Superheroes of Development 2026 -

The Development World Cup Is Here

This year, the superheroes are putting on the jersey and stepping onto the field. If you are out there working as a team and moving forward with strategy, discipline, and commitment, we want to hear your story.

Share your experiences and lessons learned so they can become valuable knowledge for other teams.

SUPER

HEROES

OF DEVELOPMENT

Teamwork
Impact
Lessons learned
Knowledge

What do you need to participate
in the Development World Cup?

You must be part of an executing agency of a project (co) financed by the IDB or a client of IDB Invest or IDB Lab.
In addition, you must highlight your ability to:

Address challenges

What challenges did you face and what impact did they have on project performance?

Generate solutions

What creative and innovative solutions did you develop to address those challenges?

Identify lessons
learned

What experience and learning can you share to help others address similar challenges?

Why should you participate?

The stadium is packed—now it’s your team’s turn to take the field.

Share your learnings

Systematize the lessons learned and share that practical knowledge with other teams so that it can be used in other projects.

Show the impact of your project

Take part in the Grand Final Event in Washington, D.C. and bring your experience to the playing field of Superheroes of Development. Because implementing projects requires strategy, discipline, and teamwork, and this is the moment to make that effort visible.

Become one of the Development World Cup legends

Join a select group of project executors and clients. Get the recognition you deserve and build new networks.

If you are one of the Development World Cup finalists

Gain visibility

Participate in the event where the winners of the ninth edition of Superheroes of Development will be selected in Washington, D.C.* Take advantage of IDB Group communication channels to showcase your projects and be featured in the Superheroes of Development publication.

*Visa processing for the United States is the responsibility of the finalists.

Lift the trophy

Share your achievements with a regional audience and strengthen the recognition of your work, your team, and your project within a community that promotes learning and continuous improvement.

Fixtures

MAY 18

The road to the Development World Cup begins.

JUNE 5

Applications close.

AUGUST 28

Development World Cup Qualifiers announced.

OCTOBER 6

The Grand Final of the Development World Cup.

Who can participate
in the Development World Cup?

All teams from executing agencies of projects (co) financed by the IDB or clients of IDB Invest or IDB Lab that meet one of these two categories can participate:

CATEGORY 1

IDB and IDB Lab Projects. The project is currently in the execution phase (projects that have received at least one initial disbursement) or the project has been completed since January 2016. In the case of IDB projects, the project must have a Project Completion Report (PCR).

CATEGORY 2

IDB Invest Projects. The project has an Expanded Project Supervision Report (XSR) or is in the process of obtaining one. An XSR serves as the project’s final internal evaluation by IDB Invest and is validated by the IDB Group’s Office of Evaluation and Oversight.

SUBMISSION

DATES

The application will be open until June 5th, 2026.

COMPLETE FORM

Complete all the information requested in the form. The form will be available starting May 18th.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

To participate please read the Terms and Conditions.

SELECTION

FOCUS

Projects that have had an agile and effective execution and that have demonstrated innovation and/or creativity in addressing the challenges faced and solved challenges such as:

Government transition
Staff turnover in Executing Agency/Client
Change in priorities
Fiscal space (limited available public resources)

*With special focus on identifying and sharing lessons learned and operational learnings from project execution.

JURY

There are different evaluation stages, led by various panels of experts from the IDB Group.

PROCESS

The Jury Panel will select up to six (6) Stories as finalists (“Finalist Stories”), chosen as follows: two (2) from IDB, two (2) from IDB Invest, and two (2) from IDB Lab.

Notification of finalist teams
The Jury Panel’s decision regarding the finalist teams will be communicated to all participating teams by email to the address provided in their Registration Forms on August 28, 2026.

EVALUATION

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
AND DESCRIPTION

An IDB Group technical team verifies that all requested requirements have been met and that there is a clear description of the challenges, solutions, results, and lessons learned.

IDB GROUP STAFF

An interdepartmental jury from the IDB Group will evaluate the submissions and select the finalists.

SENIOR MANAGEMENT

The finalists present their projects to a panel of IDB Group senior management at an event held at the Bank’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. At this stage, the three winning projects are selected.

AWARDS

Finalist teams will have the opportunity to participate in an in person presentation of their story and a conversation with IDB Group senior management in Washington, D.C., where they will share their finalist stories and where a jury panel will select three (3) “Winning Teams,” distributed as follows: one (1) from IDB, one (1) from IDB Invest, and one (1) from IDB Lab.

Participating teams accept that, if they are selected as finalist or winning teams, they will not receive any compensation other than what is described above.