FEATURE: INTERCONNECTING AFRICA
Cost savings
By connecting to an Internet Exchange Point, ISPs and network operators can establish direct peering relationships with other ISPs and network operators, allowing them to exchange traffic more efficiently and reduce costs.
Reduced latency
By peering locally at an Internet Exchange Point, members shorten their path to Internet destinations hosted behind other Internet Exchange Point member networks – again reducing latency, improving roundtrip time, and further reducing overall costs.
Local Internet connectivity
Internet Exchange Points help create shorter, more direct routes for Internet traffic, providing a more affordable alternative to sending local Internet traffic through expensive international links.
Network performance reducing overall ICT costs and will help to expand Internet connectivity to more destinations and more people across Africa.
The volume of digital data traffic is rising exponentially driven by increasing Internet penetration, more mobile data use, and the growth of digital services like social media, e-commerce, and cloud computing. This surge is expected to put significant strain on existing data infrastructure, leading to a high demand for data centres and other digital infrastructure.
Much of the traffic increase has come from the arrival of new subsea cables such as Google’ s Equiano cable and the 2Africa Cable, owned by Meta and a consortium of partners. These new links are needed to accommodate the increased uptake of services from the likes of Netflix, Microsoft, Google, the Meta Platforms, Facebook and Instagram, Amazon and Apple.
Marinela Liomba, Global Product Manager, Angola Cables
Internet Exchange Points offer a comprehensive solution that combines centralised hubs, MPLSenabled connectivity, dedicated Layer 2 links, and scalability features that can enhance network performance.
These hyperscalers are massive generators of traffic producing half of all global Internet traffic. As a result of these new routings, we are seeing dramatic increases in traffic across other backbone networks that serve many regions across Africa.
Increased reliability
A dedicated Layer 2 connectivity link between a business and an Internet Exchange Point not only enhances data security but can also help realise savings on IP transit expenses.
Particularly in Africa where telecoms infrastructure is both fragmented and scattered, Internet Exchange Points are playing a pivotal role in accelerating the spread of the Internet and encouraging the development of Internet-based economic activity.
Angola Cables, Africa’ s most interconnected network operator, has seen traffic volumes peak at 18,448 Tbps with the Angola Cables fibre network point accounting for more than 70 % of the Internet and data traffic flows to and from Africa. This epic rise in data traffic can be attributed to multiple entities seeing the benefit of connecting to the USA and European markets via cables such as SACS, Monet and EllaLink in the South Atlantic.
These cable networks are also proving to be a valuable redundancy routing when there are cable
Internet Exchange Points allow ISPs, Content Providers, companies and other users to exchange domestic Internet traffic domestically between their customers on a cost-neutral basis as domestic-bound traffic need not be sent across expensive international transit providers or network operators.
Unfortunately, and within an African context, the continent still has too few Internet Exchange Points so a lot of traffic is still sent via international networks – at higher costs to the end users. This needs to be addressed. Encouraging the establishment of new Internet Exchange Points will go some way towards
AS THE NUMBER OF INTERNET EXCHANGE POINTS INCREASES ON
THE CONTINENT, THE MORE NETWORKS BECOME
INTERCONNECTED.
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