KIT workshop on Impact Investing in Africa at AfricaWorks

From the perspective that ‘the best case for an impact investor is to show impact’, KIT organizes this Thursday November 10 at AfricaWorks 2016 the workshop Impact Investing in the African Agricultural Sector: Measuring What Matters.

In a lively talk show format, we will discuss the latest insights and emerging issues from the practice of impact investing. Together with experienced impact investors and evaluators, KIT experts will dive into the real world of impact investing.

Impact investing differentiates itself from ‘conventional investing’ by aiming at social and environmental returns next to conventional financial returns. Investors, banks, accountancy firms and consultancy agencies from the conventional investing sphere have perfected the monitoring and measurement of financial returns over the last decades to extreme professional, effective and efficient levels. Can the same be said for measuring social and environmental impact?

In practice, such impact is often reported through self-assessments such as digital ‘fill in yourself’ forms. On the other extreme, academics and public inspection agencies conduct large impact evaluations requiring impressive efforts and financial resources. How should social investors navigate between these two extremes? What are the most prominent challenges to them? What are the ways forward? And more fundamentally, which effects are we really measuring, which effects do we want to measure, and for whom?

In the session, speakers from Leapfrog Invest (Karima Ola, Partner), Root Capital (Scott Overdyke, Senior Programs and Planning Manager), Anthos Fund and Asset Management (Dimple Sahni, Senior Director) and PYMWYMIC (Maarten van Dam, Managing Director) will share their latest insights and explore novel challenges. All speakers are active in agricultural investments in Africa. KIT will be represented by one of its specialists in impact measurement, Roger Bymolt (Senior Advisor), bringing the latest findings to the event.