Investors update: Safaricom Ethiopia finalizes $257m deal with the IFC.

Safaricom Ethiopia finalizes $257m deal with the IFC

Highlights

• Safaricom Ethiopia will receive $257.4 million in funding from the World Bank Group to support the telco’s projects aimed at boosting mobile connectivity in Ethiopia.
• The funding will come from equity investments, a loan, and guarantees through the Bank’s private investment arm: International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).
• Initially announced in June, the IFC and the consortium finalized the agreement this week. The IFC will lend the consortium $100 million and invest $157.4 million in Global Partnership for Ethiopia BV (GPE) to support the greenfield projects. 

Source: Techpoint Africa

Our Takeaway

Ethiopia is Africa’s second most populous country, with a population of approximately 120 million. When it launched services last October, Safaricom Ethiopia became the first private telecom operator in the country, one of the world’s last telecom monopoly markets. The investment and guarantees will help the company roll out and operate 4G and 5G mobile networks across the country – including in rural and urban areas. Furthermore, under a license granted in May 2023 by the Central Bank of Ethiopia, Safaricom Ethiopia also plans to launch financial services under its M-Pesa brand name.

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Airtel Kenya to invest $150m in network expansion

Highlights

• Kenyan telecom operator Airtel Kenya plans to spend at least $150 million over the next three years to expand its network coverage by setting up an additional 649 new network sites across the East African country.
• The company has made over $1 billion worth of investments in the country since its inception with the majority of investments made in the last three years, according to data shared by CEO Ashish Malhotra. 
• That amount is what the telco requires for incremental investments in the coming two to three years from a network perspective alone, he said, revealing plans for more shops, launching affordable routers, etc.

Source: Zawya

Our Takeaway

Across Africa, there have been rapid advancements in the telecom industry driven by increasing investments by local and foreign operators like Airtel Africa. More importantly, the company’s network expansion drive comes at a crucial time when the rollout of the 5G network is accelerating on the continent – helped by greater clarity around spectrum licensing and issuance. Although the affordability of 5G devices remains a major roadblock to adoption, Airtel plans to roll out affordable gadgets while its investments in network expansion will provide significant capacity to accommodate continued growth in data services in the country. 

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Fla6labs supports Egypt’s nascent construction tech space

Highlights

• Makers, the construction technology (contech) accelerator launched by Flat6Labs in partnership with SIAC and Dar Al-Handasah (Shair and Partners), has announced that it will award the selected startups up to $100,000 each.
• The program will also grant access to pilot projects, industry experts, mentorship, business training, one-on-one consultations, coaching sessions, networking opportunities, and essential resources to cultivate and scale their businesses. 
• The programme will initially focus on Egyptian entrepreneurs, before expanding to Saudi Arabia and subsequently to the wider Mena region.

Source: Wamda

Our Takeaway

Compared to other sectors like financial services or e-commerce, Africa’s construction industry has typically moved at a slower pace when it comes to embracing innovation or digitalization. But that’s not for the lack of exciting startups in the space working to tap opportunities in an industry expected to continue to grow sustained by mega infrastructure projects and efforts to address Egypt’s housing deficit. Due to its less popularity, players in this space struggle to secure early-stage funding and support, highlighting the importance of the Makers program.