COVENANT AFRICA

PARTNERS

Promises Kept. Built to Last.

VIRGINIA, USA · WEST AFRICA

Covenant Africa Partners brings long-term private capital to the projects African governments have already committed to build — enterprises that create jobs, strengthen food security and endure, built with the protections serious investors require.

Bring us a project Investor inquiries

Governments and authorities

A partner for your priority projects

Long-term capital and operating partners for projects in your development plan.

How we partner → Communities and cooperatives

Ownership in what is built

Jobs, training and a real share in the facilities your members supply.

How we work → Investors

Access, protected

Government-aligned projects inside a fund built to protect your capital.

For investors →

The opportunity

The world's fastest-growing region is one of the least served by US capital.

11 of 15

of the world's fastest-growing economies are African, each growing over 6% a year.

4.4%

average GDP growth across Africa in 2025; 22 economies grew faster than 5%.

1.5B

people, with a median age of about 19 — the youngest workforce on earth.

$2.5T

consumer market expected by 2030, driven by a growing middle class.

$75–200B

a year needed in African agriculture, which employs half the workforce yet gets under 5% of bank lending.

<10%

of African infrastructure projects ever reach financial close.

“The total amount invested through US funds is shockingly small, given the size of Africa's economic potential.”

British A. Robinson, Chair, Africa, Milken Institute International · November 2025

The need is enormous

Africa's development financing gap exceeds $1.3 trillion a year. Governments cannot close it alone.

The risk is misread

Emerging-market infrastructure debt has shown losses below 1% and recoveries above 90%.

The bottleneck is structure

Capital waits for bankable, well-protected projects. Building those is what we do — with relationships at head-of-state and ministerial level across West Africa and beyond.

Sources: Milken Institute (Oct 2025, Nov 2025, Mar 2026; citing McKinsey); African Development Bank, African Economic Outlook 2026; UN Economic Commission for Africa; Pew Research Center. Figures rounded.

Where we invest

A West African corridor, built one country at a time.

We start where our relationships are deepest and government programmes clearest: three neighbours along one stretch of coast, two sharing a currency pegged to the euro. Every new country follows the same playbook.

Côte d'Ivoire · first

Ghana · first

Togo · next

Where private capital is ready

We invest where we hold relationships at head-of-state or ministerial level, and where each country shows:

Political stabilityEconomic stabilityDebt under controlStable currencyLeaders committed to private capital

One playbook, every country

Start from a funded government programme
Shape it into a bankable project
Share the risk across the capital stack
Build local ownership, then hand over

	Côte d'Ivoire	Ghana	Togo
Growth	6.5–7% a year (projected)	6.0% in 2025 (est.); 4.8% in 2026 (IMF)	6.3% in 2025
Currency	CFA franc, pegged to the euro	Cedi; inflation down from 23%+ (2024) to ~3% (Mar 2026)	CFA franc, pegged to the euro
Government push	2026–2030 plan: $206B, ~70% from private investors	2026 "Big Push": GH¢30B for power, roads and digital	Port of Lomé, a gateway to the Sahel
Our focus	Rice, cashew, feed milling, solar	Cocoa, shea, grain storage	Rice

Sources: Côte d'Ivoire PND 2026–2030; IMF (Apr 2026); Ghana 2026 Budget; Togo INSEED national accounts (May 2026). Figures rounded.

Illustration: baobab trees on the savanna at dusk

Why we exist

Aid relieves suffering. Lasting change needs foundations.

Decades of aid have done real good, and much of it ends when the funding does. A treatment for parasites helps a child until the next drink of unsafe water. We finance the foundations underneath: the mills, storage, power and water that let a community feed itself, earn a living and keep what it builds.

Aid alone

Treats symptoms, depends on the next grant, and leaves ownership elsewhere.

An economic engine

Builds productive enterprises that pay for themselves, employ local people and are partly owned by the communities they serve.

Dependence on the next grantEnterprises that earn their own way and keep running

Food bought from abroadRice and staple crops grown and milled at home

Value shipped out rawProcessing moved onshore, so jobs and income stay where crops grow

Ownership held elsewhereCooperatives own a share of the facilities they supply

Leadership from outsideLocal hiring, training and a path to management, then handover

Giving that stops when funding stopsFirst-fruits: 10% of our share of profits goes first to the Covenant Africa Foundation, permanently

70%

of Côte d'Ivoire's 2026–2030 national development plan is expected to come from private investment.

~52%

of the rice Côte d'Ivoire consumes is grown at home. The rest is imported.

$3.5B

spent each year by West Africa on imported rice.

