Duet Private Equity Group has acquired an Ivory Coast-based Societe Africaine des Produits Laitiers et Derives (SAPLED) from the Sifaoui Group through the creation of Duet Consumer Ivory Coast Holdings (DCICH).

The details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Henry Gabay, CEO, Duet Group: “We are delighted to be able to invest in and to partner with SAPLED- a hidden jewel in Ivory Coast- and Africa’s- fast-growing FMCG sector.”

Based in Abidjan, SAPLED is one of the largest dairy & fruit juice processing companies in Ivory Coast, as well as the exclusive owner of the Tampico fruit juice license in Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin and Guinea.

SAPLED was incorporated in 1985 and over the years has built up a portfolio of brands and products that are today well recognized across the regional market.

Alexandre Khawam, Vice-President at Duet Private Equity, said: “We couldn’t be more pleased to mark our entry into Ivory Coast with this investment and look forward to partnering with SAPLED’s management to drive the company’s continuing expansion in the region.”

Maty Ndiaye, Director at Duet Private Equity, added: “We see SAPLED as the right platform to build a leading regional business with the potential to grow its existing portfolio and launch new product lines.”

Duet believes that the food and beverage manufacturing sector in Francophone West Africa is well positioned for rapid growth.

Due to rising population and purchasing power, food consumption and mass grocery retail sales are expected to deliver double-digit annual growth for the next five years.

This growth is being driven by an expansion of the middle-class with growing purchasing power and a strong appetite for consumer products.

Gabay said that the latest acquisition follows Duet’s private equity investments in Ethiopia and Ghana, both also within the FMCG sector.

“Over the past five years, Duet Group has also invested in excess of $1.7 billion into the Sub Saharan Africa and Mena public markets. Our continuous investments in private equity are a natural extension of our investment philosophy for the region,” he said.

Duet Group has appointed Frederic Pecastaings as non-executive Chairman of DCICH, in order to provide strategic insight, drawing on 20 years of experience in emerging markets and his 15-year tenure at regional and world’s leading FMCG businesses, including 5 years at Danone.

Duet has also appointed Samir Farhat as CEO of SAPLED.

Farhat, an entrepreneur from Senegal who has led several businesses there, moved to Ivory Coast two years ago to join SAPLED as General Manager.

The Duet Africa Private Equity team was predominantly advised on the transaction by Dentons in Morocco and Deloitte in South Africa.