THE FIRM

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Goneke Investment Group (GIG) is a leading alternative asset manager and private equity firm specialising in complex, high-impact investments across infrastructure, energy, food, health, real estate, and transportation—the foundational systems of any thriving economy. Since our founding in 2022, we have been guided by an unwavering commitment to excellence, innovation, and the preservation of value—financial, social, and generational. With a global outlook and deep African roots, GIG provides strategic counsel and bespoke investment solutions that navigate complexity with clarity and align capital with purpose.

We invest not merely to generate returns, but to catalyse transformation—building assets, ecosystems, and institutions that endure. Where others see volatility, we see design space. Where others extract, we build. Our model is anchored in purpose-driven capitalism: solving structural challenges at scale, modernising national systems, and unlocking the next frontier of African potential. From logistics corridors to energy revolutions and agricultural systems for the next billion, we operate with the urgency of entrepreneurs and the discipline of stewards. At GIG, we don’t just manage capital—we build to scale civilisation: engineering systems, institutions, and innovations that make humanity fault-tolerant, future-ready, and capable of enduring across centuries.

Note: All figures as of June 1, 2024, unless otherwise indicated.

1. Reflects assets under management from the private equity channel across GIG funds. 

2. Gains figure represents gains (realised and unrealised) LTD as of June 30, 2024. 

3. As of March 31, 2024.

*AUM is presented as of 6/1/2024, unless otherwise noted. AUM includes the net asset value, plus outstanding leverage and asset-based financing undrawn amounts, in respect of private investment funds, certain co-investment vehicles and accounts for which GIG provides investment management or advisory services, as well as capital that such funds, vehicles and accounts have the right to call from investors pursuant to the terms of their capital commitments as of 3/31/2024 and additional fundraising commitments and fund, vehicle and account liquidations through 6/1/2024. In the case of GIG-managed business development companies, AUM reflects their total assets (i.e., gross of any fund-level liabilities) plus asset-based financing undrawn amounts, as well as capital that such companies have the right to call from investors pursuant to the terms of their capital commitments. With respect to GIG-managed collateralised loan obligations, AUM reflects the face amount of debt and equity outstanding. 

At Goneke Investment Group, we are driven by two primary and closely aligned priorities:

1. Catalysing transformative development across Africa and beyond, with a particular emphasis on infrastructure, energy, and technological innovation—the foundational engines of long-term, sustainable growth.
2. Delivering exceptional, risk-adjusted returns for our investors.

Unlike many firms in our industry, we are not simply stewards of other people’s capital—we are among our own largest investors. Partners and family members at GIG have made significant personal commitments to our funds, far exceeding industry norms. While conventional private equity or venture capital firms typically contribute around 1% of a fund’s capital (the so-called GP “commitment”), at GIG, our internal stake is substantially higher. This alignment ensures that our incentives are not theoretical—they are financial, personal, and deeply rooted.

Historically, alternative investments offered a reliable path to achieve both meaningful impact and attractive returns. However, over the past two decades, much of the industry has underperformed, with many firms prioritising scale over substance. Only a select few have consistently delivered true value. At GIG, we see this not as a warning, but as a challenge—a call to reimagine what disciplined, high-conviction investing can look like in the 21st century.

Across Africa, the link between energy and prosperity is immediate and undeniable. Wherever reliable, affordable power flows, businesses grow, schools thrive, hospitals function, and new industries take root. Whichever direction the causality runs, the reality is this: a future of shared African prosperity will be a future that consumes significantly more energy—especially in regions where per capita consumption still lags far behind global averages. But conventional energy sources—especially fossil fuels—remain entangled in a web of environmental costs, political volatility, and in some regions, geologic scarcity. At the same time, much of Africa remains energy-poor despite being resource-rich, a paradox shaped by underinvestment, infrastructure gaps, and fragile grids. Alternative and renewable sources of energy represent a historic opportunity—but one that has yet to be fully realised.

Despite billions of dollars pouring into clean tech globally, real energy costs continue to rise, and many African countries still struggle with high tariffs, frequent outages, and over reliance on imports. The root problem is not just generation—it’s generation at scale, at price points low enough to transform access, not just extend it marginally. Too many so-called energy innovators fall into the same trap: trying to be “almost as good” as traditional power sources, rather than so much better that customers can’t afford not to switch. But progress is rarely made by near-equivalents. Imagine if mobile money in Kenya were just a slower, more complicated version of bank transfers—it wouldn’t have taken off. M-PESA succeeded because it was radically simpler, faster, and more accessible. Energy must follow the same path.

