ARM-Harith Infrastructure Investments, a pan-African private equity fund manager focused on sustainable energy and infrastructure, has raised $76 million at the first close of its Climate Transition Fund, a vehicle seeking to attract African pension funds into climate and energy projects.
The fund, which is targeting $200 million at final close, combines US dollar and local currency investments within a single structure, an approach the Lagos-based fund manager said could help unlock domestic institutional capital that has remained on the sidelines of infrastructure investing.
The first close is backed by $20 million from the African Development Bank’s Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) and FSD Africa Investments, a UK-backed development finance investor, according to ARM-Harith. Such catalytic capital is often used to absorb part of the investment risk and encourage participation from private investors.
ARM-Harith’s new fund is part of a broader effort to channel more African capital into financing the continent’s infrastructure that powers energy, telecoms, and logistics networks underpinning its digital economy.
In the first quarter of 2026, European development finance institutions (DFIs), including DEG, Proparco, and British International Investment (BII), remained the most active investors in African private capital funds, according to research firm Stears, highlighting how dependent the sector remains on foreign capital.
