Editor’s note: African-Startups is a sister publication of EU-Startups, bringing trusted coverage of startups, venture capital, and innovation across Africa.
Africell, the only US-owned mobile network operator in Africa, has received a $99.6 million direct loan from The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM).
The financing for Africell comes from the Trump administration as the US takes necessary steps to restrict the growth of China’s Huawei in Africa.
“We are pleased to be working with EXIM to introduce more trusted communications infrastructure to our operating markets. In doing so, we are flying the flag for American technology leadership and creating secure pathways for future American and allied digital technologies to be deployed in sub-Saharan Africa, including in the Lobito Corridor region,” said Ziad Dalloul, founder, CEO and president of Africell.
Founded in 2000, the US-owned and London-headquartered Africell is a fast-growing mobile network operator with a pan-African footprint, providing telecommunications services including voice and SMS products, data services, and a mobile money platform called Afrimoney. It employs more than 1,500 people and operates in four sub-Saharan African markets: Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Sierra Leone and The Gambia.
Africell launched service in The Gambia in 2001 and Sierra Leone in 2005, before expanding into DRC in 2012 and Angola in 2022. Its Angola business has grown rapidly and the company says its internet services there have been rated the best in the country.
“Africell’s fast growth in Angola and DRC and our long-term market leadership in Sierra Leone and The Gambia demonstrate the unique benefits that high-class American technology, skills and investment can bring to Africa,” added Dalloul.
According to Africell, the loan will allow the company to invest in the latest American and European mobile network technology for its Angola business, while also supporting employment in the US telecoms sector and strengthening American technology leadership abroad.
The company also noted that the loan forms part of a wider US commercial push to expand access to electricity, transportation and communications in Angola and neighbouring countries, including a commitment of more than $5 billion toward the Lobito Corridor for railway upgrades, bridges and broadcasting infrastructure.
“The quality and results achieved through partnerships with the United States and American companies speak for themselves. This is a win for both our countries: American technology and a more prosperous, more connected Angola,” said Chargé d’Affaires Shannon Nagy Cazeau of the US Embassy to Angola and Sao Tome and Principe.
The company said the partnership carries benefits for ordinary Angolan consumers as well, arguing that broader, more reliable connectivity, greater competition, better coverage and a network built to US private-sector technical standards will follow, with secure American equipment helping Angola diversify its technology sources, maintain national control, and strengthen resilience against cyberattacks and information-security threats.