At Goneke Investment Group, we are not looking for incremental tweaks to legacy systems. We are looking for transformative energy solutions that leapfrog: scalable, decentralized, low-cost, and durable innovations—especially those tailored to African contexts. Whether that’s next-generation solar micro grids, small-scale hydro, geothermal, or off-grid storage technology, the goal is the same: to deliver energy that outperforms traditional models in affordability, reliability, and scalability.

And our ambitions go further. We are seeking solutions that can significantly advance human energy consumption toward higher Kardashev levels—not just in theory, but in practice. The Kardashev scale measures a civilization’s energy mastery: from controlling local resources (Type I), to planetary (Type II), and beyond. Africa cannot and will not remain at the margins of that trajectory. With the right investments, the continent cannot only meet its growing needs—it can become a laboratory for the energy systems of the future. Africa is too vast and too dynamic for one-size-fits-all solutions. But we believe the next energy revolution won’t just come to Africa—it will come from it. The question is whether we are bold enough to invest not in improvements to old models, but in building entirely new ones—with Kardashev-scale ambition and local intelligence.

Few things are more fundamental—or more powerful—than food. In Africa, the story of food is the story of resilience, culture, and survival. But it is also a story of missed potential. Despite having 60% of the world’s uncultivated arable land, the continent still imports billions of dollars’ worth of food annually, and too many communities remain vulnerable to supply shocks, climate disruptions, and undernutrition. We believe this paradox is not a permanent condition—it is an investment opportunity.

Food systems are not just about calories—they are about power, independence, and productivity. The ability to feed one’s people affordably and reliably is one of the clearest indicators of a nation’s strength. Yet Africa’s food infrastructure is fragmented, its value chains undercapitalised, and its productivity levels well below global standards.

This is not due to a lack of talent or resources—it’s due to a lack of scale. Too much of Africa’s agriculture is smallholder-based and rain-fed. Too few systems are mechanized, digitized, or vertically integrated. While there is important work being done in regenerative farming, agroecology, and climate-smart techniques, these innovations have not yet translated into mass-scale resilience or abundance.

At Goneke Investment Group, we are not interested in marginal gains or token sustainability. We are looking for food solutions that can transform access, increase yields by orders of magnitude, and build entire industries—from processing to cold storage to supply chain logistics. The challenge is not just growing more food, but growing it in ways that are profitable, scalable, and climate-resilient. Think of it as shifting from survival agriculture to sovereign agriculture.

As with energy, too many agri-tech companies aim to be "almost as good" as the status quo, rather than leapfrogging it entirely. What we need are innovations that make nutritious, locally grown food more affordable than imports, that empower African farmers to be exporters instead of subsistence producers, and that create real value for consumers and investors alike.

Our long-term vision is to back companies and platforms that elevate food systems toward planetary scale—where African countries are not just self-sufficient, but food-secure and food-dominant in global markets. Just as the Kardashev scale tracks a civilization’s energy progress, we might imagine a Food Sovereignty Scale—with nations moving from dependence to resilience to surplus. That is what we are investing for.

Africa does not lack potential. It lacks infrastructure, capital, and coordination. At GIG, we intend to supply all three—and in doing so, unlock the food abundance the continent is capable of achieving.

Health is the foundation of human productivity, dignity, and economic potential. Yet across much of Africa, healthcare systems remain fragile, underfunded, and reactive rather than preventative. While the continent has made significant strides in fighting communicable diseases, far too many Africans still lack access to consistent, affordable, and quality care—particularly in rural and peri-urban areas.

Goneke Investment Group believes that radical investment in health is not only morally urgent—it is economically transformative. A healthy population is a more productive population. A stronger health system is a magnet for talent, capital, and innovation. In the 21st century, health is not merely a social good—it is a strategic asset.

We view biotechnology as the single most powerful frontier in global health. But while medicine has advanced in theory, outcomes have not kept pace—not in Africa, and not globally. Life expectancy gains have stalled or reversed in some regions, and rates of chronic illness are rising. The number of novel, high-impact therapeutics reaching the market remains well below expectations, especially given the scientific breakthroughs of the past century.

