Scaling up investment in Africa while supporting the development of French SMEs

Tuninvest Finance Group (TFG), the parent company of Africinvest Capital, is a key player in equity investment in Africa. It is a pioneer in the industry in these areas and manages 16 investment funds, including 6 in Tunisia, 1 in Morocco, 7 regional funds and 2 sectoral funds (new technologies and financial sector). Africinvest has made over a hundred investments in a wide range of sectors via its funds.

The fund aims to invest 50% in the Africinvest III fund, in which Proparco has already invested EUR 10m, and the remaining 50% in French companies seeking to develop in Africa. The fund will seek to invest in companies with turnovers ranging between EUR 5m and EUR 300m, with investment tickets of EUR 3m to EUR 6m, allowing it to hold positions as minority shareholder with the ability to influence, or controlling interests. The French part of the fund will be managed by a team comprising 2 investment professionals based in France who will be supported by the Africinvest teams in Africa (45 investment professionals). The manpower system is now based on a major local presence with offices in Abidjan, Lagos and Nairobi, in addition to the headquarters in Tunis and the Maghreb offices of Algiers and Casablanca.

The main quantitative outcome expected from the project concerns job creation. On the basis of past performance, we estimate that the 16 planned investments will create or maintain some 8,800 indirect jobs in the companies invested in, both in France and Africa. In this respect, FFA will contribute to SDG n° 8 (decent work and economic growth). Secondly, the project will develop the capital market in several African countries. Although Africa already has a number of funds, FFA will be the first fund to support the development of French SMEs in Africa. The fund plans to invest in about a dozen SMEs, including start-ups (i.e. companies which are under 5-years old and have a major expansion plan), with an average ticket of EUR 12.5m. This post-investment added value, by creating partnerships with cross-border groups and supporting French companies, fully meets the economic diplomacy mandate entrusted to AFD.