Ghanaian businesswoman Roberta Annan has launched a €100-million ($115.8 million) fund to invest in small- and medium-sized businesses in Africa’s creative and fashion sector.
Annan is the founder of the African Fashion Foundation and Annan Capital Partners (ACP), a Ghana-based specialized boutique investment company. It seeks to boost investment attractiveness on the African continent and encourage engagement in sustainable projects.
African brands such as Kenneth Ize, ETHOS Members Club and GM & Ahrens comprise its investment portfolio.
According to a recent report, the investment is expected to accelerate growth in Africa’s creative sector.
ACP’s Impact Fund for African Creatives (IFFAC), an impact investment reverse alternative investment fund based in Luxembourg, will provide the multimillion-dollar investment.
Through the fund, ACP will award grants of up to €50,000 ($57,900) to selected projects to support African professionals with the skills, networks and capital needed to reach a global audience as the company moves to leverage the power of African creative and cultural industries.
The initiative will enable ACP to play a formative role in expanding the social capital of African countries and contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, while promoting inclusive growth in these economies.
In addition to the grants, IFFAC will make a further €250,000- €2-million ($289,500 – $2.3 million) investment in venture capital available to African entrepreneurs who complete its skills-building program.
Despite an immense pool of talent, originality and innovation in the African creative industry, businesses and professionals lack the management skills, infrastructure and startup capital necessary to scale up operations, Annan said while speaking during Paris Fashion Week on Oct. 4.
She explained that these issues are the core motivation behind IFFAC.
The Africa Investment Forum (AIF) has been in talks with IFFAC as it curates projects that it will feature at the upcoming AIF 2021 Market Days in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, from Dec. 1 t0 3, Africa Investment Forum Senior Director Chinelo Anohu said.
“I applaud IFFAC for its plans to bring early-stage capital deployment, along with a structured program of training and mentorship to artists and entrepreneurs like Nigerian designer Kenneth Ize,” he added.
