Global alternative asset manager The Carlyle Group (CG) and Investec Asset Management, a global investment manager with African roots, have announced that they have agreed to invest in J&J Africa, a pan-African logistics company specializing in the road transportation of general cargo along the Beira corridor, one of Southern Africa’s key trade routes. Financial terms were not disclosed. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014.

Marlon Chigwende, Managing Director and Co-Head of the Carlyle Sub-Saharan Africa Fund, said: “Carlyle brings strong expertise working with companies in the transportation sector, along with deep experience in emerging markets, including Africa. We have a particularly strong track record in partnering with private, family and entrepreneurial firms and helping them expand to compete on a world stage. By building on J&J’s current service, as well as adding new offerings, we hope to better serve current and future customers in this fast-growing region. Further, J&J is well positioned to benefit from the fast growth across Southern Africa, particularly in Mozambique and Zambia.”

William Alexander, an Investment Principal in Investec Asset Management’s Private Equity team, commented: “Over the past decade, J&J Africa has built up the pre-eminent transport fleet and logistics infrastructure in the region. We look forward to working with J&J’s highly professional management team to realise our plans to grow the business further in the coming years.”

Founded in 1995, J&J has more than 18 years’ experience in cross-border transport within Africa. From their headquarters in Mozambique, the company has established itself as a reliable and efficient provider of transport and logistics services to a diversified, international customer base, according to the company. With 800 trucks and extensive storage infrastructure, J&J is well-placed to serve Southern Africa, home to some of the fastest growing economies in the world.

The investment, which was led by Carlyle, is the second investment by Carlyle’s Sub-Saharan Africa Fund, which invests in companies that support the emerging middle class across the Sub-Saharan Africa region. In November 2012, the Fund made its first investment in Export Trading Group, a global agricultural supply chain manager based in Tanzania. The investment is the seventh by Investec Asset Management’s Africa Frontier Private Equity Fund, which invests in established companies in Africa with the objective of supporting the creation of local or regional champions in their respective industries.