Private equity investment company Convergence Partners has successfully closed its Convergence Partners Digital Infrastructure Fund (CPDIF) at $296-million, surpassing its initial target by more than 18%.

The CPDIF is aimed at driving digital inclusion across Africa and will invest in digital infrastructure opportunities, including fibre networks, data centres, wireless, towers, cloud, Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and other critical digital infrastructure that is vital for the growth of the digital economy, across sub-Saharan Africa.

In addition to investing in physical assets, the CPDIF is also aimed at developing and supporting initiatives that promote access to education, financial services, healthcare and other essential services through digital technologies, Convergence Partners says.

The close was backed by a combination of existing and new investors comprising leading global and regional development finance institutions, pension funds and financial institutions based in Europe and Africa.

“The closing of CPDIF is a major step forward for Convergence Partners and for the development of the digital economy in sub-Saharan Africa,” says Convergence Partners CEO and founding partner Brandon Doyle.

“This closing is just the beginning, and we look forward to working with our investors and partners to build the digital infrastructure required to support the growth of the region's digital economy. We strongly believe such collaborations promote innovation, entrepreneurship, skills development and job creation by vastly expanding access to the Internet, as well as all the essential digital tools it provides.”

The past 20 years have seen Internet penetration in sub-Saharan Africa grow exponentially owing to investments in enabling infrastructure.

Since inception, Convergence Partners has seen the need to invest in this space, motivated at the time by the United Nations specialised agency International Telecommunication Union The Missing Link/Maitland Report. Years later, there is still more work to be done if we wish to close the digital divide and ensure that Africa is able to reap the benefits from the current and next iteration of the technologies, says Doyle.

Convergence Partners is committed to continuing to support the growth and development of the region's digital economy through investments in critical digital infrastructure, noting that it has played a crucial role in ensuring the sustained growth of digital technologies across sub-Saharan Africa.

“We are extremely grateful for the continued support of our repeat investors and the new support given to us from first-time investors that have joined us on this journey to address the challenge of digital inclusion across the continent, one technology at a time,” says Convergence Partners chairperson and founding partner Andile Ngcaba.

“As we are seven years away from 2030, we commit to addressing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and preparing digital infrastructure for Africa, which is soon to be home to two-billion people, with the youngest population on our planet.

“We will continue to build on our original vision by investing in digital infrastructure that is a key enabler for digital inclusion. This CPDIF will enable us to continue leveraging our deep knowledge of technology, investments and the African market to deliver measurable impact,” he adds.