Persistent has reached first close for the Persistent Africa Climate Venture Fund with $52 million in commitments and a $5 million venture building facility, according to a press release.

The Mauritius-based climate technology investment firm aims to raise $70 million for the Persistent ACV Fund and use the money for pre-seed through Series A equity investments, as well as follow-on capital for selected portfolio companies.

Persistent developed the fund in collaboration with FSD Africa Investments, the investments division of FSD Africa, a development agency funded by the UK Foreign Office.

FSD Africa Investments was an anchor investor in the Persistent ACV Fund with a $10 million commitment. The other anchor investors were the Nordic Development Fund (NDF) and the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) from the African Development Bank (AfDB), according to Persistent.

NDF said in a separate statement that it had committed $12.5 million to the Persistent ACV Fund, split between $10 million for the fund and $2.5 million for the venture building facility. Dutch development bank FMO said it put in the other $2.5 million for the facility.

Elsewhere, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) agreed to provide $10 million to fund, with $5 million in a junior tranche and $5 million in a catalytic tranche. The Soros Economic Development Fund (SEDF), the impact investment division of the Open Society Foundations, supplied $7 million, while Impact Fund Denmark added $4 million.

JICA’s commitment marked its first investment through the blended finance programme that it announced at the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD 9) in August last year.

The Persistent ACV Fund has a blended capital structure that gives private investors first loss and priority return protection.

Two foundations – the Schmidt Family Foundation and the Cottier Donzé Foundation – also committed to the fund, according to Persistent.

The Persistent ACV Fund could act as a catalyst for $450 million in additional investment and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 17 million tons.