With a bold objective to catalyse and streamline industrial transformation in Nigeria and across Africa, the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and ARISE IIP have announced a capital raising of $443 million.

The funding includes a strategic $300 million investment from Afreximbank’s development impact investment arm, FEDA, securing a significant stake in ARISE IIP.

The capital raise is supported by an additional $143 million contribution from the AFC.

This investment builds on a debt-funding relationship of over 12 years between ARISE IIP and Afreximbank, during which about US$2 billion has been provided to support ARISE IIP’s investments across Africa.

This investment, the organisations said, would strengthen Africa’s position in global value chains, aligning with Afreximbank’s mandate to promote intra-African and extra-African trade.

ARISE IIP’s total equity capital now exceeds $1 billion, with AFC holding a majority stake, followed by Afreximbank’s FEDA and Equitane as key shareholders. This significant capital injection is strategically aligned with both entities’ objectives to catalyse industrial transformation across Africa and intended to accelerate ARISE IIP’s fast expansion and operational efficiency across Nigeria, Malawi, Cameroon, Sierra Leone, Benin, Togo, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, Gabon, DRC, Congo and Chad.

Founder and CEO, ARISE IIP, Gagan Gupta, said the partnership with Afreximbank significantly enhances their financial capacity to execute their pan-African industrial development strategy, showing a strong vote of confidence in their business model and growth prospects.

President of Afreximbank, Prof. Benedict Okey Oramah, expressed happiness with his investment in ARISE IIP which he said is aligned with Afreximbank’s strategic pillars of promoting intra-African trade and facilitating industrialisation and export development across Africa.

The capital boost, he said, will arm ARISE IIP with the financial muscle needed to driveAfrica’s industrialisation, and promote intra and inter-African trade, job creation and the general economic growth of the continent.

FEDA Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Marlene Ngoyi, said their investment in ARISE IIP is an important step towards fostering sustainable industrial growth across Africa. “By supporting the development of high-impact industrial infrastructure, we are helping to create an environment that will drive economic diversification, boost value-added production and position Africa as a key player in global trade.”

President and CEO, AFC, Samaila Zubairu, commended both parties for their unwavering support towards transforming African economies.

“Our journey towards capturing greater value within the continent, by converting raw materials into intermediate and finished goods, has already shown significant progress in three countries, with an expanding pipeline of projects in ten more.

This success reinforces our commitment to further support and invest in this important initiative, including our latest equity investment. We are also delighted to formally welcome Afreximbank-FEDA as a new shareholder, having previously supported us through debt financing.

Their participation, alongside other prospective investors, is a testament to the strength and de-risked nature of our ecosystem value chain industrial platform. We look forward to continuing our partnership to drive industrialisation and sustainable economic growth across Africa,” Zubairu said.