Vacancy: Request for proposals for consultancy services to set up a working capital fund

Job Description

BACKGROUND

The Feed the Future Ghana Trade and Investment (GTI) Activity is a five-year activity that started on initiated December 1, 2021.  The Activity will work closely with public and private sector stakeholders to improve the enabling environment for Ghana’s economic growth by (1) facilitating growth in export-oriented trade; (2) improving and developing product standards; (3) catalyzing investments in private enterprises related to high-value commercial crops; (4) promoting job creation, particularly among women and youth; (5) promoting economic diversification; and (6) increasing foreign exchange revenues from high-value export crops.  Nathan Associates will facilitate investing in firms that trade goods across borders, spur innovation, and build the capacity of the entire trade sector.

In scaling up our approach, Nathan Associates will develop a flexible menu of innovative financing activities that leverages the private sector to increase two-way trade and investment between the United States and Ghana. Nathan Associates transaction advisory services will facilitate exports and investment and adhere to the principle of additionality to address market gaps unfilled by the private sector.

The global economic shock induced by commodity fluctuations has adversely affected Ghana’s economy just when it was beginning to recover from the pandemic. The combination of adverse external shocks has exposed Ghana to a surge in inflation, large exchange rate depreciation and stress on the financing of the budget. These factors taken together have put sustainability of Ghana’s debt at risk. Debt restructuring has commenced to reduce the Government’s interest and principal repayment burden to local and external lenders.

Rationale

Agriculture value chain actors in Ghana have difficulty accessing affordable innovative financing for business growth, especially working capital financing. Nathan Associates as part of its mandate to increase investment wishes to support the Fund Manager to set up a working capital fund of up to US$30m. With local lending constrained, the Fund is expected to provide affordable and smart capital to companies in agricultural values chains which supports our objectives and anticipated results which are stated below:

• Objective D1: Develop distinct and innovative ideas for additional programmatic interventions.
  
  
  
  • Result D1: Develop innovative finance opportunities (convertible debt, leasing, factoring, performance-based financing, etc) for firms in the agriculture sector.
  
  
  
  


• Objective E1: Scale-up programmatic interventions and increase firm level interventions.
  
  
  
  • Result E1: Scale up size of investment opportunities for firms already completing business transactions valued in excess of US$2 million per firm.
  
  
  
  

SCOPE OF WORK

We are seeking viable, reputable, and Ghana-licensed fund managers with a strong investment track record to establish a working capital fund targeting agribusinesses (in input, aggregation, processing, transport/distribution, marketing) in our Zone of Influence (ZoI) in Ghana. The fund manager will be supported by USAID Ghana Trade & Investment Activity Technical Assistance (TA) to navigate the establishment of the Fund and assist in capital raising efforts alongside the qualified fund manager, the goal is to launch the working capital investment fund of targeting US$30m, leveraging on US Government commitment and private sector investment to support food security and nutrition.

The fund manager is expected to carry out the following activities:

• The Fund Manager is expected to propose and lead fund structuring design,


• Prepare documents for approval by the regulator,


• Develop investment materials for the capital raising effort


• Develop a roadshow plan to impact investors, Development Finance Institutions and Foundations/Grant providers among others


• Raise capital for the fund of up to US$30m on best effort basis


• Other activities related to setting up a successful fund