Conditions are ripe for cloud services to flourish across Africa, according to Vodacom’s Wale Odeyemi
The executive head of international products at Vodacom Business revealed consultations with enterprises across the continent had demonstrated a great deal of enthusiasm for cloud technology.
A ‘perfect storm’ of faster connection speeds, lower data costs, and increased international business activity meant that the advent of ‘true cloud’ services in Africa was just a matter of time, he said.
“African businesses want more than just hosted services,” said Odeyemi. “Companies want to harness all the benefits of cloud computing, including automation, workforce mobilisation, and the ability to purchase software applications using credit card payments at online cloud stores.”
The indicators so far look promising, with Frost & Sullivan reporting US$114.6mn cloud computing revenues in South Africa and Kenya alone in 2013, and this figure expected to rise to US$288mn by 2018.
“Key industry players like Vodacom Business continue to increase investments in low latency broadband connectivity and fibre infrastructure across Africa, bringing true cloud closer to those pioneers looking to harness it,” Odeyemi added.
