Our latest evaluation explores whether investing in backbone fibre infrastructure and more reliable internet improves standards of living through the use of AI-enabled geospatial data
Investing in digital infrastructure is vital for increasing access to quality, affordable internet services in markets where connectivity is limited. Reliable internet boosts local business productivity and creates jobs, improving livelihoods.
In 2018, we invested in Liquid Intelligent Technologies to accelerate the expansion of fibre infrastructure from Cape Town to Cairo, extending into Central and Western Africa. This included Liquid’s broadband internet fibre cable in the DRC, which aims to connect Kinshasa, Kananga, and Lubumbashi – three of the country’s largest cities – to bring faster and more reliable internet to millions of people.
Internet penetration in the DRC is among the lowest in the world and internet speed and quality are poor. According to the World Bank, in 2023, just a third of the DRC population used the internet. In 2024, the GSMA estimated that 32% of people lived in an area not covered by mobile broadband (3G) networks (although this is down from 46% in 2023).
This evaluation, led by Itad and Steward Redqueen, examines the reach of the new fibre infrastructure (constructed along a power transmission line of Société Nationale d’Électricité, or SNEL) and how it has improved standards of living for connected communities. Another study examines the impact of BII’s investment in a new Liquid data centre in South Africa.
What can we learn from the evaluation?
Liquid’s SNEL broadband fibre line now provides an estimated 2.5 million users with faster and more reliable internet.
Using geospatial data from Atlas AI, the study models how asset wealth and household expenditure has changed for people living in nine urban settlements where mobile network operators can connect to Liquid’s fibre cable.
Households in these areas are wealthier than most of the DRC’s population, spending on average $3.38 per person per day – above the international poverty line but below the World Bank’s lower-middle income threshold of $4.20/day. There is emerging evidence that these households have benefitted from the fibre line: household spending increased by $0.95 per capita per day more than in comparable settlements not connected to the fibre line.
While these results are encouraging, the evidence is not yet robust enough to claim strong causal links. The study recommends further investment in broadband infrastructure, continued support for ‘last mile’ connectivity, and more data collection to strengthen the findings.
The study doesn’t capture all the impacts of broadband investment, nor does it break down effects by socioeconomic group or gender. It also doesn’t capture changes in business productivity, internet accessibility, or affordability, or the extent to which the new fibre line played a role. Additionally, some longer-term impacts may not yet be visible, and factors such as the Covid-19 pandemic may have influenced results.
About our sector evaluations
This study was commissioned by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) under our FCDO-BII Evaluation and Learning Programme. It is one of several evaluations covering BII’s Infrastructure sector group portfolio. Find out more.
