Ghana’s Roberta Annan To Launch €100 Million New Investment Fund For Africa At 2018 Paris Peace Forum In Partnership With UN ITC & EU
On November 12th 2018, the Ethical Fashion Initiative alongside African
Fashion Fund and the European Commission (EC) will launch a ‘one hundred
million euro fund’ (100million) the Impact Fund For Africa (IFFA) a new
investment fund supporting African creatives working in the fashion and
lifestyle industries.
Launching in Paris during the Paris Peace Forum, an initiative by French President Emmanuel Macron, with the attendance of over 84 Heads of States, The United Nations Secretary General and many dignitaries, the proposed fund will address the investments needed to leverage the power of creative and cultural industries to expand the social capital of Sub-Saharan African countries and thus contributing to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, as well promote inclusive growth in these economies.
The Impact Fund for Africa (IFFA) will be managed by Roberta Annan Capital Partners (RACP) with members from the EFI serving as non-exec board members and managing the sustainability committee, which will contribute to the mobilisation of private capital for the financing of investments in support of the African creative and lifestyle industry.
For over ten years the Ethical Fashion Initiative (EFI) has invested in refining production systems that enable production with community groups of micro-entrepreneurs in target countries. Working in the luxury and lifestyle sectors supporting international companies such as Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney source high-quality and ethically-produced artisanal goods from some of the developing world’s most difficult environments.
Launching in Paris during the Paris Peace Forum, an initiative by French President Emmanuel Macron, with the attendance of over 84 Heads of States, The United Nations Secretary General and many dignitaries, the proposed fund will address the investments needed to leverage the power of creative and cultural industries to expand the social capital of Sub-Saharan African countries and thus contributing to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, as well promote inclusive growth in these economies.
The Impact Fund for Africa (IFFA) will be managed by Roberta Annan Capital Partners (RACP) with members from the EFI serving as non-exec board members and managing the sustainability committee, which will contribute to the mobilisation of private capital for the financing of investments in support of the African creative and lifestyle industry.
For over ten years the Ethical Fashion Initiative (EFI) has invested in refining production systems that enable production with community groups of micro-entrepreneurs in target countries. Working in the luxury and lifestyle sectors supporting international companies such as Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney source high-quality and ethically-produced artisanal goods from some of the developing world’s most difficult environments.
AFF Founder, Roberta Annan says: “I am thrilled
about this partnership with the EFI and the EU. I believe it will give
African brands the indispensable funding and resources to participate
competitively in the global fashion economy.”
EFI Chief Technical
Advisor, Simone Cipriani says: “We are incredibly excited to launch
this investment fund for Africa knowing the direct impact this
investment will have on the growth of creative industries in Sub-Saharan
Africa. To launch this at the Paris Peace Forum is fitting - ethical
work, provides an alternative path for hundreds of thousands of people
living in poverty, while lifting the continent’s vibrant creative
sector.”
Showcasing the direct impact and potential of the fund,
the fund will be launched on the 12th November (15:15-16:00, Press Room)
with the presence of Ms. Roberta Annan, Managing Partner of Roberta
ANNAN CAPITAL PARTNERS, Founder of the African Fashion Fund (AFF) and M.
Simone CIPRIANI, Founder and Chief Technical Advisor of the Ethical
Fashion Initiative (ITC).
This launch will include a unique
fashion show featuring three leading African designers on the 13th
November (13-13:30, Agora), immediately followed by an interactive
press-pitch led by Ms. ANNAN and Ms. Marjeta JAGER, Deputy-Director of
the Development Office for International Cooperation (EC). The African
designers selected to present their work are:
• Duaba Serwa - a
contemporary Ghanaian fashion brand founded in 2011, the brand has been
featured on CNN, Forbes, Vogue Italia and Deutsch Welle;
• Sophie Zinga - a socially conscious womenswear brand featuring hand-woven Senegalese cloth and semi precious stones;
•
Chocolate by Kwaku Bediako - A Ghanaian fashion brand which draws
inspiration from the rich Ghanaian culture, lifestyle, taste and
preferences. The chocolate brand has grown rapidly in this past few
years due to detailing, passion to become the best custom made menswear
fashion brand in Ghana.
Allocations for the proposed fund will
come from private business and institutional sectors (family offices and
foundations), with a component of seed funding and guarantee
instruments from the EU and other international organizations.
The
private capital will be mobilised by EFI and AFF through institutional
investors and private companies that will participate in investments.
The fund seeks to create an investment potential to cover the gap
between public intervention and business reality in the creative and
fashion sectors of Sub-Saharan Africa.
About African Fashion Fund (AFF)
The
African Fashion Fund (AFF), part of the Roberta Annan Capital Partners
(RACP), focuses on education and capacity building for African brands.
RACP is a registered Mauritius Company with subsidiaries to be
registered in the Netherlands, United Kingdom and Luxembourg. RACP
focuses on Wealth Management and Impact investments. It has an Impact
Investment portfolio, Frallain Group, a UK registered entity that
provides risk capital to African brands and incorporates social iimpact
within their brands ethos, providing a platform with industry experts in
fashion, sales and distribution, PR and communication for the
commercialization of these brands.
About the Ethical Fashion Initiative
The
Ethical Fashion Initiative is a flagship programme of the International
Trade Centre, a joint agency of the United Nations and the World Trade
Organisation. The Ethical Fashion Initiative enables artisans living in
urban and rural poverty to connect to top luxury lifestyle brands.
The
Initiative also works with the rising generation of fashion talent from
Africa, encouraging the forging of fulfilling creative collaborations
with artisans on the continent. The Ethical Fashion Initiative projects
in Burkina Faso, Mali, Afghanistan are funded by the European Union.
2019 will mark the beginning of a new and innovative project, in Central
Asia, East and West Africa.
About the Paris Peace Forum
The
Paris Peace Forum is an independent NGO, formed in 2018 after the
original impetus came from President Macron in the summer of 2017. The
first edition of the Paris Peace Forum (11-13 November 2018) will be
inaugurated by Heads of State and Government, or their representatives,
from the 84 countries invited by the President of the French Republic to
participate in the commemorations alongside other political leaders
invited for the occasion .
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