Celebrating a Decade of Impact: DGGF Financing Local SMEs 10-year Video

Voice over: Since its inception in 2014, the Dutch Good Growth Fund (DGGF) has been committed to support entrepreneurs in emerging markets by improving financial ecosystems and fostering economic and social development.

Over the years, DGGF has impacted frontier markets through investments in financial intermediaries, investment funds, and entrepreneurship support organizations like NaiBAN in Kenya, which in turn supported Zydii.

Interview:

Abigail Komu, network manager at NaiBAN: DGGF is one of our key partners in. And they've come in to support us in a number of ways. Bu what we were looking fo as a network is sustainability. And so DGGF has come in, to help us, with that angle of the business. So, it's through advisory services. They also help us look at how we can make investing in deals more sustainable. They also give us mentorship and coaching.

Rhoda Kingori, Co-founder and COO Zydii: Zydii has existed for a bit of time. But earliest, like talking about our recent pivot, which was about three years ago. This is where we started off thinking earlier on that we want to create accessibility of knowledge for every individual. And the big idea behind this is we have 12 million youth who are joining the workforce every single year, but 80% of these youth fail within their first year because of lack of soft skills. And that's where we come in.

Voice over: DGGF has facilitated sustainable growth from local businesses to large-scale initiatives, supporting over 11,100 SMEs and creating more than 50,000 jobs.

By merging investment with capacity building, DGGF has cultivated an entrepreneurial ecosystem, highlighted by investments in Omnivore Fund II and III in India.

Interview:

Subhadeep Sanyal, Partner at Omnivore: Omnivore is an impact venture capital fund, and we started in 2011 focused on India. Our thesis is largely to bring about change through technology in agrifood, climate and rural India. And we support entrepreneurs who are building businesses around this theme.

Mark Kahn, Managing Partner at Omnivore: So, Omnivore would not exist were it not for DGGF. In its independent form. They were the catalytic capital and they were a very hands-on investor. So as we were going from being a corporate VC to an independent impact VC, they were there teaching us and holding our hand and helping us as we transitioned. Learning, you know, about ESG, learning about impact, building our systems and processes. So, you know, a lot of people talk about catalytic limited partners (LPs). DGGF was the catalytic limited partner (LP).

Voice over: SMEs vary widely. From agricultural cooperatives to high tech startups and energy ventures. DGGF targets specific financing needs across these varied enterprises, to optimize, support, and promote inclusive economic growth.

The support of DGGF spans diverse sectors—from agriculture and clean energy to education and healthcare—impacting countless lives and fostering economic resilience in underserved communities. A prime example is the Peruvian fund Salkantay, which, over the past decade, has enabled companies like Manzana Verde to expand their operations across Latin America.

Interview:

Carlos Andrade, CEO and Co-Founder Manzana Verde: At Manzana Verde we deliver healthy and affordable food to the middle class of Latin America. To date, we have impacted almost 50.000 people and have delivered more than 4 million healthy and affordable food orders, focused on this large group.

Martín Aspillaga, Partner at Salkantay: DGGF has been essential for Salkantay and for us to be able to invest in companies like Manzana Verde. Not only because they have bet on managers like us, who operate in regions where capital is very scarce, but also because they have helped us establish better internal standards. And finally, they have also helped us with training of all kinds, from taxes to gender impact. So overall, it has been an extremely fruitful relationship.

Voice over: Celebrating ten years of impact, DGGF remains dedicated to stimulating entrepreneurship and job creation in frontier markets.

Outro: Dutch Good Growth Fund - Financing local SMEs.

Logos: Dutch Good Growth Fund, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Triple Jump, PwC, english.dggf.nl.