Accra, Ghana – March 25th, 2026: Savannah Impact Advisory, a Ghanaian Fund Manager and an impact advisory firm, today announces the successful first close of its maiden fund, Ci Gaba (Progress) VC Limited, a landmark blended finance vehicle with a GHS 750 million target, reaching approximately GHS 383 million in committed capital, an important milestone for Ghana’s private capital landscape.

The Fund will play a catalytic role in strengthening Ghana’s investment ecosystem by investing in high-growth sectors, including agriculture, financial services, healthcare, clean energy, education technology, and light manufacturing, thereby channeling capital to the real economy of West Africa for inclusive growth.

The Ci Gaba Fund is the first private fund of funds domiciled in West Africa, designed to unlock domestic institutional capital to invest in Venture Capital, Private Equity, and Private Debt Funds that support SMEs across the region.  The Fund will back both emerging and established fund managers deploying capital across key markets, including Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and Côte d'Ivoire.

Hamdiya Ismaila, Founder and CEO of Savannah Impact Advisory, says: “We are excited about reaching this milestone as it demonstrates strong confidence in our shared vision for supporting SMEs that drive inclusive growth. Ci Gaba is ultimately about shifting mindsets and unlocking domestic capital at scale, reshaping how private capital is understood, accessed, and deployed across the continent.”

This milestone would not have been possible without the support of key partners, including Impact Investing Ghana through a cohort of supporters, Argidius Foundation, and FMO, whose strategic backing, technical support, and long-term commitment were instrumental in bringing the fund to life.

We are grateful to our anchor investors, FSD Africa Investments, a UK International Development agency,  Small Foundation, Stanbic Investment Management Services (representing a cohort of Pension Trustees, including Axis Pensions Trust Ltd. Enterprise Trustees, and Petra Trust), and Cal Assets, each playing a market-leading role in helping Ci Gaba reach its first close.

1.     Achieving the first close of the Ci Gaba Fund is a strong vote of confidence in the fund's strategy and its vision for transforming private capital markets in West Africa. This milestone demonstrates that systematically channeling domestic institutional capital into venture capital, private equity, and private debt in Africa is not only possible it is a compelling opportunity whose time has come.

About Savannah Impact Advisory (SIA)

Savannah Impact Advisory is a licensed Fund Manager and an investment advisory firm focused on Fund structuring, fund management, and impact investing. Based in Accra, Ghana, SIA has a mission to unlock domestic capital to support the missing middle in the missing middle SMEs in Africa, and crowd-in foreign investment for an efficient and thriving private sector in Africa. 

About FSD Africa Investments

FSD Africa Investments (FSDAi) is a specialist financial sector investor established by FSD Africa and the UK’s Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) to strengthen and deepen Africa’s financial markets. FSD bridge critical funding gaps by investing patient, risk-bearing capital in novel financial instruments, facilities, and intermediaries. FSD’s strategic investment takes early risk, tests new models, and catalyzes capital from others to gradually transition the financial sector to finance Africa’s economic resilience and growth. To date, FSDAi, backed by FCDO investment, has committed £150 million to 27 investments and successfully exited two investments in the region, one at 2x money.

For more information: https://fsdafrica.org/fsdai-investments

About Small Foundation

Small Foundation is a philanthropic foundation based in Ireland that works to catalyze and scale income-generating opportunities for people living in extreme poverty in rural sub-Saharan Africa. The foundation provides catalytic finance to support partners in achieving financial sustainability and greater social impact.  The Foundation also offers non-financial support, such as enabling access to learning, leveraging its networks, and serving in governance roles. Additionally, the Foundation supports impact networks that seek to drive systemic change by increasing effective connections and collaboration between multiple stakeholders.

The goal is to collaborate with those creating the environment for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to succeed and deliver opportunity at scale — particularly by working with intermediaries that increase the availability of finance, social and human capital, knowledge, technology, and markets required for a thriving, commercially viable MSME ecosystem.

For more information: https://smallfoundation.ie

About FMO

FMO is the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank. As a leading impact investor, FMO supports sustainable private sector growth in developing countries and emerging markets by investing in ambitious projects and entrepreneurs. FMO believes that a strong private sector leads to economic and social development and has a 50+ year proven track record in empowering entrepreneurs to make local economies more inclusive, productive, resilient and sustainable. FMO focuses on three sectors that have high development impact: Agribusiness, Food & Water, Energy, and Financial Institutions. With a total committed portfolio of EUR ~13 billion spanning over 85 countries, FMO is one of the larger bilateral private sector development banks globally.

For more information: https://www.fmo.nl

About Stanbic Investment Management Services

Stanbic Investment Management Services Limited (SIMS) is an investment management and advisory firm licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and registered with the National Pensions Regulatory Authority as a pension fund manager. SIMS is a member of the Standard Bank Group with over 15 years of investment management and advisory services experience in the Ghanaian financial market, SIMS is one of Ghana's largest fund managers, serving local and foreign investors, multinationals, pension companies, asset management companies, and high-net-worth individuals.

Their purpose is to help clients plan their future and provide insights and expert advice that enable them to achieve their lifetime financial goals. The firm provides fund management services, including alternative investments such as private equity and agriculture. SIMS also offers tailor-made fund management for institutions, corporates, and associations.

For more information: https://www.sims.com.gh/ghanasims/management-investment-services

About Cal Asset Management Company Limited

CAL Asset Management Company Ltd is an investment management firm that offers a bouquet of investment solutions for both individuals and institutions. The company has assembled some of the best professionals in the industry, matched with state-of-the-art investment management and administration systems. CAL Asset Management is a subsidiary of CalBank PLC and has served as a fund manager for clients for over 14 years, earning a reputation for reliability, excellent customer service, and consistent investment returns.

The firm provides both corporate and individual investment solutions, including provident funds, end-of-service benefits, staff welfare and savings schemes, pension funds, endowment trust funds, project fund management, institutional investment funds, private wealth management, and unit trust products.

For more information: https://www.calassetmanagement.net