08 September 2023

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), both members of the World Bank Group, have finalized an agreement to support the activities of telecommunications operator Safaricom Ethiopia.

Safaricom Ethiopia will benefit from financing of US$257.4 million and guarantees for US£1 billion, to cover the investments of its shareholders over the next ten years.

World Bank support should make it possible to accelerate the growth of Safaricom Ethiopia, which aims to repeat in Ethiopia the success of Safaricom in Kenya. The company launched its commercial activities in October 2022 and continues the gradual deployment of its network which already covers 22 cities in the country.

These various initiatives should enable Safaricom Ethiopia to be more competitive in the Ethiopian telecom market which is undergoing full liberalization. It is currently dominated by the incumbent operator Ethio Telecom, which had 72 million subscribers as of June 30, 2023, including 34.3 million subscribers to the Telebirr mobile payment service. In addition, a second private telecom operator should soon enter the market.

“With the arrival of IFC as a financing partner, its experience in global operations and the prestige of their investment bring much praise and respect to the Board of Directors. We look forward to their input to help us move forward in the Ethiopian market,” said Michael Joseph, then Safaricom chairman of the Board.