Integrated Talks with Namhla Saba Namhla Saba

Namhla Saba in this episode talks to Sibulele Ndandani a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with close to 20 years of experience in investment banking focusing on Africa private markets (debt and equity), corporate credit and project finance. She currently works at a pension fund as a capital allocator to funds across Africa.

With growing global climate change concerns and significant inequality and poverty challenges especially in Africa and other merging markets, capital plays a vital role in contributing towards alleviating some of these key challenges. Institutional investors are best placed to partner with general partners in allocating capital to deals and investments that can meet both the financial return and the imperative impact objectives.
 
 Namhla and Sibulele discussed the following:
 - What does the ESG integration landscape look like in Private Equity (General Partner) funds in Africa?
 -What are key considerations that emerging funds should consider when creating their policies and procedures to align with capital allocators' key imperatives?
 - What are the key considerations for reporting between underlying investment and the LP?
 - How are institutional investors navigating greenwashing/ impact washing in Africa?
 
 ESG integration is an important tool that helps GPs and LPs manage ESG risks while creating value for multiple stakeholders. However, a  recent study and report by PwC, surveying 300 general partners (GPs) and limited partners (LPs) in Europe, Asia Specific, the UK and the United States notes that Private Equity GPs have limited entrenchment of ESG considerations and that PE LPs attribute the lowest degree of strategic importance to ESG reporting.


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Namhla Saba, in this episode, discusses ESG integration into the core operations of the business. The key pillars that can help business leaders navigate the process of ESG integration.

ESG Integration into core business allows organisations to:
- Respond to their client's/customer's supply chain sustainability requirements
- Collect and analyse relevant data to support their sustainability assertions, hence avoiding greenwashing
- Systemically work towards meeting net zero targets
- Position themselves positively for raising capital through ESG funds

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Namhla Saba in this discusses the objectives of ESG and how it is applicable to business leaders and their day to day activities. It is becoming increasingly crucial for business leaders to understand ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) and its day-to-day application to business operations. Although ESG started as purely a risk management tool used by investors, it is swiftly moving into the core of business operations. It endeavours to encourage businesses to adopt sustainable business practices that 
- strengthen long-term ROI,  
- protect and preserve the environment,
 - unlock symbiotic relationships with communities and 
- build strong business ethics throughout the organisation.

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Namhla Saba and co-host Renoud Willemsen unpack "GREENWASHING" as it relates to business. We discuss
What is greenwashingHow greenwashing manifests its selfThe current incoming regulations and how they can affect business as usualHow business can avoid the greenwashing trap For the past two years, global regulators have been adopting laws that will heavily fine organisations found guilty of intentionally or unintentionally misleading consumers in their labelling, advertising and promotions."Greenwashing is regarded as false, unsubstantiated claims that are more marketing spin than transparent, traceable credentials".
 A 2022 study conducted by The Harris Poll for Google Clouds and reported by Axios noted that 58% of 1,491 “C-suite or VP-level executives at global corporations admitted their companies have engaged in some form of greenwashing. 

Understanding the different formats in which greenwashing manifests itself will allow you as business leaders to make informed decisions and create processes within the organisation that ensures greenwashing is avoided Terra Marketing in 2007 published the 7 ways organisations can avoid unintentional greenwashing

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Namhla Saba discusses impact measurement for SDG signed financing, with Reinoud Willemsen a partner at Embedding Impact. Approximately $3trillion-$4trillion are required per year to meet the SDG agenda. However, we understand that financing is an impact enabler; it does not always drive real change in communities. Hence understanding the importance of the impact value chain from deal-making to monitoring and review is essential to complement and support the impact driven by the financed projects and investments.

The discussion tackles the following questions, in an endeavour to equip investors make better-informed decisions about their investments:
- What should investors look for in the prospectus as it relates to the impact value chain?
- What is the impact value chain?
- What are the advantages of incorporating impact at the beginning of deal making?
- What can the investors use the impact reports for?

If you have any further queries or suggestions of topics you'd like us to pursue, contact us at namhla.saba@gmail.com