Alterra Capital Partners, established in 2020, has successfully raised an initial $140 million toward its ambitious $500 million fund aimed at driving growth across various sectors in Africa. Notable investors, including prominent figures like Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote, as well as the founders of Carlyle, David Rubenstein, and Bill Conway, are reportedly backing this initiative. Additionally, entities such as Norfund AS, Standard Bank Group Ltd., International Finance Corp., Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft GmbH from Germany, and Allianz SE’s AfricaGrow fund have joined forces in supporting this endeavor.
Alterra Capital Partners, headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, is a private equity firm that draws upon more than a century of combined private equity expertise. This wealth of experience stems from the merger of Carlyle Africa and Emerging Capital Partners, which has previously invested over $2 billion in 23 companies throughout the African continent.
Kolawole Oyebola, an analyst, underscores the strategic significance of the fund, particularly the diverse sectors it targets, in propelling Africa's economic growth. The sectors it focuses on include telecommunications, technology, logistics, healthcare, consumer, and retail, reflecting a comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted opportunities within African markets.
The fund holds a primary objective to promote innovation across key sectors in Africa, ultimately contributing to job creation, economic development, and the enhancement of essential services across the continent. As Africa becomes increasingly appealing to global investors seeking high-growth opportunities, investments in technology and telecommunications, in particular, have the potential to expedite the continent's development by significantly advancing connectivity and digital infrastructure.
Destiny Young, a technology enthusiast, emphasizes the importance of infrastructure in enabling internet penetration, especially in Nigeria. Acknowledging the challenges of internet access and quality, Young outlines the critical role of addressing funding deficits and advocating for measures such as public-private partnerships, reduced mobile device and internet costs, improved digital literacy, enhanced local content creation, refined regulatory frameworks, foreign investment attraction, innovation promotion, and stakeholder collaboration.
Amidst the backdrop of global economic challenges, Napa Onwusah, a multinational tech consultant, underscores the timely focus of Alterra on key African sectors. Onwusah commends Alterra's strategic flexibility and the significance of the British International Investment's $6 billion commitment to Africa. She highlights the need for agility, market awareness, and strategies tailored to local conditions to navigate diverse African markets effectively.
To address various challenges, including infrastructure gaps and talent shortages, Onwusah advocates for strategic investments in development and education. She encourages a socially responsible investment approach, emphasizing the importance of making positive contributions to Africa's development and dispelling negative perceptions.
Onwusah envisions the potential of African startups to contribute $2.6 trillion to the continent's GDP by 2030, underscoring the cascading effect of increased funding in the tech ecosystem, ultimately fostering innovation, job creation, entrepreneurship, and sustainable economic development.
In essence, Alterra's fund has the potential to ignite a transformative journey, empower local talent, and position Africa as a global innovation powerhouse, thanks to the catalytic power of this endeavor.
