Airtel Africa boosts network with 5,600 km fibre rollout and 3,000 new sites, enhancing data capacity by 33% for faster, reliable services. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

Airtel Africa plc has made significant advancements in its network capabilities, as highlighted in its financial results for the quarter ending June 30, 2024

A key part of these efforts is the extensive deployment of over 5,600 kilometers of fibre, demonstrating the company's dedication to enhancing customer experience through strong infrastructure development.

This fibre rollout aligns with Airtel Africa’s larger strategy to boost data capacity and expand network coverage. The addition of nearly 3,000 new sites has increased the company’s data capacity by 33%, enabling more customers to access faster and more reliable internet services.

The expansion of fibre infrastructure is essential for addressing the growing demand for high-speed data across Airtel Africa’s markets. By establishing comprehensive fibre networks, the company is not only improving its current service offerings but also preparing its network for future technological advancements and rising data consumption.

Cofinity Group, Inc. partners with leading African data centre providers, enhancing Africa's digital infrastructure and driving economic growth. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

Cofinity Group, Inc. (CGI), a leader in the data center industry for over 15 years, announced strategic Channel Partnership Agreements with leading data center providers in Africa, including PAIX Data Centres, Rack Centre, Raxio, and Digital Realty

These agreements included Digital Realty’s African entities: iColo, Teraco, and Digital Realty Nigeria. Collectively, these data centre providers operated in markets that accounted for over 75% of Sub-Saharan Africa's GDP across 11 countries.

Collectively, these data center providers operate in markets that account for over 75% of Sub-Saharan Africa's GDP across 11 countries.

The accelerating pace of technology adoption and digitisation in Africa is driving the demand for highly secure data center facilities with exceptional levels of power availability, redundancy, and connectivity. "CGI is in a unique position to help enterprises secure and optimise their mission-critical applications in key African markets with experienced, trusted data center operators. We have had the privilege of working with the leading data center providers in Africa and we are confident that enterprises will benefit from our deep knowledge and streamlined commercial processes," said Ray Lawless, president of CGI.

“Cofinity Group’s initiative is further evidence of the surging demand in Africa for the services of data center companies. We welcome CGI’s role in bringing together key sectors, such as Fintech, with data center providers in Africa, continuing the transformation of Africa’s digital infrastructure and accelerating economic growth,” said Ayotunde Coker, chairman of the Africa Data Centres Association.

Enterprises opting for a colocation solution can secure their mission-critical operations in a cost-effective manner, benefiting from the data center’s robust infrastructure and connectivity, while also allowing for future growth with access to expansion space and increased power capacity. CGI’s extensive experience in various markets and close relationships with these data center operators provides a unique opportunity to assist enterprises looking to migrate to a quality colocation data center solution in Africa.

Schneider Electric and IXAfrica launch East Africa’s largest hypercloud data center, ‘NBOX1’, with cutting-edge tech and sustainable design. (Image source: IXAfrica)

Schneider Electric, a leader in digital transformation for energy management and automation, has joined forces with Nairobi-based IXAfrica Data Centres to unveil East Africa’s largest and first hypercloud data centre

Known as ‘NBOX1,’ this Tier 3+ facility is now operational and offers a carrier-neutral, AI-ready environment. It stands as the most advanced digital infrastructure in East Africa for cloud, colocation, and connectivity, designed to attract hyperscale and internet customers with a user experience on par with North America and Western Europe.

Future-ready data centre

The NBOX1 launch is supported by Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure for Data Centres architecture, ensuring maximum resilience, uptime, cost efficiency, enhanced security, and alignment with IXAfrica’s sustainability goals.

The new data centre, backed by a US$50mn investment from leading firm Helios, is situated in Africa’s burgeoning technology hub, the ‘Digital Savannah,’ serving over 300 million people and fostering innovation with its skilled workforce and diverse services.

Snehar Shah, CEO of IXAfrica, remarked, “Kenya is a hypercloud-ready region with advanced cloud adoption propensities, a digitally savvy ecosystem, access to diverse internet fibre connectivity, high-availability and low-carbon sources of power. This all sits within a country offering a stable regulatory and political environment, and a strong economy forecast to grow 5.2% in 2024.”

To meet the critical requirement for dependable IT operations, IXAfrica selected Schneider Electric for their power train solution, including power protection and distribution equipment, transformers, MV and LV switchgear, and a basic BMS for monitoring. Schneider Electric collaborated with local consultants Prisma Techniques and ensured compliance with IEC standards and local grid requirements, considering Kenya’s unique environmental conditions.

Ifeanyi Odoh, Schneider Electric country president in East Africa, stated, “The solutions provided by Schneider Electric are engineered to support N+1 redundancy with four independent power trains, meeting IXAfrica’s immediate and long-term objectives, including design 1.25 PUE across the campus, as well as a 99.999% uptime guarantee.”

With renewable energy sources introducing variability, the integration of lithium-ion batteries with the Galaxy VX UPS addresses challenges associated with supply stability.

Designed as a ‘Data Centre of the Future,’ NBOX1 benefits from Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure for Data Centres, which enhances performance, resilience, and resource efficiency while supporting IXAfrica’s sustainability goals through energy savings and reduced CO2 emissions.

Mouna Essa Egh, secure power vice-president for Middle East & Africa, commented, “We believe that sustainable practices are essential for the future of data centres, and we are proud to partner with organizations like IXAfrica to create environmentally conscious and innovative digital habitats for the evolving technological landscape.”

“We have a very strategic relationship with Schneider Electric – in fact, our new Nairobi campus site is built on land formerly part of Schneider’s complex, and the power engineering for the site was designed by Schneider’s local partners. NBOX1 is sustainable by design, and our goal is to ‘Keep it Africa’ - our switchgear and panelware were all manufactured by Schneider Electric on our own doorstep,” shah added. 

“We’re delighted to partner with Schneider Electric, a company that not only shares our ethos and passion for the environment but is also committed to ensuring that IXAfrica and its clients meet their operational and sustainability goals,” shah concluded.