Africa infrastructure fund targets US$ 500 million in H1 2014

The African Development Bank (AfDB) and Made in Africa Foundation (MIAF) have launched an infrastructure fund for the continent that aims to raise up to US$ 500 million by the first half of 2014.

Fundraising for the Africa50 fund was launched on 26 September at the NASDAQ Stock Exchange in New York, US. The AfDB and MIAF claim it is Africa’s largest infrastructure fund to-date.

The objective of Africa50 is to reduce the time required to develop infrastructure projects in Africa, speeding up project preparation and delivery from a current average of seven years to a target of less than three years.

Tas Anvaripour, team leader of Africa50, said, “African infrastructure projects are increasingly capturing the attention of investors worldwide. However, the number of bankable infrastructure projects brought to market is still insufficient, even though they offer an excellent way to diversify investment portfolios and steady, long-term, and above average returns.”

The launch of the Africa50 fund comes after AfDB reported that investment of US$ 93 billion a year was needed to 2020 to close Africa’s infrastructure deficit.