E-Business
Layer3 Explains How Local Cloud Services Reduce Risk of Submarine Fiber Disruptions

Life in today’s world is so heavily dependent on the internet, that disruptions to it may significantly affect the quality of social interaction, business, leisure, and public services available to us. Organizations are always seeking ways to improve things in this area, as it is often crucial to the success of their operations.
When Undersea Cables Break
Undersea communication cables are a vital part of the modern data transmission infrastructure. Nigeria owes its ability to access and interact with the internet to them. These fiber cables are laid under seas and oceans and stretch over thousands of miles to connect to the rest of the world with the physical storage facilities that hold the internet’s data. About 99% of international communication happens via this means.
Now, imagine that one or a few of these cables get broken. The impact on business for companies hosting their data in offshore public clouds is huge.
This scenario has recently played out in Nigeria. A major data service disruption occurred in mid-January, 2020, which saw internet users experience very slow loading speeds, as well as numerous failed banking transactions.
The disruption was caused by damage to two subsea fibre cables, SAT-3 and WACS, which connect countries along the West African coast to Europe. With the faults on these two cables, the quality of data transmission for many users in several African countries (including Nigeria) fell. It was estimated that it would take a week to fix the cables.
In the meantime, banks and other businesses that host their data in offshore public clouds had their affected by this failure leading to lost business, failed transactions, dissatisfied customers and high cost from adopting emergency measures, and adjusting to the alternative channels they have procured.
Preventing Business Disruption Resulting from Damaged Undersea Cables: Local Hosting as a Solution
So, how can we prevent disruptions to businesses like the one just described?
While having multiple backbone links to the Internet via multiple submarine cables sound like the sure way to avoid such calamities, this isn’t guaranteed as played out in this case affecting 2 different cables at the same time. Imagine the shock to companies who assumed they were safe because they were connected to the 2 backbones,
A safer, and cheaper, approach will be for companies to consider hosting their data locally as they will not have to worry about such disruptions. That’s a problem for organizations that rely on foreign cloud service providers.
In fact, hosting data locally help businesses and public sector agencies provide numerous other benefits other than mitigating risks submarine cable outages. Companies with their data hosted locally experience unprecedented performance from fast and easy access to their data.
This is because of the low single digit latency access to their data. It also allows them to know the physical location of their data, despite being in the cloud, which in turn helps them comply with data sovereignty requirements of the country. Technical support and fault resolution is also better and quicker as they can work more closely with their cloud service provider, and determine security strategies that are tailored to suit their peculiar needs.
Reducing Risks Through a Hybrid Cloud or Multi-Cloud Strategy
Companies should get more deliberate about their cloud strategy and spread out their risk over multiple cloud platforms. In other words, they can distribute their workloads across 2 or more clouds.
In cloud computing, there are two kinds of cloud: private cloud and public cloud. A private cloud is in the control of and used by a single company for its own purposes. They own the infrastructure that supports it. Public clouds, on the other hand, are offered by third parties and are available over the internet.
Companies may also distribute workloads using multiple cloud platforms to deal with different tasks. For instance, they may back up different kinds of non-sensitive files on various public cloud applications, while hosting critical data in their private cloud. This strategy is usually referred to as a multi-cloud solution.
Companies can also do more than just have different clouds for different purposes. They could deploy both private and public clouds for the same task. An example: the data they use can be stored in the private cloud, while services from the public cloud may be used to process it. This is what we refer to as a hybrid cloud strategy.
Layer3Cloud Offering Solutions that Reduce the Risk of Service Disruptions
Layer3Cloud offers cloud services and local hosting to companies in Nigeria that want to experience the performance of an edge cloud as well as reduce the risk of disruptions to their business. With its services running out of data centers within Nigeria, clients don’t have to worry about broken undersea communication cables or other problems that cause major network failures.
Layer3Cloud also provides services that alleviate the effects of network disruptions. Her remote backup, disaster recovery-as-a-service, and multi-cloud solutions ensure sustained access to data and business continuity even when one or a few network resources fail.
By deliberately pursuing a hybrid and multi-cloud strategy, companies that may already have contracts with hyperscaler public clouds such as Microsoft Azure, AWS and the likes, can distribute their workload across local cloud providers such as Layer3Cloud which will lessen the impact of Internet service disruptions on their business.
If you would like to find out how our services can help you mitigate the risks of internet service interruptions,
E-Business
Jumia Replatforms its Retail Media Program to Mirakl Ads to Enhance Marketplace Advertising

