According to a project note on IFC’s disclosure portal and guidance from its Startup Catalyst program, the agency typically backs seed funds with commitments ranging between $4 million and $6 million.

Catalyst Fund—an Africa-focused pre-seed and seed investor and venture builder—plans to channel capital into startups developing adaptation and resilience solutions.

Its investment theses center on three themes: fintech that helps households and firms manage climate risk; sustainable livelihoods, especially in agriculture and land restoration; and climate-smart essential services such as water, clean energy, cold-chain and waste management.

The fund’s stated goal is to write initial pre-seed checks and follow on at seed and Series A as companies scale.  While IFC did not publish a country-by-country allocation, Catalyst Fund’s recent portfolio activity shows a pan-African footprint that aligns with the vehicle’s target markets.

Over the last two years, the fund has backed climate startups operating in (among others) Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, Tanzania, South Africa, Morocco, Senegal and Uganda—an arc that mirrors its stated geographic mandate.

The proposed IFC commitment would provide a development-finance backstop to a manager that has already reached a first close on the $40 million strategy and is well-positioned in Africa’s growing climate-tech corridor.

Catalyst Fund’s climate-resilience platform, endorsed by the Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance and profiled by the Climate Policy Initiative, underscores its focus on adaptation over pure mitigation and on pairing capital with hands-on venture-building support.

The move also comes amid a broader build-out of climate-oriented private capital on the continent.

If approved, IFC’s ticket would be consistent with its strategy of seeding local early-stage managers through the Startup Catalyst platform to unlock more private investment into nascent tech ecosystems.

For climate adaptation in particular, that capital is aimed at founders building tools that help communities prepare for, withstand and recover from climate shocks, segments Catalyst Fund says it will finance.

Editor’s note: As of publication, IFC’s disclosure describes the investment as “considering,” not finalized; board decisions can differ from proposed terms. Readers can track status changes on IFC’s project disclosure site.