UK government invests US$180 million in African fibre network

News and Business

Liquid Telecom has received a US$180 million cash injection from the UK government investment firm CDC Group Plc, to enable the pan-African telco to expand its fibre network to some of the most under-served communities across Africa

The investment will aid citizens and the business start-up ecosystem with the availability of high-speed broadband and cloud-based services.

CDC Group says it aims to support companies that “help poor countries grow”. The investment will help extend Liquid Telecom’s Cape to Cairo (South Africa to Egypt) terrestrial fibre link, often referred to as the “One Africa” broadband network, that took ten years to complete.

Nic Rudnick, group CEO at Liquid Telecom, said: “CDC Group’s investment will enable us to accelerate expansion along our Cape to Cairo route and further into Central and Western Africa. Once completed, it will bring significant economic and social benefits, providing access to online educational resources, creating more jobs and driving the adoption of new technologies.”

Nick O’Donohoe, CEO of CDC Group, said: “Digital infrastructure is still a major problem for Africa’s governments, people and its businesses, so improving access to affordable and quality internet is central to Africa’s development and economic growth. Our investment, one of our biggest, plays an important part in addressing infrastructure bottlenecks and helps bring about the innovation and efficiency gains that result from better internet access.”

Liquid Telecom recently said it would be investing US$400 million in Egypt over the next three years, as part of a major partnership with Telecom Egypt that includes expanding and improving network infrastructure and data centres.

For more information, visit www.liquidtelecom.com