‘Poverty Itself Is an Indignity’: One Fund Manager Vows Change
DPI’s Runa Alam explains how she achieves growth and impact with private equity investing in Africa
Runa Alam learned about the power of money early in life and vowed to use it for good. After studying development economics with Nobel Laureate Arthur Lewis at Princeton, she focused on gaining private-sector training at Harvard Business School, Morgan Stanley, and some early emerging-market private equity funds. In 2007 she co-founded London-based Development Partners International, or DPI, to invest across Africa. Alam, who turns 62 in January, spoke with Bloomberg Markets in October about how her fund combines a focus on growth as well as on impact. The interview was edited for length and clarity.
MELISSA KARSH: What led you to what you do today?