News
Ontario credit union supports peacebuilding in Afghanistan Money and war can go hand in hand, but as a community that has been richly blessed, we know that responsible stewardship involves using our economic resources to work for peace in a troubled world. Mennonite Savings and Credit Union (MSCU), was looking for a practical way to support peacebuilding internationally as part of Stewardship in Action, which promotes peace, social justice and mutual aid (ranging from financial literacy for low-income and immigrant segments to green initiatives and no-interest loans in special cases). As a financial institution, lending and savings are what we know best, but our ability to do lending and savings is bound by provincial borders, so we needed an international partner to be able to make an impact. It was natural for MSCU to turn to long time partner organization, Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA). In particular, MEDA’s expertise in microfinance — small loans to small businesses — was attractive to MSCU, given the focus on lending and savings. MEDA was excited to get MSCU involved in its work in Afghanistan. Women in the wartorn country face huge challenges in feeding and caring for their families, and MEDA partners with Women for Women International (WWI) to provide small loans for farming, retail, service and production businesses run by these women. As part of this work, MEDA has also recently become involved in the Afghanistan Challenge, a Canadian government dollar‑for‑dollar matching initiative. The Marketplace March April 2010
Through these partnerships MSCU has donated $50,000 ($25,000 from MSCU, $25,000 in matched funds) to women like Butool, who says, “My husband always struggled to find work. I had been raising our two children and also trying to earn money to support us. But we had very little — every day was a struggle. The microfinance program has been essential for us. We can now cope with the hard times of life. We know we can find our way out.” Through the MEDA Trust
“We can now cope with the hard times of life.” — Afghan client
website (medatrust.org), MSCU staff have been able to allocate microfinance loans to real women in Afghanistan. Each branch and head office department set up its own “giving group” on the website to track and personalize the experience. In the coming months, MSCU will work with MEDA to promote the initiative to the broader community and get others involved in practical peacebuilding. — Benjamin Janzen, MSCU Stewardship in Action advisor
Private investors launch global “fund of funds” investors crave.” The fund is a response to investor calls for more creativity in “impact investment” offerings, Pries says. “All too often interested investors can’t find an opportunity in this space that meets their needs, but by solving the liquidity problem, this fund is a gamechanger for private investors.” Sarona’s unique evergreen offering, with annual closings, allows investors in and out each December, he adds. “Our unique value proposition to investors is that, by creating a fund of funds, investors get diversification across countries, industries and the best managers in the sector,” says Serge LeVert‑Chiasson, Sarona’s VP and Chief Investment Officer. “We also invite our investors to travel with us so they can see where their capital is invested.” Sarona has become a leader in the international impact investment sector, says Pries.
Sarona Asset Management Inc., a MEDA company, has completed the first closing of its Sarona Frontier Markets Fund I LP. With over $12 million in investor commitments raised during the three-month fundraising window, Sarona expects the fund to grow quickly in the next years. The new fund, described as a global industry first, is a private equity “fund‑of‑funds” that offers investors an aggressive strategy of financial, social and environmental targets in developing country markets, says Sarona president Gerhard Pries. He says the new fund opens up a whole world of opportunities for private investors. “Never before have investors been able to find global diversification and high value impact in one instrument. This fund captures the significant developing country upside, and marries it with the human and environmental values that 22
“While MEDA has been at it since the early 1950s, many investors are just now catching a glimpse of the financial opportunity, and the social/ environmental impact that is available to them.” Building on its 57-year history of representing investor interests in developing country markets, Sarona brought MEDA together with five private investors to launch this fund, each of them committing $1 million or more. Thirty other investors then joined the Founders Group, bringing total commitments to $12 million. Sarona Asset Management Inc. is a MEDA company based in Waterloo, Ont., and is a (co) founder and/or manager of a number of impact investment funds, including the Sarona and MicroVest groups of funds. Together, these funds have over $200 million of assets under management in developing countries around the world. ◆
