Obinna Adumike is a seasoned technology leader with a proven track record in driving digital transformation across Africa. As Head of Converged Digital Infrastructure for Africa at Open Access Data Centre, he is spearheading the development of critical digital infrastructure to support the region’s growing connectivity needs. He spoke on what digital transformation holds for Africa’s economic growth.

Could you explain what the digital transformation of Africa is about. What are the prospects and the challenges?

Thank you for the opportunity to discuss Africa’s digital transformation journey. Over the past decade, the continent has made remarkable strides in adopting and leveraging digital technologies, positioning itself as a hub for innovation and growth.

The past few years have seen the advancement of FinTech, as well as a massive growth in e-commerce, e-health, Agric-tech and EdTech. Jobs and businesses are being created and are thriving around various social media platforms. Such developments are creating positive impact and supporting a transforming Africa.

All of this is possible due to major advancements in digital infrastructure including significant investment in high-capacity subsea and terrestrial cable systems to carry Africa’s ever-expanding data nationally and internationally, data centres that support business ecosystems and drive local interconnectivity, broadband rollout and mobile communication deployment enabling businesses and consumers to connect, and so on.

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One example of transformation is the massive growth in internet penetration on the continent from a modest 16% in 2013 to about 45% by 2024. You can see tremendous growth in countries like Morocco, Libya, Seychelles, Botswana, Mauritius and South Africa, all with internet penetration rates between 70% to 90%. Also countries like Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Cape Verde and Djibouti are in the range of 40% to 69%, all of which are comparable to global averages.

Whilst these are great improvements, a lot still remains to be done to consolidate the gains and drive further growth. Many remote regions continue to lack basic IT infrastructure like fibre-optic cable systems and access to reliable power, which ultimately are basics for innovation. Security is another major challenge that needs to be addressed, and regulators have a responsibility to provide a level digital playing field that protects IT infrastructure companies and assets.

Where is digital transformation or digital dynamics in Africa going from here, what does the future portend?

The future of digital transformation in Africa is incredibly promising, with key trends indicating accelerated growth, deeper integration of technology across sectors and greater economic impact. Internet access will continue to grow; supported by the establishment of new initiatives by internet service providers (ISPs) in extending existing broadband access.

Domestic and international cloud and content providers and distributors will continue to establish more points of presence on the continent, extending their reach and improving user experience for consumers.

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These will by extension drive the need for more data centre capacity – to support hyperscale expansion, growing business demand for colocation and value-added service, and Government initiatives concerning data sovereignty and repatriation.

It is estimated that data centre revenue in Africa will continue to increase at an annual compound growth rate of 7.35% between 2025 and 2029. Africa needs about 750MW of DC power from its current installed 250MW capacity to optimally support its workload and digital economy. Seeing the advancement in artificial intelligence (AI) and the inflow of global content and cloud providers also supports this argument.

AI adoption in Africa will increase rapidly, with services and processes built around AI hosted in Africa. If African governments can guarantee protection for investments and a stable economy, I see Africa becoming the new hub for AI, especially as Europe’s power sector is already strained.

This has the potential to revolutionise sectors like agriculture, finance and healthcare, enhancing productivity and decision-making. Also, a new age of AI-powered chatbots and automation will drive efficiency, especially in customer service and government services.

Fintech & Digital Payments Expansion: Mobile money transactions in Africa exceeded $1 trillion in 2022, and this number will keep rising as financial inclusion deepens.

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The demand for digital skills training will grow, leading to more investments in EdTech platforms and online learning. Remote working models will increase, fostering a more globalised workforce with a vast number of Africans contributing to the global workforce from the comfort of Africa.

I firmly anticipate the next decade seeing Africa emerge as a global digital powerhouse, with innovations shaping the global tech landscape. To make this happen, governments, private sector players and investors must collaborate to ensure sustainable, inclusive digital growth.

WIOCC as the digital backbone of Africa, what does that means and the impact of WIOCC on Africa’s digital transformation?

You’re right; at WIOCC we take great pride in being the digital backbone of Africa, a role that goes beyond providing reliable, high-capacity metro, national and international connectivity to include building and operating open-access data centres, enabling cloud connectivity and providing the human resources to deliver infrastructure, innovation and impact.

Our wholesale digital infrastructure supports the creation and operation of seamless, high-capacity digital services that drive Africa’s digital transformation, ensuring that businesses, governments and individuals have access to the digital tools and capabilities needed to thrive in an increasing digital world. Being Africa’s digital backbone means WIOCC is the hub of the continent’s connectivity, data centre and cloud ecosystem.

