$500m ADGM-based fund to build Africa’s infrastructure

UK’s Gemcorp Capital and Angola’s sovereign wealth fund have launched a $500 million African infrastructure fund, which will be managed and developed from the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM).

The Pan-African Infrastructure Fund will primarily focus on infrastructure projects across Africa, offering flexible capital to meet the continent’s investment needs, Gemcorp said in a statement.

The fund will receive an initial investment of $50 million from Angola’s Fundo Soberano de Angola (FSDEA). The sovereign fund may increase its funding to $200 million if certain commercial conditions are met.

FSDEA currently manages $4 billion in assets, Reuters reported, citing GlobalSWF data.

Gemcorp Group and its funds will initially contribute up to $50 million, while the remaining capital is expected to be raised from global investors.

The fund, subject to regulatory approval, is likely to be one of the first dedicated to African infrastructure investments from Abu Dhabi’s financial free zone, the statement said.

Gemcorp Capital has an office in ADGM, with focus on securing capital and originating projects organically in the UAE and the Middle East.  

The UK-headquartered asset manager has deployed and financed nearly $9 billion in projects across infrastructure and real assets over the past 10 years.

Africa requires over $100 billion of infrastructure investment per year over the next decade to provide basic services, the statement said.

The UAE has invested over $110 billion across the continent since 2019.

Further reading:

• Angola project demonstrates GCC’s growing Africa interest
• Assets under management at ADGM rise by over 50%
• Oman takes 41% stake in Angolan diamond miner