Following last week’s announcement of the launch of GATEtrip (Tourism Responsible Investment Platform) by GATE Global Impact, the same company has today launched a program with Indigo Communications of Kenya to raise funds to bring low-cost Impact WIFI across African countries, starting immediately with Kenya. A key component of the program will be to bring new investment for Travel & Tourism related projects and services connected to the network. Geoffrey Lipman, Director of GATEtrip and President of ICTP said, “We are committed to bringing new Impact Investment to local communities in Africa by linking Travel & Tourism investment to the “new connectivity paradigm.” We are especially delighted that ICTP Members will have the opportunity to engage in this new initiative.”
Partnership between leading Impact Investment technology platform, GATE Global Impact, and Indigo Group Limited a satellite-based telecommunications provider for Africa – to drive Impact Investment capital for wireless Internet in the developing world via the joint venture “Gate Impact Partners”.
Indigo Group Limited has helped pioneer ImpactWifi, a new technology using innovative business models, which provide low cost, high speed, wireless broadband to the developing world. The ability to connect rural communities and deliver good is being branded “Impact Wifi.” This initiative creates opportunities for employment, education and healthcare that will positively impact millions of lives. Through deploying solar-powered base stations and utilizing unused TV band spectrum, ImpactWIFI will bring Internet to some of the most rural areas in Africa, bridging the digital divide. “Mawingu,” Kiswahili for cloud, is the name of the first deployment of ImpactWIFI, which is connecting remote communities in Kenya, providing power, content and life changing opportunities.
“Impact Investing has emerged in recent years as a way to promote and fund both social and environmental projects with the possibility to generate financial returns, while effecting change. Impact Wifi is the branded name by Gate impact partners utilizing “TV White spaces“ to provide low cost assess to Wi-Fi in rural areas, beginning to close the digital divide starting in Africa. Now it is poised to take a quantum leap as governments, seeking to tap alternative investment pools, adapt regulatory controls to expand this marketplace. At the same time, Crowdfunding, using the power of the web 3.0 and social media, will in the coming years profoundly alter how entrepreneurs and SME’s access capital at the base of the pyramid globally,” said Vincent Molinari, CEO of GATE Global Impact.
Gate Impact Partners “GIP” has been formed as a joint venture to raise capital that will be deployed in Impact Wifi infrastructure projects around the world. Pete Henderson, Chairman of “GIP” says “The funding of Impact Wifi projects around the world will have a massive impact on people’s lives. These investments will improve the quality of life, create employment and have long lasting positive impacts on the recipients. The fund is designed to provide a return to investors thereby making this a long term, sustainable model. We are excited by the opportunity to provide such meaningful change to so many.”
Another practical application of ImpactWIFI will be to increase connectivity for the vital tourism sector by driving Impact Investment through GATE Global Impact’s dedicated GATEtrip platform, supporting community-based visitor related projects and services.
“GIP” will be powered by GATE Impact’s GATEWAY Platform; a robust, regulatory compliant electronic end-to-end solution for buyers and sellers of Impact Investments – investments that have the ability to generate a measurable social and/or environmental benefit alongside a potential for financial return. The GATE Impact platform has been hailed as unique in its ability to provide investors with the transparency, efficiency, metrics and ability to find liquidity they need to identify and transact securities in this emerging asset class. All securities are offered through GATE US, a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC).
