he African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) will commit up to $200 million to Telecom Egypt (TE) to enable the telecommunication company finance working capital and investments in its infrastructure under a deal coordinated by the Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank-Egypt.
The agreement for the short-term dual tranche facility, signed in Cairo on Monday, provides for TE to utilise the facility for the acquisition of a cross-border marine cable, which will enhance the volume of internet flow into Egypt and other African countries, and to finance working capital needs of the company.
Dr. George Elombi, Executive Vice President, Governance, Legal and Corporate Services, signed the agreement on behalf of Afreximbank while Ahmed El Beheiry, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Telecom Egypt, signed on behalf of his organisation.
The facility is expected to contribute in significantly expanding Internet access across a number of African countries that will benefit directly from the undersea cable, which supports Egypt’s plan to become a regional hub for internet and telecommunication services for other African countries.
Dr. Elombi said that the transaction had a direct impact on the development of the regional infrastructural network that served as a lifeline for many African countries, noting that the it would make help unlock the full potentials of telecommunications and deliver the much-needed developmental impact on the African continent.
The transaction would strengthen transmission services by local and international operators through Telecom Egypt’s partial and full ownership in the consortiums of undersea cables which carry telephone, internet, multimedia and broadband data applications between Africa and other regions, he added.
Mr. El Beheiry described the facility as “an integral step in providing the necessary liquidity to finance our working capital requirements and the necessary funding for investment at the lowest possible cost.”
Mohamed Ali, CEO and Managing Director of ADIB, expressed satisfaction at his organisation’s involvement in “a transaction of this size” and described it a testament to ADIB-Egypt’s commitment to supporting cooperation efforts by local and international companies and institutions.
Since Inception in 1993, Afreximbank has approved and disbursed credit facilities totalling about $14 Billion in favour of Egyptian corporates and financial institution.