With renewed business interest, France’s largest telecoms firm Orange plans to invest in the Ethiopian telecom market in East Africa. During a meeting held between State Minister of Finance, Eyob Tekalign and CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa, Jerome Henique on May 18, discussed the investment opportunities in the telecom sector and how to...
An investment consortium led by Zimbabwean businessman Edd Branson is mobilising a US$100 million fund to obtain holdings in mobile network providers in Benin, Chad and Gambia. According to Zimbabwean outlet bulawayo24.com, the consortium – operating under the New York-based Afri-USA Business Initiative – has already put in bids that collectively total US$30 million for a...
The African Development Bank (AfDB) recently penned a $525 000 grant agreement with Africa Fintech Network (AFN) for the setup of the Africa Fintech Hub, an online portal that will serve as a one-stop shop for all fintech activities in Africa. The deal will see AfDB’s Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Facility (ADFI) provide funding and...
Telecom operator Vodacom has offered to invest R 60 billion in South Africa over the next five years. Vodacom has already invested R 50 billion over five years in 2018. This latest substantial investment is expected to contribute significantly to enhancing network resilience to keep customers connected, further accelerating Vodacom’s rural coverage program. Shameel Joosub, CEO...
As digital transformation accelerates, Africa remains underserved when it comes to data center capacity. The continent needs 1,000MW of IT capacity and 700 installations to meet demand according to a report by Oxford Business Group. Data center operator Raxio Group announced on Monday (April 17th) that it has obtained a USD 170 million loan in several...
The World Bank has approved a USD400 million credit for the Digital and Energy Connectivity for Inclusion in Madagascar Project (DECIM) that will contribute to connecting an additional 3.4 million people to the internet and doubling energy access in the country. According to the World Bank, the project will focus on deploying infrastructure and mobilising...
The African Development Fund (ADF) has approved $3.9 million grant to finance the upgrade of Liberia’s payments infrastructure and systems. The project’s primary objective is to strengthen the payments ecosystem in Liberia for increased efficiency and to foster growth and innovation. It targets the automated cheque processing and automated clearing house and real-time gross settlement...
Airtel Africa has disclosed its intention to roll out $750 million in capital expenditure this year to ramp up its mobile-money business across the continent as part of efforts to sustain investment in infrastructure. The telecom giant with mobile divisions in 14 countries shared this via a media chat. Similarly, the group chief executive officer...
After nearly five years in the making, Nigeria has unveiled a $618 million investment programme, to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in the digital, technology and creative industries targeted at job creation. Nigeria vice president, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, who presided over the launch of the Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises (I-DICE) programme, revealed the project...
The Ugandan government wants to accelerate its digital transformation as part of its socio-economic development program. Kampala had started its journey towards digitalization in 2016, notably with the financial support of the World Bank. The Ugandan government has secured an 1.8 trillion shillings (486.7 million USD) loan from the World Bank to expand internet access in...
