Kenya’s Mawingu has raised $20M from PRIF II to expand internet access across rural Africa

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Mawingu, East Africa’s largest Internet Service Provider (ISP) dedicated to rural and peri-urban markets, has secured a $20 million investment from Pembani Remgro Infrastructure Fund II (PRIF II), a leading African infrastructure investment fund. This strategic funding will accelerate Mawingu’s mission to scale inclusive, sustainable internet access across underserved communities in Africa.

The investment is a significant milestone in Mawingu’s long-term expansion strategy, which aims to impact 1 million people across the continent by 2028 through a combination of disciplined acquisitions of local ISPs and the development of digital infrastructure in areas historically left behind due to high capital costs and geographic barriers.

Mawingu’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Farouk RAMJI, says, “As a multi-country operator on the continent with dedicated presence in the rural and peri-urban markets, this latest funding announcement marks a significant milestone for Mawingu, moving closer to our goal of positively impacting 1 million people in Africa by 2028.”

Internet access has been shown to deliver benefits for education, employment, and income, as well as promoting wider economic development. However, in many countries across the continent, rural and peri-urban customers tend to be unserved or underserved by existing broadband provision, and access costs can be prohibitively high.

To address this ‘digital gap,’ Mawingu, through a disciplined ‘buy-and-build’ strategy, acquires, builds, and operates sustainable networks which can be deployed in challenging rural and peri-urban environments. The identification and acquisition of other successful ISPs will rapidly broaden the scale of Mawingu’s impact, enabling the company to expand its network to strategic markets across the continent.

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The expansion strategy builds on Mawingu’s successful entry into Tanzania through the 2024 acquisition of Habari. Since the acquisition, Mawingu has secured a national license, added more than 3,000 home users, and extended Habari’s coverage to nine regions, including Arusha, Dodoma, Iringa, Manyara, Mara, Kilimanjaro, Mwanza, Morogoro and Shinyanga.

Leading the transaction from PRIF II’s perspective, Mr Ridwaan TAYOB says, “Mawingu’s track record of disciplined growth and innovation in underserved markets makes them an ideal partner for PRIF II. This investment reflects our confidence in their ability to scale sustainably across Africa, and we’re excited to support their mission of expanding meaningful connectivity where it’s needed most.”

The limited adoption of fixed broadband in Sub-Saharan Africa represents a missed opportunity for inclusive digital and economic growth. While mobile internet is more widespread, household-level fixed broadband remains accessible to only around 12% of households. The World Bank has found that a 10% increase in broadband penetration can raise GDP growth by 1.38% in developing countries.

For more information: contact press@mawingu.co or visit www.mawingu.co

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