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Strategic investment in the subsea cables connecting Africa to the world, and the world to Africa, is critical to our role in the industry. WIOCC is a key partner in major subsea cables such as Equiano, 2Africa and EASSy, ensuring continuity of Africa’s global connectivity.

For instance, during the unprecedented submarine cable cuts of the coast of west Africa in March 2024, WIOCC’s network – together with Open Access Data Centres (OADC) Lagos – the landing station for the Equiano cable system – played a critical role in supporting the region’s digital economy. Our infrastructure delivered stability of international connectivity, even throughout the restoration process.

Open Access Data Centres is another member of WIOCC Group, dedicated to constructing and operating open-access, Tier-III data centres that are becoming critical for hosting critical IT workloads, delivering cloud connectivity and content delivery, and underpinning enterprise digital transformation, enabling businesses to scale without reliance on offshore data hosting.

OADC is at the forefront of cloud adoption in Africa, providing low-latency, high-speed interconnection with global cloud platforms via our recently launched OAfabric. Our network of smaller, edge data centres ensure data is processed closer to the user, improving efficiency and supporting applications like Internet of Things (IoT) and AI.

Finally, WIOCC’s Open Access Metro services has – in a single year – deployed wholesale broadband connectivity to over 5 million homes in partnership with local ISPs in Lagos, Nigeria. This is a project that directly impacts people and businesses for the better.

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WIOCC Group companies deliver wholesale infrastructure solutions that form the foundation for ISPs, cloud operators, mobile network operators, financial enterprises, oil and gas companies, small/medium enterprises (SMEs) and indeed everyone to deliver world-class digital services that have direct positive impact on the continent. Our infrastructure supports mobile money platforms and digital banking solutions, ensuring seamless transactions across borders and facilitating financial inclusion for millions.

With low-latency, high-speed connectivity, startups, SMEs and large enterprises can leverage digital tools, cloud services and AI to scale their operations. WIOCC’s ecosystem is also enabling Africa’s growing tech hubs and innovation centres.

WIOCC infrastructure underpins streaming services, social media and content platforms, ensuring users across Africa enjoy high-performance entertainment services and content consumption. Our robust digital infrastructure is a key enabler for Smart City initiatives, IoT applications and AI-driven solutions, ensuring Africa is ready for the next phase of technological advancement.

As the head of the converged Digital Infrastructures for Open Data Access Data Centres–what does your job entails and has Africa developed enough skill set in such a specialized area?

As the Head of Converged Digital Infrastructure at OADC, my primary responsibility is to analyse, optimise and manage digital infrastructure assets, ensuring they are seamlessly integrated into an ecosystem that drives growth and innovation. This involves overseeing our data centre interconnect, cloud and connectivity infrastructure to deliver maximum value to our clients.

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A major aspect of my role is promoting collaboration with Internet Exchange Points (IXPs), content providers, Content Delivery Networks (CDNs), ISPs and enterprises to ensure seamless alignment and cross-service delivery leveraging our data centre services, connectivity, internet peering and other offerings. I also oversee our recently launched OAfabric: a platform that consolidates our interconnect and data centre ecosystem. OAfabric is designed with some key features:

• Cloud Interconnect services – offering cloud on-ramp service to cloud users; the platform hosts major global cloud providers and domestic cloud providers around Africa.
• Multi IX Access Point is another service offered through OAfabric; this is in line with our goal of supporting defragmentation of the internet. By enabling IXP centralisation, networks and users can access multiple IXPs from a single location and platform.
• OAfabric Peering – in locations without a functional IXP, this service ensures that content is localised, and we are able to deliver much-needed content in such locations thereby bridging the digital divide and fostering inclusivity.

Converged Digital Infrastructure involves integrating components like connectivity, data centres, peering, and interconnection–in all these, is investment a key factor?

Yes, investment is a critical factor in building and sustaining converged digital infrastructure in Africa, just as every business requires investment. The integration of connectivity, data centres, peering and interconnection requires substantial capital expenditure (CAPEX) and long-term financial commitment.

Without significant investment, Africa risks falling behind in the global digital economy. Investment is key to expanding fibre-optic connectivity, scaling data centre infrastructure, strengthening peering and interconnection, and enabling cloud and edge computing. Investment is not just a key factor in the lifeline of Africa’s converged digital infrastructure.

Without sustained capital injections from governments, private investors and development partners, Africa will struggle to meet its digital transformation goals. However, with the right level of strategic investment and regulatory support, Africa’s digital infrastructure will continue to thrive, driving economic growth and innovation across the continent. This is why at WIOCC Group our strategy is based on continuous and strategic investment in Africa.

How have investments improved or impaired your activities and has working in WIOCC/OADC helped?

