Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC has invested $100 million in two African-focused private equity players, Actis and RMB Westport, Deal Street Asia reported.

This is the first time that GIC, which has investment in the US, Europe and Asia, has invested in Africa.

It’s lack of direct presence on the continent could be one of the reasons why it decided to invest indirectly via Actis and RMB Westport, private equity portal PERE said in an exclusive report.

The state-owned investment arm said it was investing in Actis Real Estate Fund III that seeks to raise $400 million and RMB Westport’s Real Estate Development Fund II that’s looking for up to $450 million.

Including this commitment, both firms have already hit their fundraising targets with Actis reported to be above the $100 million mark, while RMB Westport beyond $240 million, estateintel.com reported.

Actis, an emerging markets private equity firm with $7 billion under management, has $4 billion invested in developing nations. According to information on its website, the fund realized $2.2 billion from a $867 million cash investment since it was established in 2004.

RMB Westport was founded in 2008 as a joint venture between Rand Merchant Bank and Westport Property Group. The fund has large scale construction, development and maintenance projects across Africa including Nigeria, Ghana and Angola.