The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has injected $20 million in equity into the Africa50 Infrastructure Acceleration Fund (IAF Fund), signaling a pivotal move towards bolstering infrastructure development across Africa. The fund is poised to direct investments into vital sectors such as digital infrastructure, renewable energy, transportation, logistics, and water and sanitation projects across the continent. Its primary objective is to harness private sector involvement in advancing Africa’s infrastructure landscape, aligning closely with various initiatives within the World Bank Group. This strategic initiative echoes the IFC’s commitment to supporting projects with substantial developmental impacts.
The Africa50 Infrastructure Acceleration Fund has successfully concluded its initial funding phase, securing $222.5 million in commitments from 16 African institutional investors, a significant milestone towards achieving its target fund size of $500 million.
Alain Ebobissé, CEO of Africa50 Group, lauded the robust support from African institutional investors, underscoring the growing role of these investors in financing the real economy and unlocking Africa’s potential. The Africa50-IAF represents the inaugural endeavor among a series of innovative investment mechanisms Africa50 Group plans to introduce, aimed at attracting additional private sector investments from both African and international sources into Africa’s infrastructure sector.
Sarvesh Suri, IFC’s Regional Industry Director for Infrastructure and Natural Resources in Africa, emphasized the pivotal role of infrastructure investment in driving socio-economic progress across the continent. He highlighted the partnership with the Infrastructure Africa Fund (IAF) as a key driver for generating crucial equity capital for projects with significant positive impacts on African communities, including those focused on climate change mitigation.
Africa currently faces significant infrastructure deficits, hindering its economic development, as noted by Africa’s Pulse, the World Bank’s semiannual analysis. Access to essential services such as electricity, internet connectivity, road networks, and water supply remains limited across the continent.
IFC’s investment in the IAF is expected to catalyze further private sector participation in the fund, attracting interest from institutional investors, development finance entities, as well as local and regional banking institutions.
Source: AppsAfrica