What Savannah Impact Advisory does

Savannah Impact Advisory (SIA) is a Securities and Exchange Commission-licensed investment advisory firm headquartered in Accra, Ghana, founded in December 2017 by Hamdiya Ismaila. The firm operates a private Fund of Funds platform — its flagship Ci Gaba (Progress) Fund — that channels domestic institutional capital (pension funds, insurance companies, and asset managers) into underlying West African private equity, venture capital, and private debt funds. SIA's geographic mandate spans Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and Côte d'Ivoire, with a stated focus on financing "Missing Middle" SMEs and women-led enterprises via gender-lens investing constructs, including the Lady Angel Network.

The firm's core offering is curated fund-of-funds selection combined with a separately launched USD 5 million Technical Assistance Facility that supports underlying portfolio fund managers. SIA does not develop proprietary technology products; its differentiation rests on financial structuring expertise, due diligence on West African fund managers, impact measurement frameworks, and the founder's institutional relationships (including prior roles as a GSG Trustee, designer of GAIN, and Investment Committee member of the Mastercard Africa Growth Fund). The operating team is intentionally lean — CEO, Principal, two Investment Officers, two Investment Analysts, a Finance Manager, and an Admin & Governance Officer — supplemented by senior hires added in late 2025 and ongoing 2026 recruiting.

SIA's revenue model is asset-management-fee based on the Ci Gaba Fund, supplemented by advisory fees and, over time, carried interest on underlying fund realizations. The Ci Gaba Fund held a first close of GHS 383 million in March 2026 against a GHS 1 billion target, with a 70/30 institutional-to-catalytic capital split. Anchor LPs disclosed include Stanbic Investment Management Services and Cal Assets Management Company Ltd, with FSD Africa Investments and Small Foundation serving as catalytic anchors.

Name

Savannah Impact Advisory

Legal name

Savannah Impact Advisory Ltd

Website

https://siaghana.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

SEC-licensed Ghanaian investment advisor managing the Ci Gaba Fund of Funds, channeling domestic institutional capital into West African private equity, venture capital, and private debt funds serving Missing Middle SMEs across Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and Côte d'Ivoire.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Equity & Fund Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Open-End Investment Funds (52591), All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Impact / ESG Multi-Manager Platforms (FSANAGAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

ESG Integration / Responsible Investment Funds (Broad ESG) (FSANAJAL), Values-Based/ESG & Impact-Focused RIAs (FSAAACAK), Impact / ESG Venture Capital (FSANAAAG), Impact Investment & Development Investment Funds (BPADACAO), Capital Markets Advisory (IPO Readiness, SPAC, ECM/DCM Advisory) (BPAHAOAL)

Keywords

• Fund of funds management
• Private equity advisory
• Impact investing services
• Gender lens investing
• Fund structuring

Headquarters

HQ city

Accra

HQ country

Ghana

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Fund Management Fees: SIA earns management fees from managing the Ci Gaba Fund of Funds and other specialized funds. The firm structures and manages private market portfolios for institutional investors, generating recurring management fee revenue based on assets under management.
2. Investment Advisory Services: SIA provides advisory services covering fund structuring, impact investing strategy, and gender lens investing to fund managers and institutional investors, generating fee income for consulting and advisory engagements.
3. Performance Carried Interest: As fund manager of the Ci Gaba Fund, SIA earns carried interest from successful portfolio exits and fund performance, aligning manager incentives with investor returns.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Savannah Impact Advisory is a Ghana-based Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) licensed investment advisor and fund manager. It manages the Ci Gaba (Progress) Fund of Funds—a Ghana-domiciled vehicle with a GHS 1 billion target that invests in West African private equity, venture capital, and private debt funds backing SMEs. The firm delivers four service lines: fund structuring, private fund management, impact investing, and gender lens investing.

Product overview

Savannah Impact Advisory operates as a specialized investment advisory platform offering a unified service portfolio centered around its flagship Ci Gaba (Progress) Fund of Funds. The firm provides four interconnected service lines: Fund Structuring (designing and establishing investment vehicles), Private Fund Management (active management of private market portfolios), Impact Investing (developing and executing impact strategies aligned to SDGs), and Gender Lens Investing (embedding gender analysis into investment decision-making). The Ci Gaba Fund is the primary investment vehicle—a GHS 1 billion fund of funds that deploys capital into VC, PE, and private debt funds across West Africa, complemented by a Technical Assistance Facility for emerging managers. The Lady Angel Network supports gender-lens investing for women-owned businesses.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ci Gaba (Progress) Fund: The flagship Fund of Funds managed by Savannah Impact Advisory, purpose-built to back indigenous private fund managers across West Africa who invest in local SMEs with high growth and impact potential in productive sectors.
• Ci Gaba Venture Capital Limited
• Lady Angel Network

