Actis Africa Real Estate Fund 3 (ARE3) is looking for investment opportunities across Africa including in Kenya and Mozambique, Africa Global Funds has learned.

Neil Brown, Partner, Investor Development Group, Actis, said: “We are looking at an industrial opportunity in Nairobi and retail opportunities in Maputo.”

“In Kenya, as we do in all our developments, we look for well positioned opportunities where we can secure land at scale that is already appropriately zoned,” he added.

Actis, a pan emerging markets growth investor, has reached final closing on its third opportunistic private real estate fund, ARE3 with commitments totaling more than $500m, and exceeding its original $400m target.

ARE3 has a diverse global investor base, including pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, development finance institutions and endowments.

“We have received a lot of interest from investors and increased our fund size well in excess of the original target. The fund’s investors include Japanese LPs, US investors, South East Asian investors, European investors as well as investors from the Gulf,” Brown said.

ARE3 is the largest opportunistic private real estate fund targeting sub-Saharan Africa excluding South Africa, raised in the market to date.

ARE3 invests predominantly in prime retail, office and industrial developments in the capital cities of sub-Saharan African markets.

Brown said: “Our investment strategy is a city-led strategy. We would invest in a country’s capital or its commercial capital.”

The Fund has already made investments in Kenya, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Cameroon and is looking closely at Mozambique.

“We are looking to have a portfolio of 7-8 investments,” Brown added.

He said: “Africa is under retailed, hence we expect that around 40% of the capital will be invested in retail shopping centers."

Actis’s Real Estate team in Africa combines private equity real estate, development and financial experience with a strong network and relationships with leading industry professionals, third party developers and lenders.

“On the ground, we often partner with a large local developer. It’s helpful, because oftentimes they have local expertise, which adds to our own expertise,” Brown said.