Digital Sovereignty: Ivorian Government Secures $100 Million Financing in the United States

The Ivorian government has secured a $100 million US financing guarantee (over 56 billion CFA francs) from senior officials of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM). The announcement was made during a press conference held on Monday, September 22, 2025, in the United States.

The meeting was attended by Patrick Jérôme Achi, Minister of State and Special Advisor to the President of the Republic, Nialé Kaba, Minister of Economy, Planning and Development, along with Jim Burrows, Acting Vice President of EXIM, and Will Stevens, Deputy Assistant Secretary for West Africa at the U.S. Department of State.

This partnership, part of EXIM’s China and Transformational Exports Program (CTEP), is intended to support strategic projects in emerging markets — in this case, Côte d’Ivoire’s pursuit of digital sovereignty.

Reaffirming the country’s commitment to strengthening its role as a digital hub in West Africa, Ivorian authorities highlighted their ambition to build a modern, resilient, and inclusive economy based on digitalization and innovation.

Côte d’Ivoire is now among the first countries to benefit from this landmark U.S. investment in digital infrastructure, including the construction of the first National Data Center and the digitalization of public services.

Implementation of these projects will be carried out by Cybastion, in collaboration with major technology companies such as Cisco, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and Schneider Electric, along with other U.S. partners.

It should be recalled that in August, EXIM’s Board of Directors approved two major financial guarantees: $66 million US (over 37 billion CFA francs) for the construction of a national data center, and $47 million US (over 26 billion CFA francs) for the digitalization of the Ministry of Finance and Industry.