Challenge
Digital infrastructure globally faces growing investment from American adversaries that challenge U.S. national security interests. These adversaries are expanding state financing across Africa and other developing markets, embedding surveillance capabilities and creating structural dependencies that constrain partner sovereignty.
Despite being home to 20 percent of the world’s population, Africa remains the least-connected continent, with less than 40 percent of people using the internet in 2024 compared to nearly 70 percent globally. This digital divide presents an opportunity for American companies to expand their own operations and drive sustainable, economic growth across Africa.
African digital infrastructure offers several structural tailwinds for global and domestic investors, including global digitization trends, durable demand, large total addressable markets, and rising consumer incomes. Despite the investment potential, however, many investors remain reticent to enter the market due to a mix of high perceived risk, foreign currency risk, political uncertainty, and challenging operating environments.
Solution and Impact
DFC’s equity investment of up to $155 million in WIOCC Holding Company Limited is designed to reduce the digital divide and strengthen African digital infrastructure. This investment directly supports the growth of regional subsea cables, terrestrial fiber networks, and dozens of data center sites across more than 30 countries in Africa. DFC’s transaction is supported by co-investors Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and Vision Invest Limited.
WIOCC provides digital infrastructure and critical support to leading U.S. hyperscalers, and this investment expands the use of trusted vendor equipment from Western suppliers. It positions U.S. and allied infrastructure as the backbone of Africa’s growing digital economy and supports the proliferation of trusted telecommunications networks that do not utilize Chinese equipment.
WIOCC’s operating footprint (courtesy WIOCC)
This project leverages the power of investments, rather than foreign aid, to drive economic growth and extend resilient digital infrastructure across the continent. WIOCC business plans include considerable new investments throughout Africa to meet rapidly growing demand for digital services.
Digital connectivity is a foundational input for modern commerce, including e-commerce, mobile money, logistics, education, health services, agriculture technology, cloud computing, and small business growth. WIOCC’s open-access fiber and data center platform will help improve the availability of high-capacity connectivity for telecommunications operators, internet service providers, enterprises, U.S. cloud service providers, and public-sector users. WIOCC plans to expand its local workforce and create high-skill jobs across its markets.
This project was profiled in 2026.
Source: www.dfc.gov