Products and services

• Ci Gaba (Progress) Fund of Funds A catalytic Fund of Funds managed by Savannah Impact Advisory that invests in indigenous private fund managers across Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and Côte d'Ivoire who back high-growth, high-impact SMEs in agriculture, agro-processing, light manufacturing, financial inclusion, health, and education. It is the first private fund of funds domiciled in West Africa with a gender lens mandate applied to every commitment.
• Fund Structuring Advisory Designing innovative financing structures for private funds tailored to West Africa's Missing Middle SMEs, covering fund formation, legal and tax structuring, and governance from inception through first close. Targeted at fund managers establishing investment vehicles in West Africa.
• Private Fund Management Full-lifecycle management of private funds including capital deployment, portfolio monitoring, and exit, with institutional-grade governance and reporting for LPs and co-investors. Delivered through fund investment, co-investment, secondaries, and managed account structures.
• Impact Investing Advisory Building portfolios that generate measurable environmental, social, and financial returns aligned to the SDGs. Leveraging the team's prior leadership of the Global Steering Group for Impact Investing to embed impact measurement across every investment commitment.
• Gender Lens Investing Advisory Directing capital to women-owned enterprises and women-managed funds through dedicated gender mandates and the Lady Angel Network. Gender lens is applied as a core, non-negotiable screening criterion across every fund commitment.
• Technical Assistance Facility A USD 5 million facility supporting emerging fund managers and portfolio companies with impact measurement, ESG reporting readiness, and back-office and governance strengthening. Operates alongside the Ci Gaba Fund to build institutional readiness.

Quantifiable outcome

• First close of GHS 383 million achieved in March 2026 for Ci Gaba Fund, representing 38% of GHS 1 billion target within record time.
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Impact Investing GhanacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerImpact Investing Ghana is the Ghana National Advisory Board affiliated with the Global Steering Group (GSG) for Impact Investing. SIA's CEO Hamdiya Ismaila chaired the taskforce that established Impact Investing Ghana, and the organization supports the Ci Gaba Fund through a cohort of supporters.
• GIZ-ICAMA (Innovative Capital Mobilisation in Africa)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSIA participated in the launch of the GIZ-ICAMA initiative during the World Economic Forum in January 2026. The initiative focuses on unlocking new pathways for capital to flow across Africa and strengthening collaboration between global investors.
• Pan-African Fund Managers Alliance (PAFMA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSIA was represented at the inaugural PAFMA conference held in Nairobi, Kenya. Discussions focused on ESG integration, sustainable and responsible investing strategies, and structuring capital to deliver strong financial performance.
• Ghana Angel Fund / Ghana Angel Investor Network (GAIN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCEO Hamdiya Ismaila was instrumental in designing GAIN and serves as a Director of the Ghana Angel Fund. These angel investment networks focus on investing in early-stage businesses and women-owned enterprises in Ghana.
• Lady Angel NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounded by CEO Hamdiya Ismaila, the Lady Angel Network is an angel network focused on investing in women-owned and women-led businesses. It represents SIA's gender lens investing philosophy at the earliest stages of the investment ecosystem.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Phatisa: Pan-African private equity fund manager operating multiple sector-focused funds across Sub-Saharan Africa. Comparable in fund-of-funds-style architecture and African SME/institutional LP focus, though with a direct investment model rather than fund-of-funds.
• GroFin: Africa-focused fund manager providing growth capital and technical assistance to SMEs. Strongly comparable to SIA in its missing-middle SME focus, technical assistance support model, and blended finance structure across African markets.
• Alitheia Capital: West Africa-focused private equity firm with a strong gender lens investing mandate and SME focus. Closest comparable to SIA in combining gender lens, West African SME focus, and blended finance approach; serves as the most direct peer in the regional fund-of-funds/gender-lens niche.

Regional players

• CardinalStone Capital: West Africa-focused investment management firm with private funds and institutional mandates. Comparable in targeting West African institutional investors and operating SEC-equivalent regulated vehicles, though without the fund-of-funds structure.
• Verod Capital Management: Pan-Nigerian private equity firm investing in West African growth-stage businesses. Comparable in targeting institutional LPs for West African private market exposure, though with a direct investment rather than fund-of-funds model.

Broad incumbents

• AfricInvest: One of the largest pan-African PE/VC asset managers with multi-fund platform across North and Sub-Saharan Africa. Comparable to SIA in operating a multi-manager private capital platform targeting African institutional investors, though at materially greater scale and broader geographic scope.
• Vantage Capital: Pan-African private capital firm managing mezzanine and private equity funds across Sub-Saharan Africa. Comparable in building institutional-grade African private capital vehicles, though primarily South African-anchored and with a mezzanine focus.

Emerging players

• XSML Capital: African fund manager focused on SMEs and the missing middle in Central and West Africa. Comparable to Ci Gaba in its SME focus and emerging-manager support thesis, though operating as a direct SME investor rather than fund-of-funds.

Others

• FMO (Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank): Dutch DFI and SIA partner. Comparable as an ecosystem participant and catalytic capital provider backing Ci Gaba, though operating at vastly greater scale as a direct investor rather than a fund-of-funds manager.
• British International Investment (BII): UK development finance institution active across African private capital markets. Comparable as a catalytic capital provider in the same ecosystem, though operating as a direct investor and LP rather than a fund-of-funds manager.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
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Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Savannah Impact Advisory