ACCELERATING GROWTH THROUGH LOCAL INSIGHTS
Philosophy
‘Lefa’ – Translated into English means Legacy- Building a legacy transcends a lifetime, immortalizing values, contributions, and impact. It’s the essence of permanence amid impermanence, offering inspiration and guidance for generations to come.
Leaving a profound legacy involves deliberate actions, fostering innovation, empowering others, and instilling enduring principles. It’s a beacon of wisdom, reminding us of our potential to influence society positively. Crafting a lasting legacy isn’t solely about personal renown but about imprinting a meaningful narrative onto the world, shaping cultures, and uplifting humanity. It’s the art of weaving one’s existence into the fabric of history, a testament to a life lived purposefully for the betterment of tomorrow.
Being an emerging fund manager in an emerging economy requires…
• grit and a special mix of great talent, personalities, skills and backgrounds, valuable networks; • a passion for the revitalisation of (and for thriving) economies and communities; and
• these are very much in the fabric of Lefa. We are excited to translate these and more into socially and financially beneficial investment and development opportunities alongside likeminded investors, and social and commercial partners.
The preservation of and further creation of jobs and securing a better and sustainable the future for our country, its economy and communities including investing in opportunities that align with investing in and developing the youth and women is at the core of our mission, passion and ambition, and further to that we seek to –
• meaningfully contribute toward the further development of the South African and Pan-African private capital markets and economies;
• pursue opportunities that are centred around innovation and sustainability including climate smart practices; in pursuit of
• forward looking (best and next-practice) critical and unique viable commercial avenues; as well as
• partnering with and investing only in business that have room for and the willingness to execute transformative and inclusive business practices anchored to our environmental, social, and corporate governance (“ESG”) and investment principles.
At Lefa, our investment philosophy revolves around achieving high financial returns while prioritizing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations. As a leading private equity firm with a global reach, we are committed to leveraging our diverse expertise and extensive network to drive transformative outcomes for our partners, including management teams, portfolio companies, and fund investors. By integrating ESG principles into our investment approach and leveraging our deep industry insights, we aim to build resilient businesses that not only deliver strong financial performance but also contribute positively to society and the environment.
ESG POLICY
Lefa PE Africa believes that Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles are crucial to developing resilient companies and assets that deliver long term value for our investors. We are committed to integrating ESG into our investment process and operating philosophy. Integration of ESG considerations into our investment processes will optimise the value we have envisaged as an entity.
ESG integration is the practice of incorporating sound ESG principles into our investment decisions to help enhance risk-adjusted returns, as well as deliver impact. There is no one-size-fits-all approach but at Lefa Asset Managers Africa; we see it as being about making research, data and insights available to all of our portfolio managers, and working with them to identify potential process enhancements across all business and operations activities. Our ESG approach is anchored on sound fundamental principles enshrined in IFC and CRISA that promote fair labour practices, decent working environments, a sustainable environment, and good corporate citizens from a governance perspective.
Furthermore, we want to leave an impact legacy. Our investment philosophy will seek to promote job creation, providing women with the advantages necessary to drive equality and strategies that foster environmental sustainability such as efficient resource management and cleaner energy sources. Our theory of change towards ESG is premised on the notion that a happy and well-taken care of workforce is able to deliver outputs on a consistent basis. Hence, we will ensure that labour practices and HR policies are aligned with best-in-class standards and aren’t prejudicial to our employees.
Gender Lense and Impact
Women-owned and women-led businesses remain severely under-represented within the African Private Equity landscape, despite clear evidence that women-led businesses offer a more assured outcome in terms of the profitability secured for every Dollar invested, and mounting consensus that companies with greater female representation in management outperform their peers. Lefa Pan African Fund seeks to make a meaningful contribution to changing this narrative. As such, the Fund will have a deliberate focus on investing into businesses that meet at least one of the following criteria:
- Is majority women-owned, with at least some of this ownership extending beyond the ownership enabled through Lefa’s investment; AND/OR
- Is majority women-led, in terms of its senior management team; AND/OR
- Has a clear plan to include women in all levels of management in the business; AND/OR
- Delivers specific solutions that have a direct and meaningful impact on bettering the lives of women in Africa as consumers or as entrepreneurs.
Clean energy is the prime example of how opportunity lies in adversity, as the Continent struggles with a severe under- supply of on-grid power supply. South Africa, increasingly, is no exception to this. While the Continent has historically relied predominantly on carbon-based generation capacity as alternatives, clean energy is not only a more affordable but also more sustainable solution.
Through Lefa Pan African Fund, we aim to continue our deep experience in successful investment into clean energy. In the Fund, we commit to investing into clean- energy related businesses, or businesses that have displayed a demonstrable commitment to energy efficiency and a more sustainable energy mix.
As the third pillar to our overall investment theme, we are committed to the invigoration as well as transformation of our industries, which are essential for the sustainable growth of the economy and the betterment of society. In terms of the invigoration of the economy, we seek to invest in ground- breaking and world-leading solution providers that have a wide impact on the broader economy. In terms of its transformation, we see the B-BBEE requirements as formulated by the South African government as a useful blueprint to the various ways in which this can be achieved. The conclusion of a Transformation Plan that outlines an investee’s commitment to improving its performance with regards to these aspects forms a non- negotiable element of any investment we make.
In Lefa Pan African Fund, we undertake that at least 75% of all money invested will be into businesses that have a clear expected impact in relation to one or more of the above impact themes.
OUR APPROACH TO MANAGING IMPACT
We see responsible investment as well as a focus on ESG and impact not as a burden, but as a fundamental component of successful long-term investment. Within our investment analysis, decision-making, management and reporting activities, we subscribe to the IFC’s Operating Principles in terms of impact management, in addition to employing the IFC standards in terms of our evaluation of ESG risks.