Nairobi-based Africa Online said it hopes to raise £17.7m ($28.7m) through a placing of 32.15m shares at 55p each.

The company is keen to expand in Africa, despite low personal computer penetration on the continent.

PC-less access

A key part of its strategy is the e-touch system, which it developed to allow people without personal computers to access e-mail and the Internet via mobile phones.

The money raise in the float will also be used to develop the company's Website, which hosts 12 African newspapers and attracts 1.6m page views a month.

Africa Online was launched in 1994, and operates in Kenya, the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Swaziland.

It plans to expand into six further countries next year.

The company said only one in 1,500 people in Africa is connected to the Internet - compared to about one in four in North America and Europe.

Chris Foy, chief executive of parent company African Lakes, said: "Africa is undoubtedly an outstanding opportunity for Internet development at this time.

"This funding will allow us to rapidly expand our Internet activities."