British International Investment

AfricInvest III

AfricaCote d'IvoireEgyptGhanaKenyaNigeriaTunisiaWest AfricaAfricaCommunications & IT servicesConsumer - EducationConsumer - other servicesFinancial servicesFood & AgricultureManufacturing

AfricInvest Fund III (AF III) is the firm’s third pan-African fund which focuses on small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs). It was launched in 2014 and reached a fund size of €272.7 million at its final close in December 2016.

This investment was made when British International Investment was named CDC Group.

Our investment

Description of the investment.

In September 2014, CDC committed €25 million to AF III, alongside the IFC, and other European DFIs including Germany's DEG, Finland's FinnFund, France's Proparco and Sweden's Swedfund.

Our capital supported investments in SMEs across a variety of sectors that demonstrated significant potential to grow from a local presence to a regional level.  Individual investment sizes ranged between $5 million to $15 million.

Expected impact

Expected impact of investments made between 2012 and 2018. From 2019 onwards, we have published a fuller set of impact information, assessing each investment against six dimensions of impact.

Many SMEs in the target regions across Africa struggle to access the finance and strategic expertise they need to expand. 

Our investment enabled the fund manager to support the development of SMEs in key sectors such as manufacturing, agribusiness, education, pharmaceuticals and financial services.

Environmental and social information

  • Environmental and social summary

    A high-level description of the environmental and social aspects of the investment. This may include a summary of key environmental and social risks identified during environmental and social due diligence (ESDD); key elements of an environmental and social action plan (ESAP); or ways in which we plan to support the investee improve environmental and social standards, such as through their environmental and social management system (ESMS); as well as any other priority areas agreed with the investee.
  • Environmental and social risk

    A risk category rating, which indicates the level of environmental and social risk associated with an investment. For an explanation of the categorisations used, see here. We consistently provide an environmental and social risk category for all investments screened from 2023 onwards.

Environmental and social summary

The fund manager has a well-established approach to environmental and social management and we will continue to support and monitor its approach as the portfolio grows.

Understanding our approach to environmental and social risk (PDF)

Reporting and Complaints Mechanism

The Reporting and Complaints Mechanism allows anyone outside BII to report alleged breaches of the business integrity or environmental and social provisions of BII’s Policy on Responsible Investing. This includes breaches made by BII, a BII investee, or a portfolio company of a fund in which BII has invested. The Reporting and Complaints Mechanism Rules are available here. Reports and complaints can be submitted by email to reportsandcomplaints@bii.co.uk or by mail. See more details on our Reporting and Complaints Mechanism here.

For any other general enquiries contact us at enquiries@bii.co.uk

  • Key facts
    Last updated

    When the last quarterly update of the website database occurred.
    :
    June 2024
    Project number

    An identifier number shared by investments in the same project.
    :
    D102
    Status

    The current status of the investment (green flag for active and red flag for exited).
    :
    Active
    Region

    The geographical region where the country is located. We currently invest in Africa, South Asia, South East Asia and the Caribbean. In 2023, BII’s investment mandate was extended allowing it to invest in regional funds linked to Ukraine, with the majority of activity expected to begin post-war. Investments outside these regions were made prior to 2012 under previous investment mandates.
    :
    Africa
    Sector

    We prioritise those sectors that facilitate development and need our capital the most. Our priority sectors contribute towards many of the Sustainable Development Goals. They range from investing in the power infrastructure that will provide people with better access to electricity, to investing in financial institutions that direct capital to the individuals and businesses that need it the most.

    :
    Communications & IT services, Consumer - Education, Consumer - other services, Financial services, Food & Agriculture, Manufacturing

    We provide capital in the following ways: directly – through direct equity, direct debt, guarantees and other non-intermediated financial instruments; and indirectly – principally through investment funds.

    For direct investments and fund investments, this is the date BII committed capital to the investments. This is typically the date on which legal agreements are signed by all parties.

    For the portfolio companies of our fund investments, this is the date (either the month or the quarter) on which the fund committed capital to the portfolio company.

    For direct equity investments, this is the date at which British International Investment exited the investment.

    For debt investments, this is the date at which the final debt repayment was made.

    For funds, this is the date at which the fund was terminated.

    For underlying fund investments, this is the date at which the fund manager exited the investment.

    The total amount committed, per financial instrument, per investment, on the date BII becomes subject to a binding legal obligation to provide funding or assume a contingent liability. This information is provided in US dollars.

    For direct investments, this is the amount that BII has committed to the business or project. For fund investments, this is the amount BII has committed to the fund.

    The currency in which the investment was made.
    Investment type :
    Fund
    Start date :
    September 2014
    Amount :
    $32.83m
    Currency of investment :
    EUR
    Fund Manager:
    AfricInvest.
    Domicile

    The company or investment fund’s place of incorporation.
    :
    Mauritius

    Download as PDF

    Click here to read our data guidance

Investments made by this fund into companies:

For further information about these companies, visit http://www.africinvest.com/

Investment name Country Region Sector Start date Status
Azalai Hotels West Africa Africa Consumer - other services December 2016 Active
Britam Holdings Africa Africa Financial services April 2018 Active
Carbon Holdings Egypt North Africa Manufacturing January 2018 Active
Elephant Group Ltd Nigeria West Africa Food & Agriculture September 2015 Active
International Community Schools Ghana West Africa Consumer - Education December 2016 Active
ISON Infotel Limited Africa, Ghana, Nigeria Africa, West Africa Communications & IT services September 2018 Active
Les Centaure Routiers Cote d'Ivoire West Africa Manufacturing November 2018 Active
One Tech Holding Group Tunisia North Africa Communications & IT services December 2015 Active
Prime Bank Kenya East Africa Financial services December 2018 Active
Salvador Caetano Group Africa Africa Consumer - other services November 2015 Active
Silafrica Plastics and Packaging Intl. Ltd Africa Africa Manufacturing March 2016 Active

Back to investments

How we invest

Find out more

Portfolio data

Find out more

Subscribe to receive our latest news and updates

Sign-up here