Data Center in Africa, the challenge of the future
The growth of data traffic means that TLC companies now need a greater number of data centers. As the continent of choice, Africa is increasingly targeted for the establishment of new structures, given the continent’s apparent hunger for “connections”. A summit, to be held on the 8th June in Monaco, will be dedicated to the issue.
Data Centers in Africa
In recent years, the telecommunications industry has seen an exponential growth in data traffic on a global scale, as a result of the smartphone boom. A leap that translates into the need for adequate infrastructure resources, first of which are the data centers, as highlighted by website RCR Wireless.
The African continent, which experts believe is on the verge of a profound technological breakthrough, is the area where this “flow” of data has been most pronounced. However, the presence of data centres in Africa is still limited. There are now 46 centres, in 11 countries, according to a survey by the Data Center Map website . South Africa takes the lion’s share with 19 facilities. In the pipeline, however, there are some important projects.
Work in progress
The first project, as mentioned by the Business Essential website, is signed by Teraco and involves a new centre at Isando (South Africa). A 17,500 sq.m structure will expand an already existing one, giving life to the largest African centre, providing commercial coverage throughout southern Africa. The works are scheduled for completion by December 2016.
Still in Africa, IBM is working on the first data centre dedicated to cloud services together with Gijima and Vodacom. The facility will be located in Johannesburg and will further expand the IT giant’s network, which today comprises 46 data centres.
The summit
Africa’s strategic role in the construction of new data centres is established by the decision to organise a summit dedicated to the subject. This is Invest in Africa Data Center, to be held on the 8th June in Monaco. An international event which will be attended by the industry’s leading experts and influencers.
