Rural Area Power Solutions (RAPS), the multidisciplinary energy business that provides a range of services in the energy field, recently launched a R51 million energy fund, in conjunction with Absa, the Shell Foundation and the European Union. The fund has been set up to assist and finance small and medium enterprises in providing affordable, modern energy services. The fund has been established under the name ETEF (Empowerment Through Energy Fund).
ETEF will have a strong development focus and all deals will comply with the fund`s definition of black economic empowerment. The fund will invest in energy enterprises, both start-up firms and companies in the early stages of expansion. Ultimately this will assist energy-poor communities in gaining access to improved energy services in an environmentally and financially sustainable manner.
RAPS Finance has signed an agreement with Caritor (Africa), the local division of global software engineering company, Caritor Inc, to assist it in the bespoke development and implementation of a fund management system, "Fund Manager". The program will be used to manage and monitor the investment process between RAPS Finance, its clients and investors, and provide RAPS Finance with a management information system for the effective control of multiple investment funds.
Caritor is currently developing the software for RAPS Finance and is backed by 10 years of expertise in software development, database management, Internet technology, e-commerce and e-business applications.
"The reason why we chose Caritor," says Chris Venter, CEO of RAPS Finance "is that we found a balance between experience, expertise and value for money. The process so far has been smooth, with a high level of interaction. The process also obliged us to scrutinise current systems and procedures, resulting in a best practice management system."
Louis-Marc Germishuys, MD of Caritor (Africa), says: "The software that Caritor is developing will have key functionalities that facilitate the entire fund management process; it is a comprehensive software solution for ETEF management and any fund management in general including international based funds."
Says Germishuys: "The solution we conceptualised is a Web-based application for a number of users with different levels of access. The initial solution will allow RAPS Finance to create and maintain their clients, it will incorporate a Correspondence Cabinet and the functionality to create and maintain a loan facility and multiple funds. The Performance Monitor will measure the performance of the fund, so enabling RAPS Finance to make sound management decisions. The system will capture the details of projected investments, disbursements and corroborate against the actuals for each portfolio manager and calculate the internal rate of return."
Both RAPS Finance and Caritor believe that "Fund Manager" will mature into a viable re-sellable product in the future.
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