- International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Liquid Intelligent Technologies have joined hands to boost digital connectivity and the digital ecosystem of the continent.
- The primary objectives of the collaboration are facilitating universal and affordable broadband access, expanding data center capacity and rollout fiber-optic cable on the continent.
Broadband Commission on Sustainable Development has estimated that sub-Saharan Africa will require around $100 billion in investment to achieve universal, affordable, and high-quality broadband access by 2030. The continent needs at least 250,000 kilometers of new fiber to achieve universal broadband access. International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Liquid Intelligent Technologies have joined hands to boost digital connectivity and the digital ecosystem of the continent. The primary objectives of the collaboration are facilitating universal and affordable broadband access, expand data center capacity and rollout fiber-optic cable on the continent. Liquid Intelligent Technologies is Africa’s leading connectivity, innovation and intelligent technology company and has presence across 13 countries, primarily in Eastern, Central and Southern Africa.
IFC’s digital strategy in Africa focuses on enabling ubiquitous, reliable, and affordable connectivity. To achieve this, IFC has been supporting independent tower operators, data centers and broadband operators. It also extends support to mobile operators primarily in fragile and conflict situations (FCS) and low-Income International Development Association countries (LIC-IDA).
IFC had invested in Liquid technologies in February 2021 through Liquid’s bond placement on Euronext Dublin, Ireland’s main stock exchange that raised $620 million. The latest IFC’s equity and debt investments in Liquid Intelligent Technologies is around $250 million. The support will enable the company to enhance its hyper-scale data center capacity in Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa through its subsidiary, Africa Data Centres. IFC‘s support will also help Liquid Intelligent Technologies in the continued rollout of its fiber broadband network. Strive Masiyiwa, Liquid Intelligent Technologies Executive Chairman and Founder. Was confident that with IFC support, the company will be able to adopt new services such as Cloud and other digital services, that are critical in driving sustainable development across Africa.
