Telecom
Nigeria, Ethiopia Ripe for Datacentre Development
COVID-19 has fast-tracked digital transformation and will drive utilisation and the case for increased investment in datacentres across Africa, with countries like Ethiopia and Nigeria identified as potentially lucrative growth markets, according to market research by industry analysts.
Guy Zibi, who heads up research at Xalam Analytics, said South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria are already key hubs for datacentres and countries with solid internet infrastructure and strong economic sectors will attract more investment into datacentre development.
“Datacentres need economic activity and data traffic to thrive. The best opportunities, therefore, lie in markets that are both hubs of economic activity and hubs of data traffic. South Africa and North African markets, primarily, but also Nigeria, Kenya, Angola and Ghana,” said Zibi.
He added that there is “a secondary set of opportunities in markets that have promising internet foundations but virtually no hosting infrastructure” and these include the DRC, Ethiopia, and Francophone West Africa.
This week the Oxford Business Group and the Africa Data Centres Association released the Data Centres in Africa Focus Report, which highlights Africa’s economic recovery from the pandemic as the “primary factor that will drive data consumption in Africa”.
According to the World Bank, Sub-Saharan Africa is set to emerge from the 2020 recession triggered by the pandemic, with growth of 3.3% in 2021.
Digital financial inclusion is expected to “play a leading role in that recovery” for most African countries. The improved digital financial inclusion “will drive demand for datacentre capacity as institutions seek to store and protect rising levels of sensitive customer” data.
The continent’s traditional financial institutions “are migrating their operations to datacentres and will continue to do so as they look to expand their digital offerings” in the face of threats of further infection waves of COVID-19.
Ayotunde Coker, the chairman of Africa Data Centres Association highlights Ethiopia as a “particularly interesting market” based on increased opportunities following the deregulation of the telecommunications industry through privatisation, as well as growing broadband availability.
Ethiopia’s recently launched mobile money platform, Telebirr has also soared to above 3 million users within the first few months of launch.
Nigeria is another market that offers standout opportunities for datacentre growth.
“The country has a large population, of which approximately one hundred and fifty million people use the internet, a broadband penetration of nearly 45 and an advantageous geostrategic location. Indeed, geography is an important element to consider when constructing datacentres,” said Coker.
However, North Africa’s datacentre development is likely to be constrained due to its proximity to European datacentre clusters, particularly Marseille in France.
In the wake of increasing geopolitical tension, Cassava Technologies has unveiled its National Sovereign Cloud offering for African governments.
The solution, the company claims, will help the continent’s governments ensure data is kept on infrastructure that remains under local legal and operational jurisdiction.
According to the official announcement, made yesterday, the solution provides “secure, locally-governed digital infrastructure that enables the deployment of AI-enabled public services”.
The overarching solution encompasses cloud, cyber security, AI computing infrastructure, as well as local language AI models and skills support for governments.
The announcement comes amid increasing uncertainty over the hosting of sensitive national data on cloud services operated by foreign hyperscalers, which are subject to legal frameworks, such as the U.S. CLOUD Act. The CLOUD Act opens the door to allow American authorities to access data stored on the servers of US hyperscalers, wherever those servers are physically located.
Cassava has claimed separately that currently, “approximately 33% to 45% of the world’s data is hosted in the USA”.
The company added: “A sovereign cloud reduces exposure to extraterritorial laws, improves cyber resilience, and ensures that model weights and training data for public AI remain under national custody.”
The Africa Data Centres Association’s 2026 Economic Report states that “data sovereignty has evolved from a legal aspiration into a strategic policy lever”.
Ahmed El Beheiry, Group COO and Group Chief Technology and AI Officer, Cassava Technologies said: “Across Africa, governments are accelerating their digital transformation agendas and are increasingly focused on ensuring that data and digital infrastructure remain secure and sovereign.”
Announced at the Mobile Word Congress in Barcelona, this week, the Sovereign Cloud offering launch accompanied the launch of Cassava’s Cloud Partner programme.
The partner programme targets mobile network operators and system integrators across Africa to resell and distribute AI, cloud, and other digital services using Cassava’s infrastructure and technology platforms.
El Beheiry added: “We are expanding Africa’s sovereign AI ecosystem to build solutions that address the continent’s unique challenges while creating new opportunities for growth and digital inclusion.”
The programme offers partners access to NVIDIA Cloud Partner solutions, Cassava’s AI Factory, its own native AI solutions and its AI Multi-Model Exchange, which supports both Anthropic’s Claude and Google’s Gemini models.
Mazen Mroue, a non-executive director at MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, has resigned effective February 27, 2026, to prioritise other responsibilities within the MTN Group, the company announced in a Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) filing.
MTN Nigeria
The notice, signed by company secretary Uto Ukpanah, stated: “This is to enable Mr. Mroue to focus on other priorities within MTN Group Limited. The Board wishes to express its appreciation to Mr. Mroue for his immense service to MTN Nigeria and wishes him success in his future endeavours.”
Mroue joined MTN Nigeria’s board on June 1, 2022, bringing over 28 years of telecom experience. A veteran MTN executive, he previously served as CEO of MTN Uganda and MTN Liberia, non-executive director at MTN Cyprus, and held leadership roles at MTN Ghana.
Since February 2022, he has been MTN Group’s Chief Technology and Information Officer, overseeing technology strategy and governance. Earlier, as MTN Nigeria’s COO from August 2018 to January 2022, he also sat on the MTN Nigeria Foundation board.
The exit follows MTN Nigeria’s stellar 2025 results, posting a ₦1.70 trillion profit before tax—reversing a ₦550.3 billion loss in 2024 driven by forex woes—marking one of the telco’s strongest rebounds.
Google has rolled out support for Yorùbá and Hausa languages in its AI-powered Search features—AI Overviews and AI Mode—enabling millions of Nigerians to get quick answers, summaries, and conversational web exploration in their mother tongues.
The update forms part of Google’s push to cover 13 African languages, including Afrikaans, Akan, Amharic, Kinyarwanda, Afaan Oromoo, Somali, Sesotho, Kiswahili, Setswana, Wolof, and isiZulu, selected based on high search activity across the continent.
Now, a Kano student can ask complex questions in Hausa, while an Ibadan trader seeks business tips in Yorùbá—both receiving culturally nuanced AI responses via text or voice on Android, iOS, or web.
Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, Google’s West Africa Communications Manager, said: “Building truly global Search requires nuanced local understanding. With Gemini-powered AI, we’ve made advanced capabilities relevant in Yorùbá and Hausa, so Nigerians converse naturally with Search in their mother tongues.”
To use: Open the Google app, tap AI Mode, and query in Hausa or Yorùbá for personalised guidance—breaking language barriers and making technology reflect Nigeria’s diverse identity.
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