Orange invests €50m in Africa digital start-ups
June 12, 2017
Orange is strengthening its corporate venture strategy by creating a new Africa section in its flagship programme for investment in start-ups, Orange Digital Ventures. As part of this initiative, the Group is committing €50 million corresponding to half of the direct investments made via its new Orange Digital Ventures Africa programme; the other half is devoted to indirect investments through specialised funding for Africa.
Orange Digital Ventures Africa is the Group’s investment vehicle for early-stage innovation project. The objective is to target start-ups offering responses to Africa’s fundamental challenges while leveraging the operator’s assets on the continent. This support will concern all innovative start-ups, whether they are based geographically in Africa or they address African issues from another continent.
A dedicated team based in Dakar will be set up next September for the programme in order to respond to the start-ups’ need for responsiveness and simplicity. T
Pierre Louette, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Orange and Chairman of Orange Digital Ventures, commented: “Since the beginning of Orange Digital Ventures, the new services and business models in Africa have been one of the priority investment themes of our corporate venture business. With this announcement, we are engaging a bit further alongside the African digital ecosystem, which like everywhere else and maybe even more than elsewhere carries with it a development challenge.”