing Water's Journey to Bankability - Join us in Glasgow as we host “Resilient Water Systems: Global Perspectives from the UK”, a half-day event with two panel discussions in the margins of the IWA World Water Congress. This panel is the first of the two and will explore what it takes to make water systems investable.
Wednesday 7th October 2026 14:00 – 17:00 BST: The Power of Social and Emotional Learning: What happens when we get Early Years Education right? - Join us for an in-depth panel discussion focused on embedding Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) in early years education and the wider societal impact this has.
Thursday 8th October 2026 09:30 – 16:15 BST: Scotland’s role in National Security and Resilience - Join us in Edinburgh as we explore Scotland’s role in National Security and Resilience from political and geopolitical perspectives, covering governance and cooperation, the defence industry and skills, as well as Scotland’s contribution to the Space sector.
Thursday 8th October 2026 15:30 – 17:00 BST: Dominican Republic - Market Opportunity Overview - Join us for an online market overview focusing on the Dominican Republic, where our speakers will explore the trade and investment opportunity pipeline, support available to UK organisations and practical guidance on doing business in this growing Caribbean market.
Monday 12th October 2026 15:30 – 17:00 BST: Resilience, Rights, and Reconstruction in Ukraine - BEI are delighted to host Oleksandra Matviichuk, Head of the Center for Civil Liberties, for an event held in collaboration with Insulate Ukraine that examines resilience and reconstruction efforts across the country.
Tuesday 13th October 2026 14:00 – 15:00 BST: Azerbaijan - Education Deep Dive - Join us for a webinar deep dive into education opportunities in Azerbaijan, in collaboration with the Embassy of Azerbaijan in the United Kingdom.
Tuesday 20th October 2026 08:00 – 18:00 BST: IDB Roadshow: From the UK to Latin America and the Caribbean: Unlocking Growth Opportunities with IDB Invest - Join IDB Invest, part of the Inter-American Development Bank Group, for a full-day roadshow event to unlock growth opportunities across the UK, Latin America and the Caribbean. The event will provide an opportunity to engage directly with the senior leadership of IDB Invest and key stakeholders from the United Kingdom and Latin America and the Caribbean.
Wednesday 21st October 2026 09:00 – 10:30 BST: Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) Business Opportunities Webinars for Private Sector Projects - Join us for an online session with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) exploring business opportunities for private sector projects.
Tuesday 3rd November 2026 09:00 – 12:00 GMT: Skills Working Group: The Green Transition - Join us for our next in-person Skills Working Group meeting, which will explore the international mobility of skilled tradespeople relevant to the green transition. This meeting will bring together members of BEI and the D Group with guest speaker Helen Dempster, Co-Director, Migration and Displacement and Policy Fellow, Center for Global Development.
Wednesday 4th November 2026 14:00 – 16:00 GMT: UK-Pakistan Business Meeting - We will be hosting an incoming delegation from Pakistan for a conversation around workforce development and managing talent pipelines in key industries. This event will be for members in the Skills and Education sectors. More details to come soon.

Event recordings and resources

Event recordings - BEI member access only

External Events & Resources:

7th October 2026 09:00 - 10:00 BST: SLN session: Navigating Donor Differences: A Deep Dive into FCDO & DFAT - Join the Safeguarding Leads Network for a session exploring how FCDO and DFAT safeguarding requirements differ, and what these differences mean in practice for contractors. Speakers, Sophia Fernandes, Senior Director, Growth and Partnerships, Chemonics Australia, and Helen Turner, Subject Matter Expert & Consultant, Walker Works, will unpack donor expectations, compliance obligations, and the practical implications for organisations delivering programmes across multiple funding streams. This session will provide clear, actionable insights to help contractors strengthen alignment, reduce compliance risk, and navigate donor‑specific safeguarding standards with confidence.
7th October 2026 16:00 - 17:30 CET: BID for the Americas: Increasing Business Opportunities for European Companies in Latin America and the Caribbean - Learn how the IDB supports European companies expanding their business engagement in Latin America and the Caribbean through trade promotion, project financing, public procurement, and investment. (Virtual Webinar)
15th October 2026: Ghana Investor Day - Taking place on the margins of AFSIC in London. The event is being organised by the UK-Ghana Chamber of Commerce (UKGCC) in collaboration with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST). Join this event to explore high-growth sectors, meet project sponsors, and unlock pathways to impactful investment deals.
11th - 13th November 2026: Africa PPP Summit in Nairobi, Kenya: the 16th Africa PPP Summit is co-convened by Kenya PPP Directorate and supported by the State Department for Public Investment & Asset management, National Treasury, Kenya. This years theme is "Building Africa’s Prosperity: Transformative Infrastructure, Investment and Partnerships to Accelerate Economic Development”. BEI members have an exclusive 10% discount. Please email Sofia Pennacchietti via sp@britishexperitse.org for more information.
17th - 19th November 2026: Ed Tech Pavilion at Africa Tech Festival in Cape Town, South Africa - A curated exhibition floor inside Africa's largest tech event - 13,500+ decision-makers, 650+ policymakers, 250 investors. Stands, pitch slots, and pre-qualified buyer meetings for education and skills companies entering African markets. Packages close early September. Contact: ernest@edtechexchange.africa or Complete the expression of interest form.
19th November 2026: Jordan–European Union Investment Conference at the King Hussein Bin Talal Convention Centre, Dead Sea, Jordan - The conference will bring together senior government representatives, investors and business leaders to explore investment opportunities in Jordan and strengthen cooperation across a number of key sectors.
6th - 8th April 2027: Innovation Africa 2027 in Harare, Zimbabwe: Innovation Africa 2027 is a Ministerial summit for Education, Skills and ICT Innovation which connects Africa's leaders with global technology partners. BEI members interested in joining can view partnership and participation options at this link: Innovation Africa Participation Options.