UK (Commonwealth) _British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution and impact investor, invested a total of £1.31 billion in 2023 to assist sustainable development in emerging countries throughout Africa and Asia.
BII’s purpose is to assist nations overcome poverty by making impact investments that promote the growth of successful private sectors. It invests in the people and places most in need of finance, which are frequently underserved by private investors.
BII’s Annual Review, titled Creating Impact Together, summarizes its activities from the previous year. Of the total, £724.9 million went to African enterprises, while £244.9 million was allocated to Asian companies. The remainder went to enterprises operating on both continents. BII capital today supports 1,580 enterprises, directly and indirectly, employing over a million people in 65 countries.
BII also made its first investments in South-East Asia in 2023, after an expansion of its geographical scope announced in 2022 to enable it to make climate financing commitments in the region. Climate change is one of the most serious dangers to global development, with people living in some of the world’s poorest countries particularly exposed to its effects.
Out of the BII’s overall commitments in 2023, £449 million (37%) was designated as climate finance, bringing the total for the past two years to almost £1 billion. BII’s climate funding objective for the current five-year strategic term is 30%.
The BII has supported a diverse range of firms that are critical to economic development and improving people’s lives. It has made investments in industries such as food and agriculture, financial services, green and digital infrastructure. Recent investments have included:
The BII invested £21.8 million in AFEX, a prominent commodities platform that presently manages over 200 warehouses in Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda, serving over 450,000 farmers. The investment will help develop 20 new warehouses, allowing up to 200,000 additional farmers to benefit from low-cost storage and maximize crop harvest sales.
SUSI Asia Energy Transition Fund: The BII committed £12.5 million in this South-East Asia-focused energy transition infrastructure fund, marking the first investment in the region under the current five-year plan. The fund focuses on investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency, and energy storage projects.
Planet Solar: The BII invested £8.5 million in Planet Solar to bring clean, inexpensive solar energy to Sierra Leone, where just 23% of the population has access to electricity. It will be Sierra Leone’s first large-scale solar installation that is connected to the grid. It would let additional electricity to flow to industry and communities in the capital, Freetown, the Western region, and four other parts of the nation.
BII’s total net assets rose to £8.5 billion (£8.1 billion in 2022), while its portfolio expanded to £7.3 billion (£6.9 billion in 2022). The major cause for the portfolio’s rise in 2023 was a faster rate of drawdowns relative to realisations and foreign currency value gains. BII’s total financial performance was a loss after tax of £44.0 million (£167.7 million profit in 2022), with a 0.5% loss on net assets during the year (a 2.2% gain in 2022). The portfolio achieved a £71.5 million return (£285.6 million return in 2022), a portfolio gain of 1.1 percent (4.8 percent increase in 2022).
BII aims 2% returns throughout its portfolio, assessed over a rolling seven-year period. This step is compatible with its duty to invest in economic stability, which will benefit millions of people. The firm continues to outperform this financial return hurdle, with a seven-year weighted average annual portfolio return of 5.2%.
Diana Layfield, Chair of British International Investment, emphasized the importance of our involvement in addressing climate change, inequality, and access to basic resources.
We are glad to have committed £1.3 billion during a difficult year when foreign direct investment is declining in many of the nations and areas that require it the most. In Africa, FDI averages $40 per person, compared to $651 in North America. British International Investment (BII), , said that it has raised its commitment to African partners by £725 million in new sustainable development investments.
BII’s purpose is to assist nations overcome poverty by making impact investments that promote the growth of successful private sectors. It invests in individuals and areas that are most in need of finance and receive the least amount of private investment.
The extent of BII’s efforts last year was released in its Annual Review, Creating Impact Together.