Jumia, e-Commerce platform in Africa, has partnered with Mirakl to elevate its marketplace advertising capabilities by deploying Mirakl Ads, a retail media solution uniquely designed to optimize performance for both first-party and third-party sellers.
This move strengthens Jumia’s efforts to deliver more value to its sellers, enhance the customer experience, and unlock profitable and sustainable new sources of revenue. Retail media is a rapidly growing sector within the e-commerce industry, expected to reach $204 billion by 2027 with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.2%.
Jumia’s adoption of Mirakl Ads positions the company at the forefront of digital advertising innovation in Africa, unlocking significant opportunities to increase revenue generation. With growing usage across its platform, Jumia is well-placed to capitalize on this momentum by delivering improved advertising tools to sellers and more relevant, personalized product recommendations to customers.
“Advertising is a key growth lever in our marketplace strategy, and this partnership with Mirakl allows us to accelerate that journey with speed and scale.
“By integrating Mirakl Ads, we’re empowering our sellers with smarter tools and delivering a better, more personalized experience to our customers. It also positions us to unlock new revenue streams while deepening engagement across our platform. Importantly, this partnership supports our ambition to grow gross profit and accelerate our path to profitability,” said Francis Dufay, CEO of Jumia.
The collaboration is a testament to Mirakl’s ability to rapidly deploy enterprise-grade solutions, with Jumia launching Mirakl Ads in just two months. This showcases the platform’s ease of integration and fast time-to-value. Now live, the solution equips Jumia’s advertising ecosystem with advanced automation, AI-powered optimization, and seamless campaign management.
With Mirakl Ads, all advertisers – from the biggest brands to the smallest marketplace sellers – can now boost their sales by leveraging advertising campaigns in Ghana, Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and Ivory Coast.
“Jumia’s decision to replatform to Mirakl Ads is a powerful validation of our platform’s ability to deliver immediate and measurable impact for leading marketplaces. By combining Mirakl’s cutting-edge retail media technology with Jumia’s deep market reach, we are enabling sellers to grow faster and customers to benefit from a more relevant, engaging experience. This partnership is a true milestone, not only for Jumia and Mirakl, but for the future of digital commerce across Africa.” said Adrien Nussenbaum, cofounder and co-CEO of Mirakl.
Through this partnership, Jumia is taking a decisive step in accelerating monetization, improving customer engagement, and advancing its long-term financial performance and profitability.
E-Business
Galaxy Backbone, Rural Electrification Agency Commit to Deepening Digital and Energy Access Across Nigeria

In a major step towards deepening Nigeria’s digital and energy infrastructure, Galaxy Backbone Limited (GBB) and the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) have signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at a brief but impactful ceremony held in Abuja.
The MoU signals a collaborative effort between both agencies to enhance Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda by integrating reliable energy solutions with cutting-edge ICT infrastructure, especially in higher institutions, Government institutions, underserved and rural communities across the country.
Speaking at the event, the Managing Director/CEO of Galaxy Backbone, Professor Ibrahim A. Adeyanju, described the partnership as “a landmark moment in Nigeria’s journey towards a digitally empowered, sustainably powered, and inclusively connected nation.”
“This partnership exemplifies what is possible when two visionary government institutions come together, united by shared goals and driven by the desire to improve the lives of Nigerians everywhere,” he said.
Professor Adeyanju emphasized that while Galaxy Backbone’s core mandate is to provide secure digital infrastructure that powers government operations, reliable and sustainable energy particularly in rural areas is essential to fully actualize digital transformation.
Major highlights of the MoU include:
- Solar electrification of some of GBB’s Metro Fibre sites in Abuja by the REA.
- Powering Hostels of Higher Institutions across the country through the Fibre to Hostel Project being driven by the Federal Ministry of Communications Innovation and Digital Economy (FMCIDE).
- Support for the rollout of the 774 Local Government Digitization Initiative, beginning with six pilot Local Government Areas.
- Provision of LANs, access points, cloud services, colocation infrastructure, and temporary connectivity to enhance REA’s operational facilities nationwide.
The Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency Mr Abba Aliyu, in his remarks, expressed optimism that this collaboration will further bridge the digital and energy divide across Nigeria. He noted that by combining REA’s achievements in expanding energy access with GBB’s robust ICT backbone, both agencies are poised to create lasting impact across governance, education, healthcare, and entrepreneurship.
This partnership is also in direct alignment with the Renewed Hope Digital Transformation Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, which envisions an inclusive digital economy powered by innovation and sustainable energy.
The ceremony was attended by top management from both organizations as well as members of the media.
With today’s signing, Galaxy Backbone and the Rural Electrification Agency have set the tone for stronger, smarter, and more inclusive public service delivery powered by strategic inter-agency collaboration.
E-Business
NIMC Says NIN Services Back Online

National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has announced the restoration of its National Identification Number (NIN) verification services nationwide.
This, according to the commission, follows the completion of a system maintenance exercise.
In a statement issued on Friday, the NIMC confirmed that all previously disrupted services have resumed.
“NIMC wishes to inform the general public that the recent technical maintenance has been completed and all services have been restored,” the statement read.
The NIMC urged Nigerians seeking to enroll for NIN to visit the its official website to locate the nearest enrollment centers.
The agency also encouraged individuals to make use of its self-service portal for tasks such as data modification, including name changes.
To further ease the verification process, the Commission recommended downloading the NIMC NameAuth app (oath.app) from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store for quick and secure NIN authentication.
NIMC expressed appreciation for the public’s patience during the service disruption, which had impacted banks, telecom providers, and government agencies that rely on NIN verification for their operations.
- Telecom3 days ago
Y’ello Care’s 21-Day Campaign Bridges Digital Divide for Thousands Nationwide
- General News3 days ago
Enugu Air Commences Operations Today
- E-Business3 days ago
Galaxy Backbone, Rural Electrification Agency Commit to Deepening Digital and Energy Access Across Nigeria
- Broadcasting3 days ago
NDPC Slaps Multichoice with ₦766M Fine for Data Privacy Violations
- News3 days ago
Lagos-Calabar Highway Gets $100M Push from ECOWAS to Drive Regional Growth
- Telecom3 days ago
20 Years of Digital Leadership: Layer3’s Legacy and the Road Ahead
- Telecom2 days ago
NCC Wins Global ICT Award for Digital Awareness in Schools
- News3 days ago
NBS May Release Rebased Figures for Nigerian Economy July 11