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UN SDG Contribution

As part of ARCH's Fund strategies to drive positive development outcomes, we invest in companies that directly or indirectly contribute to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG).

Supporting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals

ARCH supports the development of resilient, sustainable economies by strengthening local communities and ecosystems. When assessing ESG risks and opportunities, we evaluate how portfolio companies can make a meaningful difference in the markets where they operate.

ARCH is proud to be contributing to the following UN SDG:

Contributions to Communities and Ecosystems

UN SDG Supported

Directly and/or indirectly mitigate climate change.

  • Bringing commodities to global markets that contribute to the low carbon economy transition.
  • Investing in climate solution businesses.
  • Reducing post-harvest food loss.
  • Decreasing air pollution in rural communities by displacing diesel generators and kerosene lamps.

Improve access to good quality food without seasonal price fluctuation.

  • Developing cold chain infrastructure that enables access to fresh food at more affordable prices.

Enable or increase access to energy and business activities in rural communities.

  • Establishing solar home system connections and microgrids in Africa's rural communities.

Enhance communities’ livelihoods and local social infrastructure, with a particular focus on those that are vulnerable and disadvantaged.

  • Developing cold chain storage facilities that helped improve living conditions of smallholder farmers and women through economic growth in the agriculture industry.

Reduce future public sector health cost and improve healthcare offerings, particularly pharmaceutical availability and efficacy.

  • Investments in a mining company enabled them to provide sanitary and medical facilities for local communities.
  • Developing cold chain infrastructure to maintain and deploy critical medicines such as the COVID-19 vaccine.

Enable economic growth via diversification and creation of value-added businesses, and expansion of export markets.

  • Construction of cold chain storage facilities, mines and renewable energy infrastructure that helped drive local job creation.
  • Cold chain facilities enable local businesses to continue operating year-round, leading to stability and growth.

In 2022, the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program’s (ESMAP) Grids for Half a Billion People: Market Outlook and Handbook for Decision Makers named ARCH one of the top 20 investors globally investing in mini-grids between 2010 and 2022. Specifically, ARCH made the Investors Funding Early-Stage Scale Up category, which includes top investors with average deal sizes of $5-10 million.

ESMAP aims to help low and middle-income countries reduce poverty and boost growth through sustainable energy solutions. Through their partnership with World Bank Group, ESMAP works to accelerate the energy transition required to achieve UN SDG 7 to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.