COUNTRY FOCUS : ANGOLA
Angola ’ s geographical position makes it a strategic hub for scaling fibre connectivity into the West and South of the African continent , as well as growing its base of in-country data centres . A key dynamic will remain building partnerships with other African and global network and data centre providers .
Africa ’ s central hub for conn and data centres
Skyline of capital city Luanda , Angola
In Africa it is all about the geographic location of the country . Facing South America on its western side and South African countries on its East and South , Angola provides alternative network routes to the rest of the world . It is also the second-largest Lusophone or Portuguese-speaking country in both total area and population and is the seventh-largest country in Africa .
In order to become a country of choice , Angola is investing to become an alternate hub for data centres , satellite connectivity hub , and optic fibre projects to connect Africa with rest of the world . According to the International Trade Administration managed by the US Department of Commerce , although only 26 % of the population are Internet users through mostly mobile networks , Angola ’ s digital transformation has witnessed acceleration .
Although Luanda is Angola ’ s largest and bestconnected city , weak infrastructure , poor market access , and affordability challenges still cripple connectivity throughout the country . The objective is to tackle this discrepancy by establishing more technology infrastructure and players in the market .
Growing the data centre network
Angola Cables is an internationally established ICT and digital solutions and network services provider and has been ranked as the most interconnected operator on the African continent . Through integrated IP networks and data centres , it provides low-latency , direct access connectivity to the largest IXPs , Tier 1 operators and global content providers .
Through high-capacity SACS , Monet , WACS and thirdparty submarine cable networks , the company directly connects to more than 20 Points of Presence and Internet Exchange Points in the America , Africa , Europe and Asia .
38 INTELLIGENTCIO AFRICA www . intelligentcio . com