Socketworks II

completed

Socketworks Limited (Socketworks or the company) is a privately held Nigerian limited liability corporation. It was established in June 2002. It has been supported by the IFC since this time by way of capacity-building and advisory support services through the African Project Development Facility (APDF) as well as a loan (signed in February 2006). Socketworks is a software and outsourcing company that aims to provide packaged ICT solutions to its clients. In the education market, it has developed software (trademarked “CollegePortal”) that has been endorsed by the Nigerian Universities Commission as the most suitable management software for Nigeria’s universities. Socketworks’ packaged solution for universities is helping universities automate their processes (eg: student admissions and registration, course selection, course management, exam management, facility management) that are currently done manually and is providing internet access that would not otherwise be available. These services are making an enormous difference to universities in Nigeria that otherwise have no ICT systems. The company has also begun implementing e-Government contracts to automate and improve the efficiency of various government services such as immigration and pensions.The proposed IFC investment will be comprised of equity and/or debt financing for the following:- Implementation of 19 polytechnics contracts in Nigeria, each consisting of a “bundled” solution, involving the provision of both hardware and software to each institution.- Expansion of the SocketWorks into Sierra Leone, Ghana, Uganda, Liberia, and Kenya as well as the implementation of new university and e-Government contracts in each new country.