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Investment has been a crucial factor in shaping our work at WIOCC and OADC, significantly influencing the opportunity to build Africa’s leading digital infrastructure business. On the positive side, our strategic investments in terrestrial fibre networks, subsea cables and data centres have accelerated digital transformation across the continent.

The expansion of our terrestrial fibre network and strategic participation in major subsea cable systems have strengthened connectivity, allowing us to deliver reliable, high-speed, low-latency solutions that power businesses.

Similarly, investments in OADC – as seen with the involvement of International Finance Corporation (IFC) and leading African-focussed investment firm African Capital Alliance (ACA) – have facilitated the growth of our facilities and critical services, enabling us to expand, extend and offer more services to our clients.

The high capital expenditure required for digital infrastructure development means that projects typically face funding bottlenecks, regulatory delays and power supply constraints, particularly in regions where stable electricity is not guaranteed.

WIOCC and OADC have navigated these hurdles themselves, enabling them to offer clients a strong platform to navigate these complexities, offering access to extensive infrastructure, technical expertise, and strategic partnerships.

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Working in such an environment has enabled me and my colleagues to drive digital transformation by ensuring that Africa’s connectivity and data centre ecosystems remain robust, scalable and futureproof.

In most parts of Africa, there is still a lack of access to digital infrastructures, how serious is this?

The lack of access to digital infrastructure in many parts of Africa is a major challenge that directly impacts economic growth, education, healthcare and overall digital inclusion.

While major cities and business hubs are experiencing rapid digital transformation, as seen in Lagos, Abuja, Accra, Nairobi, Cape Town and so on, vast parts of the continent – particularly rural and underserved areas – continue to have minimal access to high-speed internet, reliable data centres and cloud services.

Even in connected regions, issues such as low broadband speeds, high data costs, frequent fibre-optic cable cuts and inadequate infrastructure hinder effective digital participation.

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The deployment of fibre-optic networks is typically concentrated in urban centres, leaving rural communities reliant on mobile networks. Additionally, many African countries still lack the high-quality data centres needed to host IT infrastructure efficiently.

Africa is still extremely dependent on international content – even when content is developed in Africa, it is often stored offshore before being returned to the eventual consumers in Africa, leading to high latency and bandwidth cost. This is because many content providers host their content in just a few major African cities, or it is somewhere “in the cloud”.

This lack of a fully comprehensive, pan-African digital infrastructure has serious economic implications. Businesses struggle with unreliable connectivity, making it difficult to compete in a global digital economy. Financial inclusion is also affected, as millions remain excluded from mobile banking and digital payment systems due to poor connectivity. The education sector suffers as well, with students in remote areas unable to access online learning resources.

Closing this gap requires substantial investment, not just from private sector players but also through public-private partnerships and government-led initiatives. Large-scale fibre rollouts, improved mobile broadband penetration and the expansion of edge and hyperscale data centres are all critical to ensuring that Africa’s digital transformation is inclusive and sustainable. Without such initiatives continuing, the digital divide will continue to widen, limiting the continent’s ability to fully leverage the opportunities presented by the digital economy.

WIOCC Converged Digital Infrastructure–CODI focuses on connecting open access subsea and terrestrial networks to digital hubs, promoting wider digital access across Africa–walk us through this and its strategic importance and relevance?

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Converged Open-access Digital Infrastructure (CODI) articulates WIOCC Group’s proposition to Africa’s wholesale marketplace. CODI integrates open-access subsea and terrestrial networks with interconnection hubs, open-access core and edge data centres and a managed services “wrap” to enhance digital connectivity across the continent.

By combining carrier-neutral data centres with high-capacity, resilient networks, CODI is creating an open-access wholesale platform. that enables our clients of all sizes – from major content providers and cloud operators to telcos and ISPs – to contribute to the digitisation of the continent by bringing to market improved service offerings and expanding their operations across the continent with scaleably and flexibly.

The strategic importance of CODI lies in its ability to underpin the development and growth of vibrant, interconnected digital ecosystems, giving our clients the freedom to select infrastructure solutions that best meet their specific needs.

In many cases, this reduces operational complexities and optimises costs by shifting expenditures from capital to operational and responsibilities from in-house to outsourced, supporting rapid scalability.

CODI is also instrumental in bringing cloud services closer to the point of consumption in Africa, enhancing user experience through reduced latency. Access to our local expertise and support further helps regional and global clients maximise of pan-African opportunities.

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Converging open-access digital infrastructure enables a radical transformation of digitalisation across the continent, attracting international investment as global clients engage with the continent’s rapidly developing markets. This infrastructure facilitates the deployment of transformative products, services and technologies across African markets, offering enormous benefits for all, including Africa’s SMEs and tech start-ups.