EMIF Group supports the preparation, financing, construction, and operation of sustainable infrastructure assets via both public-private partnerships and fully-private investment structures. We operate primarily within the OECD-DAC countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Our business is comprised of an asset management platform which provides General Partner services to our investment funds, and an advisory group offering a suite of project preparation services spanning from feasibility through to financial close. As a founding corporate principle, EMIF Group’s activities are grounded in achieving sustainable investing objectives and, in particular, promoting and catalyzing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
EMIF Group, in partnership with UN-Habitat, manages the Sustainable Infrastructure Preparation Fund (SIPF), a US$100-million initiative aimed at addressing the annual US$2.5 trillion gap in infrastructure investment in low- and middle-income countries. Focused on advancing the SDGs, SIPF's purpose is to provide both public- and private-sector project promoters in developing countries with the capital and guidance needed to advance the preparation of sustainable urban infrastructure projects towards construction-investment readiness. As a participating Cities Investment Vehicle within the UN-Habitat Cities Investment Facility program, SIPF guides projects from the mid-stage of preparation to financial close, offering crucial funding for the completion of this phase. Post engagement, EMIF Group collaborates with promoters for construction equity tendering. As an independently-managed fund, SIPF meticulously selects investees that exhibit a clear path to construction financing and that advance the SDGs.
Many of the 200-plus countries that adopted the United Nations’ Action Agenda for Sustainable Development are falling dramatically behind on their commitments. The UN and OECD have estimated that there is a US$2.5 trillion annual shortfall in SDG-relevant sectors within developing countries, much of which comprises infrastructure. Despite an abundance of global capital seeking impact-themed investments, both insufficient project preparation and a lack of host-government development sophistication have been cited as the historical drivers behind the lack of viable, investible infrastructure projects and this shortfall. As such, targeted and specialized support for project preparation activities is a key solution. In response, EMIF Group, in partnership with UN-Habitat and its Cities Investment Facility program, has created the SIPF, which is catalyzing upwards of US$5 billion in construction capital for approximately fifty preparation-stage infrastructure projects. Providing essential expertise, oversight, and capital, SIPF ensures the bankability of projects for construction finance lenders and private capital. Read about the UN-Habitat/EMIF Group announcement of their partnership here.