Sources: Côte d'Ivoire Plan National de Développement 2026–2030; USDA Foreign Agricultural Service; ECOWAS. Figures rounded.

How we work

We build alongside partners, never in place of them.

1
Aligned with national priorities
We start from programmes governments already lead and fund, and add private investment where it is needed most: processing, storage, power and market access.
2
Shared stake, shared responsibility
Every key partner contributes something real — capital, land, infrastructure, expertise or effort — sized to what each can bring. When a project succeeds, everyone shares in it.
3
Verified and protected
Independent verification before capital moves, funds released against milestones, political risk cover, international arbitration and independent audit.
4
Built to hand over
We train and promote local leaders to run what we build, and cooperatives own a share of the facilities they supply.

Government programmeLand development, infrastructure

Communities and cooperativesLand, supply, ownership share

Lenders and development banksLong-term financing

Covenant AfricaEquity, structure, oversight

Technical partnersKnow-how, training, operations

Illustrative. Each project's partnership is set to its own programme and community.

Protected by design

Political risk insurance

Sought on every project from MIGA (World Bank Group) or the US DFC.

Currency discipline

The CFA franc is pegged to the euro, and export revenue earns hard currency.

Milestone release

Capital moves only against independently verified progress.

Incentives in writing

Tax holidays and investment-code benefits confirmed before we invest.

Debt at the project

Never guaranteed by the Fund; international arbitration in every contract.

Independent checks

Independent administrator and annual audit from first close.

Illustration: grain silos, a rice mill and solar arrays at dusk

What we build

Food security opens the door. Processing earns the return.

Our first focus is West Africa, beginning in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana.

Food security

Rice and staple crops: cultivation partnerships, milling and outgrower networks that reduce dependence on imports.

Agro-processing

Cashew, cocoa, feed and other value chains processed in-country, so jobs and income stay where crops are grown.

Storage and post-harvest

Drying, storage and logistics that cut losses and give farmers a better price.

Power for production

Reliable energy for the facilities we build, with surplus serving surrounding communities.

What we measure and report

JobsPermanent and seasonal, with wages

Farmer incomeChange for outgrowers and cooperative members

Food producedTonnes processed and imports replaced

Women's participationEmployment, leadership and ownership

Local ownershipShare held by communities and local partners

Local leadershipRoles filled and handed over to local managers

Our two covenants

Two promises, both binding.

With investors

We will not ask you to take a risk we have not structured against.

A US-domiciled fund under US law
Capital released against verified milestones
Political risk insurance sought for every project (MIGA or the US DFC); international arbitration
Independent administrator and annual independent audit
Quarterly financial and impact reporting

With the countries we serve

We will not take out more than we put in.

Every project tied to a national development priority
A step of transformation moved onshore
Local partners invested alongside us
Local hiring, training and management succession
Community investment funded from every project's operations

Partner with us

For governments, communities and project sponsors.

We work with ministries, local authorities, cooperatives and development partners who have a priority project and need a committed long-term investor to build it.

What we look for

A clear link to a national or regional development programme
Local partners ready to take a real stake
A site with a clear path to secure, registrable tenure
A market for what the project produces
A shared commitment to transparency

What we bring

Patient, long-term equity capital
Experienced technical and operating partners
Access to development lenders and risk insurers
US institutional standards of governance and reporting
Training and local leadership development

Integrity is not negotiable. We make no payment, gift or donation to influence any decision, and we expect the same of every partner.

Anyone who works with governments on our behalf has a written scope and a fixed fee, never a success fee.
No facilitation payments, ever.
Hospitality is modest, customary and recorded.
Giving is never a trade: Foundation grants follow their own independent process.
Every payment goes through the books, by bank transfer, with a receipt.

For investors

Make a difference inside a well-run fund.

Our investors want two things: impact that lasts and capital that is stewarded with discipline. We are built for both, for long-term investors who share our commitment to the countries we serve.

Long-term by design

Real enterprises take years to build. Our investors commit for the life of the fund and see the work first-hand.

Open books

Independent administration and audit, quarterly financial and impact reports, and an investor advisory committee.

Governed for trust

A management company separate from the fund, an investment committee with an independent member, a written conflicts policy, and a Foundation with its own board.

Accredited investors

Offerings are made under Rule 506(c) of Regulation D to accredited investors, whose status must be verified before investing.

