Abstract Development Financial Institutions (DFIs) play a pivotal role in advancing Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) integration as a pathway to sustainable development. This study conducts a PRISMA-based systematic literature review of how DFIs promote ESG integration across development finance, corporate lending, and investment. The analysis covers 826 peer-reviewed journal articles published between 1996 and 2024 and applies bibliometric techniques, including citation network analysis and keyword co-occurrence mapping, to synthesise the evolution and structure of the field. The review identifies four dominant mechanisms through which DFIs foster ESG adoption: (i) sustainability-oriented financial instruments, including green bonds and blended finance; (ii) ESG-linked lending conditionalities; (iii) private sector engagement and capacity-building; and (iv) SDG-aligned investment strategies. Based on these insights, the study proposes a conceptual framework linking financial innovation, institutional mandates, and global development priorities. Despite rapid growth in the literature, important gaps persist. Integrative models explaining how DFIs jointly align ESG instruments, policy objectives, and region-specific development priorities remain limited. Empirical evidence on effectiveness is also scarce in high-risk and weakly regulated environments, particularly across the Global South, where institutional fragility, fragmented policy frameworks, and governance asymmetries constrain impact. This review consolidates key research themes and offers policy-relevant implications for strengthening context-sensitive ESG frameworks, cross-sector coordination, and scalable sustainable finance models. Limitations include reliance on the Scopus database and English-language publications; future research should incorporate non-English and grey literature as well as empirical and case-based designs.
Mamun et al. (Mon,) studied this question.