EDITOR ’ S QUESTION
AS AFRICAN ENTERPRISES EMBRACE DIGITAL PLATFORMS AND MIGRATE WORKLOADS TO THE CLOUD WHAT ARE THE LEADING TECHNOLOGY TRENDS IMPACTING THEIR DATA CENTRES AND NETWORK CONNECTIVITY ?
The African digital landscape is evolving rapidly , with an increasing appetite for data across all sectors . From sophisticated applications and cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence to digital payment systems , innovation lies in connectivity and data access . These technological advancements have the potential to radically transform the nation ' s wellbeing and economic prosperity . Executives from Frogfoot Networks , Vertiv , Nutanix , share their perspectives .
come at a price point that makes connectivity more affordable than ever before .
DAVID COLEMAN , CHIEF PRODUCT OFFICER ,
FROGFOOT NETWORKS
WACS that connects South Africa to the United Kingdom along the West coast of Africa and runs for 14,530 kms ; EASSy that runs up the East Coast , and the recently introduced Equiano which also runs down the East coast .
Only one in ten South Africans can tap into high-speed fibre or fixed wireless networks . While there has been considerable progress , these figures underscore the substantial work needed to bridge the remaining connectivity gaps .
One of the most significant of these is the National Broadband Project established by the State IT Agency , SITA at an estimated cost of R6 billion . The project aims to increase connectivity throughout the country while also cutting the cost of connectivity for government , municipal and state agencies . As of April 2024 , the agency committed to 98 % core network availability across more than 7,500 connected government sites .
Many fibre network operators have already invested significantly into low-cost , high-capacity fibre rollouts that service communities in South Africa and that
Fibre remains the ultimate enabler as of 2024 . Fibre-to-the-Home , FTTH solutions are becoming increasingly capable and there must be a more focused effort to roll this out to the edges of the country . It offers limitless capacity and can bring education , insight , and transformation to communities that have remained cut-off from the rest of the world due to distance and poverty .
Mobile operators are also prioritising a vision of inclusivity , focusing on developing cost-effective solutions for historically neglected regions . The past decade has seen a remarkable progression in mobile technology , with networks evolving from 3G to 5G and all offering increasingly accessible connectivity .
Despite these improvements in coverage , the cost of data remains a significant hurdle for many South Africans . In areas lacking fibre infrastructure , users often find themselves at the mercy of higher mobile data rates .
26 INTELLIGENTCIO AFRICA www . intelligentcio . com