The European Investment Bank (EIB) says it is ready to contribute $40 million to the Acre Export Finance Fund I. It is an initiative of the London, UK-based investment firm Acre Impact Capital. The fund is dedicated to climate finance in Africa. As such, the facility will provide loans for the construction of green and resilient infrastructure.
The fund will target several key sectors, including renewable energy, access to clean water, health, agriculture, sustainable cities and green mobility. The Acre Export Finance Fund I “will provide unsecured commercial loans to complement long-term loans from international banks and guaranteed by export credit agencies to finance sustainable greenfield infrastructure projects,” the EIB says.
The Sustainable Development Finance Facility is being launched at a time when Africa needs climate finance more than ever. The Climate Policy Initiative estimates the continent’s climate finance needs at $277 billion. Africa has received only $30 billion in climate finance, with 50% allocated to 10 countries. And in this financing, the private sector has contributed only 14%.
Through its new fund, Acre Impact Capital is contributing to private sector participation in climate action in Africa. The investment company was founded in 2019 by Hussein Sefian, a sustainable finance specialist and former executive at several financial institutions, including BNP Paribas Corporate and Institutional Banking, a subsidiary of the French BNP Paribas Group.