WIOCC VI Debt (IFC-51154)

Countries
  • Congo, Democratic Republic of
  • Nigeria
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Financial Institutions
  • International Finance Corporation (IFC)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Approved
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
B
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Dec 5, 2025
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
WEST INDIAN OCEAN CABLE COMPANY LTD
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Communications
  • Infrastructure
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 20.80 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Project Cost (USD)
$ 577.00 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Bank Documents
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ IFC website

Updated in EWS Jun 8, 2026

Disclosed by Bank May 13, 2026

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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

Accorind to bank provided information, the proposed IFC investment comprises a senior secured sustainability-linked loan (“SLF”) of up to US$20.8 mn to WIOCC’s subsidiaries: WIOCC Mauritius (“WIOCC MU”) (US$ loan) and OADC PropCo South Africa (“OADC SA”) (ZAR loan), jointly referred to as “WIOCC Group”. Both entities are existing IFC clients under the 2024 SLF loans (#48053 and #49887) https://disclosures.ifc.org/project-detail/ESRS/48053/wiocc-slf-loan and WIOCC MU is a client under IFC’s 2020 loan (#44202); https://disclosures.ifc.org/project-detail/SII/44202/rse-covid-wiocc. IFC also holds a 10% equity stake in WIOCC Holding Company; WIOCC III equity in 2022 (https://disclosures.ifc.org/project-detail/ESRS/41580/wiocc-iii);

This current project is considered an extension of WIOCC SLF loan (#48053) and OADC SLF Loan (#49887) which also sought to enhance connectivity and data hosting services for individuals and businesses in Africa. Proceeds from the new transaction will support WIOCC in expanding its network through further deployment of subsea and terrestrial cables to extend coverage in South and West Africa and increase data center capacity, primarily in Nigeria and South Africa as well as leverage the existing metro infrastructure to expand its Open Access Metro business improving fiber connections to estates and businesses for ISPs in Lagos and other States of Nigeria.

WIOCC was established in 2007 for the development and operation of submarine and terrestrial fiber optic cable networks. In 2019, WIOCC established Open Access Data Centres (OADC) to expand into the development and operation of open access data centres, and in 2024, it established Open Access Metro Services (OAMS) to offer open access wholesale fibre-to-the-home/business (FTTx) infrastructure to internet service providers (ISP). Currently, WIOCC offers connectivity solutions throughout 30+ countries in Africa, operates 6 data centres in South Africa, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with a combined installed capacity of 5.6 MW, and provides fibre-to-the-home/business (FTTx) services in Nigeria.

In 2007, IFC along with other development finance institutions (DFIs), approved loan financing for the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy, Project #25340), in which WIOCC was a majority shareholder. In 2022, IFC acquired a minority equity stake in WIOCC (Project #41580 and approved a new loan in 2024 (Project #48053) for the refurbishing of existing data centres in DRC, Johannesburg and Durban and the construction of new data centres.

The proposed IFC loan and parallel loans, which are partly mobilized by IFC, will help fund capital expenditure plans to expand WIOCC’s pan-African data centre network across the Target Countries, fund the expansion of WIOCC’s FTTx business in Nigeria, and fund capacity and network expansion for the connectivity business. IFC’s proposed financing package includes an equity investment of up to US$50 million and a sustainability-linked loan of up to US$20.4 million equivalent (a US$10 million tranche and a South African Rand tranche of US$10.4 million equivalent).

The project’s principal activities include: (a) acquiring capacity from existing submarine cables, (b) expanding data centre infrastructure, (c) growing the new fiber-to-the-home/business (FTTx), and (d) investing in terrestrial fibre. Key efforts are focused on increasing data centre capacity in South Africa and Nigeria through the construction of a new block at the Lagos (Lekki) Data Centre and the expansion of the current facility in Durban. Concurrently, connectivity efforts will add bandwidth by securing more capacity on major submarine cables like Equiano, EASSy, 2Africa West, and 2Africa Gera. The FTTx component will be implemented in partnership with a local ISP, with only limited last-mile construction expected.

Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.

The total Project cost is estimated at US$577 million, to be financed with a combination of equity, new debt (US$65 million), and internal cash generation supported by already signed customer contracts. IFC’s proposed financing package includes, a US$ denominated sustainability-linked loan of up to US$10 million equivalent and a Rand denominated sustainability-linked loan of up to Rand 185 million (approximately US$10.7 million equivalent).   

Private Actors Description
A Private Actor is a non-governmental body or entity that is the borrower or client of a development project, which can include corporations, private equity and banks. This describes the private actors and their roles in relation to the project, when private actor information is disclosed or has been further researched.

WIOCC Holding Company Limited (WHCL) is currently owned by a private equity Fund, African Capital Alliance, IFC, Management and 10 African telecommunication operators namely: Dalkom Somalia, Djibouti Telecom SA, Lesotho Communications Authority, Mocambique Telecom, S.A, Office National Des Telecommunication du Burundi, Telkom Kenya Limited, Tel-One (Private) Limited, Uganda Telecom Limited, BoFiNet, and Zanzibar Telecom Public Limited Company.  

The West Indian Ocean Cable Company (WIOCC) Group is a top pan-African digital infrastructure provider, offering open-access data centres and high-capacity fibre networks across Africa. WIOCC Holding Company Ltd, its parent company, provides wholesale broadband connectivity linking African countries to Europe and beyond. WIOCC Holding Company has been a client of IFC since 2007. 

WIOCC Holding Company Limited (WHCL) is currently owned by a private equity Fund, African Capital Alliance, IFC, Management and 10 African telecommunication operators namely: Dalkom Somalia, Djibouti Telecom SA, Lesotho Communications Authority, Mocambique Telecom, S.A, Office National Des Telecommunication du Burundi, Telkom Kenya Limited, Tel-One (Private) Limited, Uganda Telecom Limited, BoFiNet, and Zanzibar Telecom Public Limited Company.  

 

Private Actor 1 Private Actor 1 Role Private Actor 1 Sector Relation Private Actor 2 Private Actor 2 Role Private Actor 2 Sector
- - - - WEST INDIAN OCEAN CABLE COMPANY LTD Client Communications

Contact Information
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WIOCC Mauritius Limited
Samuel Ndungu
Chief Financial Officer
+254720571010
samuel.ndungu@wiocc.net
Level 2, Alexander House, Silicon Avenue Ebene, Cybercity 72201 Republic of Mauritius
www.wiocc.net

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

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ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF IFC/MIGA

The Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO) is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by an IFC or MIGA- financed project. If you submit a complaint to the CAO, they may assist you in resolving a dispute with the company and/or investigate to assess whether the IFC is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. If you want to submit a complaint electronically, you can email the CAO at CAO@worldbankgroup.org You can learn more about the CAO and how to file a complaint at http://www.cao-ombudsman.org 

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