It’s a paradox: we’ve decoded life, but we haven’t fully leveraged that knowledge. The reasons are not mysterious. Biotechnology is still held back by three core bottlenecks:

1. Data Scarcity
   Africa is often left out of global genomics data sets. This exclusion limits the effectiveness of therapies, the development of personalized medicine, and the accuracy of AI models trained on non-African populations.
2. Capital Intensity
   Biotech development requires large sums of patient capital and a tolerance for long R&D cycles. Few African institutions can meet this demand, and most foreign capital still avoids African biotech ventures due to perceived complexity.
3. A Medieval Discovery Process
   Drug discovery remains slow and inefficient—reliant on trial-and-error, outdated models, and regulatory inertia. Many researchers work in silos, and most African biomedical ecosystems lack the infrastructure to support advanced experimentation, data sharing, or clinical trials at scale.

At GIG, we see opportunity where others see barriers. We are interested in biotech and health ventures that can leapfrog legacy models—by harnessing AI for discovery, integrating African populations into global genomic initiatives, and building scalable infrastructure for diagnostics, drug production, and health logistics.

Just as Genentech revolutionised medicine with recombinant insulin, we believe that Africa can host the next wave of biotech breakthroughs, especially in areas uniquely relevant to the continent: malaria, sickle cell disease, fertility, antimicrobial resistance, and nutrigenomics, among others.

Moreover, we believe in investing not just in treatments, but in platforms—companies that fundamentally change how care is delivered, how knowledge is shared, and how fast discoveries move from lab to bedside. The analogy is clear: if the 20th century was about fighting disease, the 21st must be about building health infrastructure as durable as roads, power plants, and ports.

Ultimately, our goal is to support ventures that move the continent—and the world—toward longer, healthier, and more productive lives. If energy systems can evolve toward Kardashev scales, health systems should evolve toward what we call "Vitality Sovereignty": a future where African countries own, operate, and scale their own medical breakthroughs, setting new global standards in wellness, science, and resilience.

Real estate is not just about land and buildings—it is about how people live, work, and build the future. In Africa, where population growth, urbanization, and a rising middle class are reshaping demand, real estate is one of the most powerful levers for long-term economic transformation.

At Goneke Investment Group, we view real estate through a developmental and strategic lens: We are not just investing in properties—we are investing in platforms for human progress.

Africa is the fastest urbanizing region in the world. By 2050, over 1.5 billion Africans will live in cities. But the built environment is not keeping pace. Across much of the continent, the real estate sector is trapped in a cycle of informal expansion, underinvestment, and mismatched supply. From Lagos to Lusaka, Nairobi to Dakar, there is a shortage of affordable housing, quality commercial space, resilient infrastructure, and dignified urban environments.

The problem is not lack of demand—it is lack of coherent execution.

We believe this is a defining opportunity. GIG targets real estate investments that serve real economic needs—not speculative overbuilds or vanity towers. We seek to fund the ecosystems that enable:

• Affordable and dignified housing, delivered at scale using modular, sustainable, and locally adapted methods.
• Mixed-use developments that integrate commerce, mobility, and community—catalysing inclusive urban growth.
• Modern industrial and logistics parks to support manufacturing, intra-African trade, and food security.
• Knowledge and innovation districts, including medical, research, and educational hubs.
• Urban resilience projects, such as green buildings, water-sensitive design, and climate-resilient public infrastructure.

Moreover, we see digitisation, land titling, and governance reform as essential complements to any real estate strategy. Without clear ownership structures, market liquidity and access to capital remain stifled. GIG backs platforms that unlock land value and democratize real estate finance—from blockchain-enabled registries to housing microfinancing tools.

We are particularly interested in "city-as-a-platform" models—developments that think beyond real estate as product, and toward real estate as infrastructure, enabling broader economic and societal value.

Just as the railways shaped economies in the 19th century, we believe urban form will shape prosperity in the 21st. At Goneke, our real estate investments are designed to do more than generate returns—they are built to create legacy, expand dignity, and anchor Africa’s economic takeoff.

The tyranny of distance is one of Africa’s most persistent barriers to development. Despite growing urban centres and a young, mobile population, Africa remains the least connected continent—within itself and to the world. The result is costly: fragmented markets, inefficient logistics, stunted trade, and limited access to opportunity.

At Goneke Investment Group, we view transforming transportation as a generational opportunity. Better mobility enables economic growth, regional integration, and human flourishing. The 20th century proved this elsewhere; the 21st century must prove it in Africa.

