US EXIM Backs Pan-African Mobile Network Operator Africell Angola with $99.6 Million Direct Loan

WASHINGTON / LUANDA — The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) is backing pan-African mobile network operator Africell Angola with a $99.6 million direct loan to deploy advanced telecommunications infrastructure and expand network architecture across Angola.

For Angolans, the partnership with the US government translates into broader, more reliable connectivity, increased market competition, superior coverage, and a network engineered to exacting US private-sector technical standards. Utilizing secure American equipment helps Angola diversify its technology sources, safeguard national control, enhance digital resilience, and strengthen protections against cyberattacks and security threats.

Expanding Digital Horizons Along the Lobito Corridor

This EXIM loan forms a vital component of a broader US commercial initiative expanding access to electricity, transportation, and communications in Angola and neighboring countries. This includes a commitment exceeding $5 billion toward the Lobito Corridor for investments in railway upgrades, bridges, and broadcasting. Demonstrating this engagement, Africell released Lobito Bound in 2025, a feature documentary highlighting US investment in the Lobito Corridor produced with U.S. State Department support, which is currently streaming worldwide on major platforms like Prime Video and Apple TV.

“Africell’s fast growth in Angola and DRC and our long-term market leadership in Sierra Leone and The Gambia demonstrate the unique benefits that high-class American technology, skills and investment can bring to Africa,” stated Ziad Dalloul, Africell’s CEO, president and founder.

Commenting on the diplomatic and economic alignment, Chargé d’Affaires Shannon Nagy Cazeau of the U.S. Embassy to Angola and Sao Tome and Principe noted that the collaboration represents a clear win for both nations through advanced American technology and a more connected Angola.

US EXIM Bank lends Africell $99.6 million for technology investments in Angola

The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) has announced a $99.6 million direct loan to Africell, the only US-owned mobile network operator in Africa

Africell