MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: GAIN, Incofin, Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs Building Nutritious Food Financing Facility (N3F) to Invest in SMEs Producing, Distributing Foods in Africa; Irish Aid, Rockefeller Foundation Commit Funding

The Switzerland-based, nonprofit Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) recently launched a partnership with Belgium’s Incofin Investment Management to create the Nutritious Food Financing Facility (N3F), which is intended to boost access to healthy food in sub-Saharan Africa. It will engage small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in “food value chains by providing both technical assistance and investment to help improve their financial performance, sustainability and the nutritional content of their products.”

The Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs participated in developing the facility and has committed funding to it. Other funders to date include the US-based Rockefeller Foundation and Irish Aid, a unit of the government of Ireland. These commitments, the sizes of which have not been specified, are slated “for technical assistance and as catalytic capital.” GAIN and Incofin expect to raise an additional USD 50 million for N3F from public and private sources. They plan to launch the fund before the end of 2020.

“SMEs are the backbone of food systems in Africa on which almost all consumers depend, but they are starved of access to technical support and finance. GAIN is proud to partner with Incofin IM for this new facility to show how to make locally produced, nutritious food more available and affordable, which is fundamental to achieving sustainable and healthy food systems for Africa’s growing population,” said GAIN Executive Director Lawrence Haddad.

Launched in 2002 with UN support, GAIN’s goal is “improving the consumption of nutritious and safe food for all people, especially the most vulnerable to malnutrition.” The foundation expended USD 46 million during the year ending June 2019. It has operations in 20 countries in Africa, Eurasia and the US.

Incofin is a for-profit firm that was founded in 2001 and seeks “to promote inclusive progress.” As of January 2020, it has 320 investees in 66 countries, mostly working in financial inclusion and agriculture. Incofin’s portfolio is valued at USD 1 billion and comprises the following funds: agRIF, BRS Microfinance Coop Fund, Fairtrade Access Fund, Fonds pour l’Inclusion Financière en République Démocratique Congo (FPM), Incofin CVSO, Invest in Visions, Rural Impulse Fund (RIF) II, Volksvermogen and a loan portfolio of vdk bank.

Sources and Additional Resources

Incofin news item
http://www.incofin.com/gain-and-incofin-im-announce-new-collaboration-to-improve-diets-and-nutrition-in-africa/

Incofin press release
http://www.incofin.com/wp-content/uploads/Press-Release_GAININCOFIN_3.2.20.pdf

GAIN homepage
https://www.gainhealth.org/

Additional MicroCapital coverage on Incofin
https://www.microcapital.org/?s=Incofin

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