Convergence Partners says its Convergence Partners Digital Infrastructure Fund (CPDIF) has reached its first close at $120 million as it moves to boost digital inclusion in Africa
The fund, which is targeting a final size of $250 million, seeks to improve digital infrastructure and boost access to the internet in Africa.
Africa remains the most underserved continent in terms of broadband and access to digital technology despite advances in the rollout of digital infrastructure.
There is a massive investment opportunity that still exists to address digital inclusion in Africa, with the World Bank estimating that more than $100 billion of capital is required to bring sub-Saharan Africa to acceptable levels of digital access by 2030.
The Chief Executive Officer of Convergence Partners, Brandon Doyle, thanked investors, such as Colonial Development Corporation (CDC Group), Development Finance Corporation (DFC), European Investment Bank (EIB), International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Proparco, for their support.
‘We are very pleased with the level of support from both repeat and new investors and believe this reflects our solid track record and the opportunity CPDIF presents at this crucial time in both a tech and African context’, Doyle said a statement.
‘Today, Africa is experiencing the highest growth in international internet bandwidth compared to any other region in the world’, Chairman of Convergence Partners, Andile Ngcaba, added.
‘As we embark on this journey as CPDIF, the next twelve years will be spent continuing to build on our original vision of ubiquitous pan-African communications’.
CPDIF investments, according to the statement, will be driven by the infrastructure needs of emerging growth themes in the digital infrastructure ecosystem, specifically fibre, wireless, data centres, towers as well as 5G, cloud, Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), fintech, and network virtualisation.
CPDIF is a continuation of the strategy that has been successfully implemented by Convergence Partners since its inception in 2006 across its funds under management.
Source: Africa Global Fund
Photo source: Erik (HASH) Hersman
