EAAIF, Ninety One to invest $30 mln in Africa digital infrastructure

JOHANNESBURG, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Private infrastructure group Emerging Africa & Asia Infrastructure Fund (EAAIF) and fund manager Ninety One said they will invest $30 million in digital infrastructure in Africa in a joint statement.

KEY DETAILS

• EAAIF, part of Private Infrastructure Development Group, which is managed by Ninety One, is investing $15 million in pan-African telecommunications infrastructure provider WIOCC.

• Ninety One also committed $15 million in local currency to Open Access Data Centres, a subsidiary of WIOCC, to construct a new data centre in South Africa and expand existing facilities.

• The investment will help WIOCC to boost services across more than 30 countries and increase its infrastructure network.

• The capital will be used to significantly strengthen existing networks, invest in new high-capacity communications corridors and upgrade data centres.

• The funding forms part of a total $65 million debt raise, which includes a $20 million commitment from the International Finance Corporation, the World Bank private sector arm, and $15 million from Proparco, a unit of France's state development agency.

CONTEXT

• Internet usage in Africa has been rapidly rising but is still lagging behind many other regions in the world. Africa internet penetration reached 40% in 2024 compared to 3.2% in 2005, according to the World Bank. More than 600 million people in Africa use mobile broadband internet but 900 million people remain offline and 76% face a "usage gap.