Over the past two centuries, each leap in transportation technology—railways, automobiles, aviation—unlocked new levels of economic coordination and scale. But in Africa, these transformations are incomplete. Roads remain underbuilt and undermaintained. Rail is either colonial-era legacy or non-existent. Air travel is prohibitively expensive and overly centralized. Intra-African trade is shockingly low—less than 15% of total trade—largely due to logistical and regulatory friction.

This is not just an infrastructure problem—it’s a systems problem.

The past three decades have seen astonishing advances in logistics, autonomy, electrification, and aviation. But few of these breakthroughs have reached Africa at scale. What’s needed now is bold capital, forward-looking regulation, and infrastructure that is designed for Africa, not copied from elsewhere. That means solving for affordability, distributed geography, and minimal legacy constraints.

Our thesis is clear:

Africa’s economic destiny is intimately tied to its ability to move people, goods, and ideas faster, cheaper, and more reliably.

GIG is particularly interested in ventures and platforms that:

• Leapfrog traditional models through electrified, modular, or autonomous vehicles (especially in freight and public transport);
• Build resilient and climate-smart infrastructure (including road-rail hubs, urban transport systems, and cold chains);
• Enable frictionless logistics and digital trade (through AI-driven supply chains, e-commerce corridors, and seamless customs processing);
• Develop regional transport corridors that bind economies together and reduce dependence on extractive export routes;
• Reimagine urban mobility for Africa’s fast-growing cities (e.g., micro mobility, BRT, and intelligent traffic systems).

We believe the next decade will be defined by a wave of investment into infrastructure with intelligence—networks that not only carry people and goods but also data, insights, and productivity gains. Done right, transportation becomes not just a cost centre but a platform for growth. And just as the transcontinental railroads opened the American West, we believe Africa’s next generation of transport corridors—whether physical, digital, or aerial—will unlock a new era of continental cohesion, trade depth, and economic sovereignty.

Goneke stands ready to finance, build, and partner with the pioneers of this transformation.

Water is the foundation of life, yet in many parts of Africa, it remains the scarcest resource. In an age where capital flows freely across borders and data moves at light speed, hundreds of millions of people still lack reliable access to clean, safe water—an unacceptable contradiction in the 21st century.

At Goneke Investment Group, we view water not as a charity issue, but as a cornerstone of civilisation and an underpriced asset class. Just as roads and energy grids were the defining infrastructure of the 20th century, we believe water infrastructure will define the resilience and prosperity of African nations in the 21st.

Africa is water-rich—but infrastructure-poor. The continent holds vast underground aquifers, powerful rivers, expansive lakes, and generous rainfall patterns. Yet poor storage, inefficient distribution, pollution, outdated systems, and limited investment continue to trap millions in cycles of water insecurity. Climate change only compounds this challenge.

We believe this represents one of the most investable opportunities of our time.

Water is the silent enabler behind every pillar of development:

• Agriculture cannot scale without irrigation.
• Industry cannot operate without cooling and processing systems.
• Cities cannot grow without clean, piped water and effective sanitation.
• Health systems cannot function without hygiene infrastructure.
• Education suffers when girls and children walk miles each day to fetch water.

Despite its importance, water infrastructure remains vastly underfunded, in part because it doesn’t always generate immediate returns or headlines. But that is where GIG sees strategic upside.

We are focused on:

• Scalable water storage and treatment systems—from municipal to micro-grid level;
• Decentralized purification technologies for rural and peri-urban communities;
• Wastewater recycling and circular water systems for industrial zones and cities;
• Digitized water networks that reduce loss, monitor usage, and create intelligent pricing models;
• Climate-resilient infrastructure that ensures supply under drought and flood conditions;
• Water-as-a-service models that shift capex burdens and create stable, recurring revenue.

The challenge is not one of scarcity, but of coordination, capital, and political will. Our view is simple: water should be treated as essential infrastructure, priced responsibly, and built for generational durability. The payoff is not just economic—it is deeply societal.

We are especially interested in building water infrastructure that feeds productivity—enabling agriculture, powering industry, and anchoring entire communities. We believe in platforms, not one-off wells; in aquifers and reservoirs, not just boreholes; in policy reform, not just pipes.

Much like energy, water access is strongly correlated with economic development. And just as we aim to push humanity toward higher energy consumption levels on the Kardashev scale, we believe Africa must accelerate toward a future of full water sovereignty—where every nation can independently provide its people and industries with the water they need to flourish.

GIG invests in water because water is not only life—it is leverage.