AfDB invests $12.5m in Kibo Fund II

18 Oct 13
The African Development Bank has approved a $12.5m equity investment in the Kibo Fund II, which is expected to help boost income and job creation in poor and fragile countries across Africa

By Judith Ugwumadu | 18 October 2013

The African Development Bank has approved a $12.5m equity investment in the Kibo Fund II, which is expected to help boost income and job creation in poor and fragile countries across Africa.

Funding would provide access to finance and capacity building for small and medium-sized enterprises and mid-market African firms, particularly those in low-income and fragile states, the bank said. 

‘The main expected development outcomes of this investment will stem from private sector development through alleviation of the financing constraint faced by SMEs, improved governance and business practices for these companies, thereby further job creation and inclusive growth in the region,’ the AfDB said.

Based in Mauritius, the Kibo Fund II will be managed by Kibo Capital Partners, a Mauritian fund manager.

The Kibo Fund II has targeted capital commitments between $75m and $80m to invest in SMEs and mid-market companies with annual revenues $10m to $40m. 

AfDB said these investments would be diversified across industries and sectors in the Indian Ocean Region, including Madagascar, Mauritius and the Seychelles; the Eastern Africa Region, covering Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda; and the Southern Africa Region covering Zambia, Malawi, Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola and Ethiopia.

This summer, AfDB approved a $75m line of credit to Fidelity Bank to fund projects in sectors critical to Nigeria’s economic growth. These include infrastructure, manufacturing and SMEs.

Did you enjoy this article?

Related articles

Have your say

Newsletter

CIPFA latest

Most popular

Most commented

Events & webinars