West Africa Venture Fund PCC

completed

This private equity (“PE”) fund proposal is one of several SME funds covering eight IDA countries that are being proposed under the SME Ventures program (Project #27176). The IFC Board approved the SME Ventures program on May 29, 2008 (IFC/R2008-0114), and the IFC Board granted delegate authority to IFC’s Management to allocate SME Venture funds to make PE investments ranging $100,000-500,000. The SME Ventures proposes the establishment of SME funds to expand access by SME’s in high risk IDA countries to risk capital, by (among other things) supporting and leveraging the expertise of locally based fund managers and by providing business support services (“BSS”) to SMEs before and after investment.Unique Venture Capital Management (“UVC”), a Nigerian-registered fund manager that focuses on SMEs was selected to raise the West Africa Venture Fund PCC (“WAVF” or the “Fund”). WAVF is raising $40 million in equity from institutional and private investors, and IFC is acting as anchor with a commitment of $13.5 million in equity and a pledge of $2 million for the BSS facility to SMEs, most of which is repayable. The Fund will focus on two countries: Liberia and Sierra Leone and will be registered as a Mauritius limited life protected cell company.