Set up in 2013, ARM-Harith closed its first fund in 2015, as the first Infrastructure Equity Fund to be registered by the Nigerian Securities & Exchange Commission.
By 2030, the carbon emissions of 69 sub-Saharan African cities are expected to increase by 61%. Infrastructure investments that incorporate climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies have therefore become crucial for African nations.
Clean transport, energy efficiency, and waste management could reduce urban emissions by 50%, and access to finance is vital to achieving this. But the region faces challenges with attracting private investments at the scale necessary to meet climate goals.
One of the companies working towards solving this problem is ARM-Harith Infrastructure Investments Limited, which was recently selected by the Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance (the Lab) to join its 2021 accelerator cycle.
ARM-Harith is a joint venture between Asset & Resource Management Holding Company (ARM) Limited, one of Nigeria’s leading non-bank financial services providers, and Harith General Partners, a pan-African infrastructure fund manager based in South Africa.
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Set up in 2013, ARM-Harith closed its first fund in 2015, as the first Infrastructure Equity Fund to be registered by the Nigerian Securities & Exchange Commission – under the SEC’s then newly-released Infrastructure Fund Rules.
Funding SDGs in emerging markets
The Lab accelerates investment solutions to support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in emerging markets by selecting promising, early-stage ideas for sustainable investment, rapidly developing these projects into fundable, scalable investments and business models. The initiative comprises over 60 public and private investors and institutions.
ARM Harith’s proprietary finance solution is one of six innovative ideas selected via a rigorous process that considered over 160 global applications, tackling investment barriers in key sectors across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
“Our solution is a specialty blended currency fund to reduce investment barriers to infrastructure projects that cater to the rapidly growing needs of African urban regions; demonstrating ARM-Harith’s continuing commitment to sustainable infrastructure,” the company said in a statement.
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During this 7th year of the Lab’s annual competition, this class of instruments will address barriers that can unlock investment to sustainable development challenges, and opportunities for a post-Covid, green economic recovery, across themes including sustainable energy access, sustainable cities, and food systems streams.
“Participation in the Lab’s program will equip ARM-Harith to proffer finance solutions that unlock the necessary large-scale investments for sustainable urbanisation in West Africa,” the company said. Together, ARM-Harith and the Lab will “convert innovations in finance into investible financial instruments that can be deployed into sectors and regions that need them most.”
“We are honoured to be selected by the Lab and welcome its support of sustainable urbanization for West Africa,” says Tariye Gbadegesin, ARM Harith’s Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer, “The Lab will serve as a critical enabling platform, allowing us to further build on our commitment to resilient urbanisation while developing relationships with potential investors as we employ innovative capital solutions to mobilize much-needed private investments.”
