InfraCredit joins the 2X global network

Lagos, 30 September 2024: InfraCredit, a ‘AAA’-rated specialized infrastructure credit guarantee institution, is pleased to announce its membership with the 2X Global, a global network and field-building organization for investors, capital providers, and intermediaries. This initiative is aimed at unlocking gender-smart capital at scale and advancing women’s economic empowerment and agency.

This aligns with our commitment to fostering gender inclusion and promoting equal opportunities for everyone. With a well-defined approach we aim to close gender-related gaps and analyze the impact of our guaranteed projects on both men and women.

InfraCredit’s gender mainstreaming strategy presents a significant business opportunity, as integrating gender considerations into our processes at the firm and portfolio level is crucial to achieving both commercial and development impact. The gender dimensions of access to employment, services, benefits, and exposure to risks are increasingly recognized as vital factors in the design and delivery of effective infrastructure projects. InfraCredit’s approach to gender mainstreaming will enhance female representation at the firm level and demonstrate how gender considerations can be integrated across the project lifecycle, from project design and implementation to monitoring and evaluation.

The success of InfraCredit’s Gender Mainstreaming Strategy is anchored in its Theory of Change, which prioritizes continuous learning and adaptation. We leverage our Monitoring, Learning & Evaluation (MEL) Framework, to track specific gender indicators on a quarterly basis. This data-driven approach allows us to redefine our strategy continually, ensuring maximum effectiveness, impact and outcomes.

InfraCredit’s gender impact is measured at the: Market Level where it creates opportunities for gender focused investors/ sources of capital, Project level where it provides access to finance for female-led credit worthy infrastructure projects that meet its eligibility criteria and lastly, the End User level where our activities will result in improved infrastructure access that is inclusive and reliable leading to increased economic growth and social development.

Speaking on InfraCredit’s membership in the 2X network, Jessica Espinoza, CEO of 2X Global, said “Infrastructure and hence infrastructure investment, is central to our everyday lives, determining how our societies function, where we live, work, play and are educated and how we get around. This is why it’s important to have gender-smart infrastructure investment partners who are versed in and will advocate for inclusive infrastructure development and policies. Within our 2X Global network, our members are already doing the work and research to advance these issues, so we know that InfraCredit will find community here, with opportunities both to learn and to contribute their insights and experience.”

Making infrastructure and infrastructural development more gender-smart so that it meets the diverse needs of all individuals, influencing how they function and how we get around. We know that infrastructural investment plays a critical role in shaping our communities and economies. The nexus of gender lens investing, and infrastructure is truly the frontier of the future, so we’re thrilled to have InfraCredit as part of our 2X Global community.

Commenting on InfraCredit’s membership in the 2X Global network, Chinua Azubike, CEO of InfraCredit, stated: “Our unique approach to leveraging guarantees, mobilising domestic resources and deepening local capital markets for inclusive infrastructure development is a powerful tool that can unlock local capital at scale from the private sector to reduce socio-economic inequalities and promote gender inclusion on a sustainable basis. InfraCredit’s gender mainstreaming strategy is a strong demonstration of our commitment to equality, equity and inclusion, and joining 2x Global is a natural evolution for us as we look forward to building partnerships to catalyse gender-smart domestic investments for an inclusive, and sustainable future.”

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For more information, please contact:
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company PLC​​​
Media Enquiries: [email protected] 
Guarantee Enquiries: [email protected]
Enquiries pertaining to 2X Global Membership: [email protected]
Phone: +234 6312300

Note to the Editor

About InfraCredit
InfraCredit is a ‘AAA’ rated specialised infrastructure credit guarantee institution backed by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, InfraCo Africa (The Private Infrastructure Group Company), KfW Development Bank, Africa Finance Corporation, African Development Bank and domestic institutional investors – Leadway Assurance Company Limited and AIICO Insurance Plc, to provide local currency guarantees and mobilize long term debt financing for infrastructure in Nigeria.

InfraCredit’s guarantees act as a catalyst to attract domestic credit from pension funds, insurance firms and other long-term investors into credit-worthy infrastructure projects, thereby deepening the Nigerian debt capital markets. InfraCredit operates on a commercial basis with a developmental role and benefits from private sector governance. InfraCredit maintains the highest domestic financial strength ratings accorded to any financial institution by Agusto and Co. and Global Credit Ratings Co., two of the major domestic credit rating agencies and international rating agency, Fitch Ratings.

InfraCredit’s guarantees promote (i) financial inclusion, by bringing first-time borrowers to the domestic bond market, (ii) financial deepening, by extending bond tenors for corporates, and by broadening bond investor bases, and (iii) financial innovation, by introducing new fixed income instruments such as green bonds.

InfraCredit is a Harvard Business School (HBS) Case Study and has been part of the HBS Curriculum for first-year MBA students since 2018.