World Bank, Ithmar set up green growth infrastructure fund for Africa

By Susanna Moon

Chicago, Nov. 16 – The World Bank group and Ithmar Capital have agreed to establish a Green Growth Infrastructure Facility for Africa, which is the first pan-African fund for green investment in the continent, according to an announcement.

The fund will be structured as a private capital fund to target private investors interested in Morocco or Africa with responsible and green investment opportunities, the release said.

The fund’s “aim is to work as a catalyst for the transition of Africa into a green economy by supporting low-carbon infrastructure such as clean energy, low-carbon transportation and the efficient utilization of water resources,” the release added.

The fund will be sponsored by the World Bank and Ithmar Capital.

The fund will also include a public/private partnership unit that will focus on the origination of projects in collaboration with government agencies.

The World Bank and Ithmar Capital will work with public and private investors, such as regional development banks, sovereign wealth funds, and global and regional institutional investors, to raise private capital in green infrastructure investments across Africa.

The fund will focus on lowering “risk of marginally non-bankable projects in order to render them viable. Tools will include innovative mechanisms for project preparation and capital structures.”

The fund has received a letter of support from the chair of the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds, which has just launched its first working group dedicated to climate change. Sovereign wealth funds are “natural investors in infrastructure projects on account of their long investment horizon, sovereign status and relatively little need for portfolio liquidity,” the release added.

Ithmar Capital is a Moroccan sovereign investment fund established in Rabat, Morocco.

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