Orli Arav is a noted development finance and impact investing expert with 20 years of experience, Ms. Arav has led notable private sector investments in infrastructure across Africa and served in leadership and advisory roles for over a dozen organizations. She is a guest lecturer at the London School of Business, Co-Founder and former Chief Investment Officer of Impala Energy, and served as Director of Investments at the Soros Economic Development Fund. Orli is currently the Managing Director of the Facility For Energy Inclusion (FEI), a dedicated debt fund for small-scale Independent Power Producers (IPPs), mini-grids and captive power projects in Africa.
Education and infrastructure are what made her native country Israel a success, Orli says. And that’s one reason why she’s so passionate about her development work in Africa:
“When I was born, my country was 20 years old. We didn’t have much and we had to solve a lot of problems. So I think something in my culture with me was, ‘Let’s find solutions. Let’s get on with things.’
Orli shared her motivation in taking on this new opportunity: “I am passionate about innovation in Africa, I believe the continent with its young population and enterprise spirit can leapfrog some of the biggest obstacles and drive prosperity. Factor[e] is in the nexus of this trend, I am thrilled to be joining Factor[e] Board to grow its impact on the continent.”
A fund manager, development advocate and food entrepreneur, Ada Osakwe is the Managing Partner of Agrolay Ventures, which makes early-stage investments in food, technology, and agribusiness ventures. Ms. Osakwe is also the founder and Managing Director of Nuli, a fresh beverage manufacturer and farm-to-table restaurant brand in Lagos, Nigeria with a mission to galvanize a healthier lifestyle for millions of people through fresh, locally-grown food.
Ada spoke about the new role: “I’m absolutely thrilled to join the brilliant and visionary team at Factor[e] to help amplify their work promoting pivotal capital to founders in emerging markets who are solving some of the world’s toughest problems.”
Advancing Factor[e]’s mission
“In addition to a wealth of practical and intellectual skills, Orli and Ada lend layers of diversity—in terms of professional and cultural backgrounds—to our board. It’s also important to us to have women across the most senior levels of management and governance, which reflects our values and will improve our performance and overall impact.
Orli and Ada will lend us a deeper understanding of the cultural and economic contexts in which we work. They’ll help us identify opportunities in new markets. Their experience and perspectives will also play a key role in incubating and scaling our portfolio companies.
In addition to their other shared qualities, both of our new directors have a way of reframing obstacles as opportunities. Factor[e] will be strengthened by their experiences, perspectives and clarity of purpose,” said Morgan DeFoort, Managing Partner of Factor[e] Ventures.
The appointment of Ms. Arav and Ms. Osakwe to the Factor[e] Board of Directors builds on the fund’s commitment to gender equity. Factor[e] strives for a diverse and inclusive portfolio and they recognize how imperative it is to incorporate gender in the investment process. Doing so not only improves financial results, but gender equity also improves social, environmental and governance outcomes. In order to add uniquely impactful directors to its Board, Factor[e] partnered with TheBoardroom Africa (TBR Africa), the largest regional community for female executives in Africa and the diaspora, to support its search for exceptional female candidates.
According to TBR Africa Founder and CEO Marcia Ashong, “When companies like Factor[e] Ventures come to us seeking help in their search for high-level, executive women leaders they are setting an example for other companies to do the same. Partnering with our organization means that Factor[e] is taking the initiative to seek out the most impressive female executives in Africa to aid in their company’s mission and make real impact.”
Factor[e] Ventures acknowledges the importance of diverse expertise in achieving their mission of bringing disruptive innovation and sustainable development in energy, agriculture, mobility, and waste to the world’s fastest-growing markets.
About Factor[e] Ventures
Factor[e] Ventures is a team of ventures builders dedicated to supporting the growth of early stage, technology-enabled companies solving challenges in energy, agriculture, mobility, and waste in emerging markets. For more information, please visit http://www.factore.com/
About TheBoardroom Africa
TheBoardroom Africa (TBR Africa) is the largest regional network of female executives in Africa. Our goal is to improve access to board opportunities for women and accelerate the presence of women on boards by working with development finance institutions, private equity investors and companies and companies to accelerate the appointment of women on boards and build a growing pipeline of board-ready women while inspiring and educating the business community on the power of diverse leadership.
Contact Name: Morgan DeFoort
Organization: Factor[e] Ventures
Email: [email protected]
SOURCE Factor[e] Ventures
