MIGA Insures EcoPlanet Bamboo in South Africa
MIGA Insures EcoPlanet Bamboo in South Africa
Sustainable agriculture project will restore degraded land, bring investment and jobs
Washington, February 24, 2015 – The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)—the political risk insurance and credit enhancement arm of the World Bank Group—announced today its support for an investment that will contribute to sustainable agricultural development in South Africa’s Eastern Cape region.
MIGA is providing a guarantee of $8.6 million covering an equity investment by EcoPlanet Bamboo Group LLC of the United States in EcoPlanet Bamboo South Africa. The investor has purchased degraded land in an impoverished area to convert into bamboo plantations for the production of activated carbon and bio-charcoal that will be sold to local and export markets. MIGA is covering the project against the risks of transfer restriction, expropriation, and war and civil disturbance for a period of up to 10 years.
EcoPlanet Bamboo’s investment into South Africa is part of the company’s international expansion that aims to effectively replace the global deforestation of our planets natural forest with a sustainably grown alternative fiber and green-technology solutions across multiple industries.
In 2012, MIGA provided an investment guarantee for EcoPlanet’s bamboo plantations in Nicaragua. This investment recently caught the attention of the U.S. Department of State, which named EcoPlanet Bamboo in Nicaragua a winner of an Excellence in Business award that recognizes companies playing vital roles around the world in supporting values such as sustainable development, respect for human and labor rights, and environmental protection.
We’re pleased to continue our support for EcoPlanet’s sustainable investments that bring jobs and skills to areas of high poverty and unemployment,” said Keiko Honda, MIGA’s Executive Vice President and CEO.
“MIGA’s investment insurance has been fundamental in helping us manage risk while realizing our vision of deploying conscious capital to generate triple bottom line results—financial, social, and environmental,” says Troy Weisman, EcoPlanet Bamboo’s CEO.
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MULTILATERAL INVESTMENT GUARANTEE AGENCY
A Member of the World Bank Group
1818 H Street, NW, Washington, DC 20433
MIGA Contact:
Mallory Saleson, MIGA
Tel: +1 202 473-0844
E-mail: msaleson@worldbank.org
Rebecca Post, MIGA
Tel: +1 202-473-1964
E-mail: rpost@worldbank.org
Cara Santos Pianesi, MIGA
Tel: +1.202.458.2097
E-mail: csantospianesi@worldbank.org