With emerging market governments now facing substantial national budget deficits, the pressure is on to move beyond shoring up businesses for short-term survival to positioning them for sustainable success in the post-COVID economic landscape. 
 
In this bid to financially future-proof themselves, governments are increasingly exploring the potential of development finance institutions (DFIs) to help rebuild ailing economies by delivering targeted stimulus packages in a systematic, fiscally responsible, and sustainable manner. 
 
In this paper, we outline the compelling case for governments to use their national and regional DFIs to deliver the liquidity-injection programs needed to tackle the economic slowdown head-on. We also set out a seven-point road map to help policymakers and leaders of DFIs gear up for the near- and medium-term future as economies around the world emerge from the shadow of COVID and make their first tentative foray into the new, post-pandemic economic reality.