Unfazed by the prospect of a prolonged economic downturn, Harith General Partners and Pembani Remgro Infrastructure Fund have taken a stake in a $296m (R4.5bn) project to upgrade Zimbabwe’s Beitbridge border with SA, one of Africa’s busiest land border crossings.

Harith is an infrastructure-focused private equity fund manager that was formed over a decade ago and counts Absa and Old Mutual among its shareholders. Pembani Remgro Infrastructure Fund was founded in 2012 by former MTN CEO Phuthuma Nhleko and Johann Rupert, chair of Remgro, one of SA’s investment heavyweights...