Fund I at a glance

Fund: Covenant Africa Development Fund I, LP (in formation)
Target size: $100 million
Investors: Verified accredited investors only, under Rule 506(c) of Regulation D
Fees: 4% one-time development and organization fee; 2% annual management fee
Carried interest: 20%, only after investors receive their capital back plus an 8% preferred return
First-fruits: 10% of the firm's carried interest goes first to the Covenant Africa Foundation
Oversight: Independent administrator, annual audit, investor advisory committee

Proposed terms. Final terms are set only in the offering documents.

Founding partners

A small founding circle is helping build the firm. Details are private and by invitation.

Private access →

How we choose what to build

Every project must earn its place. Before we commit capital, it has to pass the same screen. Projects that fall short are restructured or declined.

A dollar-return standard

A clear return target, measured in US dollars after currency risk, set high enough to reward investors for building in frontier markets.

Capital that shares the risk

Government programmes, development lenders and local partners invested alongside us, so no one carries the risk alone.

Incentives confirmed in writing

Investment-code incentives and tax treatment confirmed before we invest, never assumed.

A market before a mill

Buyers and offtake identified before construction begins.

Oversight on the ground

Our own team in the field, with the cost of oversight budgeted into every project.

Walk before we run

A focused first fund that proves capital comes back, before we grow.

Our principles

Kingdom business: built on covenant, not extraction.

Too much of Africa's history with foreign capital has been taking out more than was put in. We exist to do the opposite: to build up Africa, so its people have the freedom to own, lead and prosper from what is built on their land.

Covenant

We keep our promises: faithful in year one and year ten, the same terms and the same truth for everyone at the table.

Build up Africa

We train and promote African leaders, place ownership with communities, and hand over what we build.

Never exploitative

Fair prices to farmers, fair wages to workers, value processed at home, and investors rewarded for their trust.

Collaborative wins

Governments, communities, lenders and investors each come out ahead, or we do not proceed.

Excellence

Institutional standards in everything: verified milestones, independent audit, honest reporting.

Respect

For every person, for the beliefs and traditional leaders of every community, for the land, and for every dollar entrusted to us.

First-fruits

Jobs and fair wages come first. Then the first 10% of our share of profits from every fund goes to the Covenant Africa Foundation.

Intercession

Every partner, project and community we serve is covered in prayer. We seek wisdom before we seek returns.

Legacy

Local leaders, enterprises built to last for generations, and nations that feed and power themselves.

Covenant Africa is an impact firm built on Christian principles. We serve every community equally, regardless of faith, tribe or origin.

The Foundation

Two doors: invest, or give.

The Covenant Africa Foundation supports education, health, water, nutrition and relief in the communities where we work. It is being established as a separate charitable organization with its own board and books, funded first by ten percent of our share of profits and by donors. It will never receive investor capital.

How we give back, in four layers

In the business

Local jobs, fair wages, training and a path to management for the people who run what we build.

In every project

A community commitment written into every project's budget, agreed with local leaders before we build.

Through the Foundation

Education and trades, clean water and sanitation, health and nutrition, and relief when crises strike.

Alongside government

Where public money is budgeted for a road, water or a school, we add to it through written agreements with the local authority and the community.

How each community's needs are chosen

1
Listen
We start with the community, its traditional leaders and local authorities, not with our own list.
2
Map
We map what already exists and what government and other partners already fund, so we add rather than duplicate.
3
Shortlist and approve
A country committee shortlists; the Foundation's board approves. Officials never choose who receives a grant.
4
Deliver and hand over
We build with local partners, fund upkeep from the start, and hand over to local ownership.

Once the Foundation is established, donors will be able to give cash, stock, donor-advised fund grants and planned gifts. Giving and investing are always kept separate.

Leadership

A team on both sides of the Atlantic.

Matt Hoffman

Founder & CEO

Founded Covenant Africa Partners to bring disciplined private capital to the projects African governments have already committed to build. US private fund manager and founder of Alphascend Capital Group.

Ambassador Koby Arthur Koomson

Chairman, Africa Advisory Council

Ghana's Ambassador to the United States, 1997–2001. Decades of relationships with leaders across Africa and the US. Chairs the council of senior former officials who advise on country strategy. Advisory only.

Francis Kumako

Managing Director, West Africa

Ivorian roots and a banking background. Leads projects, partnerships and operations in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana.

Project partners: Windmill Rice (Arkansas), technical partner to the rice platform. US and in-country counsel are being engaged; an independent fund administrator and auditor will be selected before first close.

Contact

Start a conversation.

Governments and project partners

Tell us about the project, the programme it serves and the partners involved. We reply in English or French.

matt.hoffman@covenantafrica.comEmail

Investors

Investment opportunities are offered only to qualified investors through formal offering documents.