Luxembourg, 23/10/2007 (Agence Europe) - As we announced last week (see EUROPE 9525), the European Investment Bank (EIB) has just signed a €15 million loan to TVCabo in Angola to support the development of the information and communication technologies (ICT) sector. TVCabo was established in 2002 and is owned by a partnership between Angola Telecom, the national telecommunication operator, and the Portuguese Visabeira Group. This is the first EIB loan in Angola in over 15 years and is a clear sign of the Bank's commitment to economic growth in this post-conflict country.
The loan will help to finance the construction of a broadband and bi-directional digital network in and around Angola's capital, Luanda. The EIB says the project will create benefits for the consumer and corporate markets, providing high-speed internet, radio and TV broadcasting. Although ADSL has been available in Angola since the end of 2003, access has been severely limited to date due to the poor quality of the fixed line network. The construction of the broadband network by TVCabo will not only tackle the problem of access head-on, but will eventually allow for the development of a wider range of high-value ICT services such as interactive TV, video-conferencing and telemetry. In financing the TVCabo project, which is fully in line with the Bank's strategy in the ACP (Africa, Caribbean, Pacific) countries, the EIB will provide long-term funding that would otherwise not be readily available on such terms to a private sector company. (O.L.)