- Solar home systems provider Qotto has raised $8 million for its expansion in West Africa.
- This was part of a fundraising round arranged by IBL Together, a financial conglomerate based in Port Louis, Mauritius.
Qotto just finished a Series A round of fundraising with multiple investors to expand throughout West Africa. In a deal negotiated by Port Louis, Mauritius-based financial conglomerate IBL Together, the Neuilly-sur-Seine, France-based company raised $8 million.
In this round, a number of additional investors took part. This is the case with the Off-Grid Energy Access Fund (OGEF) of the African Development Bank (AfDB), which has already given Qotto $2 million in financing for 2021. Along with other current Qotto investors, the development aid organization Cordaid participated in the financing.According to Power Africa, the business intends to utilize the money raised to finance its entry into the markets of Ivory Coast, where just 32% of the rural population has access to electricity, as well as Burkina Faso and Benin.
The 2016-founded business installs solar panels and associated hardware, LED lights, and ports for powering gadgets like radios and cell phones. In addition to the EIF-OGEF, Bpifrance, a French public investment bank with a goal to finance and promote enterprises, also provides support for Qotto.