Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.Investing in Aspire was a natural step for CDC. It is an innovative way to further our strategy of generating wealth, particularly in the poorest countries, by providing capital for investment in sustainable and responsibly managed private sector businesses. It fits neatly with our core business - identifying and selecting fund managers – and our geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa. As the UK governments instrument for investing in the private sector, we have more than $750 million invested in Africa, and are one of the Continents largest investors. Our investment in the Shell Foundation-GroFin vehicle will strengthen our portfolio by targeting small enterprises, a market segment that is extremely difficult to reach using existing finance models. In Africa there is a real finance gap in risk capital because entrepreneurs cannot put up the collateral to access bank finance. In essence, we were attracted to the fund for three key reasons: it targeted small businesses; it was based on yields, rather than venture capital; and it provided business development assistance. An innovative solution Taking these points in turn, the funds focus on small enterprises was crucial. Not many people have been successful in accessing this market, and the model offered an innovative solution to an ongoing problem. It has the potential to help large numbers of businesses with finance of between $50,000 and $1 million. In the past, we had tried to target this sector through our investment in Aureos Capital, a global fund manager with a specialist focus on small and medium sized businesses in emerging markets. Secondly, this innovative model is a significant step forward from the traditional venture approach that has not really worked for small businesses in Africa. The venture capital model is based on the idea that you sell a business after five years for a large capital gain. That generally doesnt happen with small businesses in Africa because there is not usually enough growth for significant capital gain. This project takes a more effective approach by putting a far greater focus on operating yield. Thirdly, we were attracted to the GroFin model because it addressed a second significant gap – the availability of business development assistance to entrepreneurs. By linking finance to business development expertise, GroFin will help businesses grow in a sustainably managed way.  From my experience, the biggest weakness in this sector is in management failure through inadequate financial controls. Often they know their line of business, but are weak around planning and managing their finances so they dont charge the right price or look after their cashflow. The model is further strengthened by the involvement of local banks. This is a very interesting way to introduce a new business approach. Banks are very competent in analysing businesses with strong collateral but this model will stretch banks by introducing them to businesses that require risk capital instead of traditional loans. Banks will also be a fruitful source of referrals. Another source of referrals will come through the Funds connections with large corporations, including Shell, who can recommend their suppliers to the programme. With GroFins help, small businesses should be able to increase their capacity to meet the demands of multinationals highly sophisticated supply chains. Looking to the future, our primary aim is not to increase employment, although, of course, this strikes a chord with us. Our objective is to increase wealth. Without wealth you will never get sustainable employment. We focus on the harder side of development. Aid is only a stopgap. Unless the private sector fills the space that aid is taking, you will not get sustainable development.