E-Business
Rack Centre Now Positioned to Offer Cloud Computing Services – Coker
Ayotunde Coker is the managing director of Rack Centre a data centre operator; he spoke to Nigeria CommunicationsWeek on the recent expansion of Rack Centre facility which enables it to offer commercial cloud computing services in Africa.
Cloud Computing and security. Do you think Nigeria, or Africa has the capacity to secure the data centres to guarantee local hosting of data?
Africa is ready for cloud. First, Data Centre business has been developing in Africa for few years now. I am delighted that Rack Centre is here in Nigeria; well-respected African brand. That is a good way to start. We are certified to the highest tier level- the Uptime Institute. We are the first and only Carrier Neutral to be Tier III Constructed in Africa.
In Nigeria, there are two Data Centres companies that are certified constructed commercial facilities, the only country in Africa with such infrastructure. That is not a bad start. If you look at statistics South Africa has made an incredible start with Data Centres. The amount of capacity (that is ‘built’) available in South Africa is 50% of what is available in the rest of African countries. This is based on analysis by XALAM. It shows that there is a significant of untapped opportunity in the rest of Africa.
So, as a brand, we are prepared: we are scaling, doubling our capacity; certified to ISO 27:2001 and other certifications that give global bodies the confidence to do business with us.
Coming back to Africa; is the Continent ready for Cloud? Africa is ready for co-location and ready for cloud computing. We have seen the wave of what is happening in the use of technology- agriculture, for instance, start-ups and other big businesses are been created in this sector. I intentionally did not use FinTech’s, because it is not just about fintech (though they are very important). Technology is transforming banks, agriculture, oil and gas in Africa. Technology will be key in transforming government (e-government). States like Lagos are embarking on very crucial e-government initiatives.
So, there is a big room for co-location. Now, cloud needs data centres; if it is not in Nigeria it is elsewhere. A lot of African companies have been consuming cloud technology. But they have been consuming it abroad. Even a lot of them host their websites abroad. We have been hosting our website here in Rack Centre for about two years now and no downtime. So, we have started to see the shift
In Africa there is what I call the “Sachet Economy.” You know, people often won’t buy a packet of cigarettes; they will buy two sticks. They won’t buy a litre of milk but rather a small packet. Even water; they prefer to buy the sachets. And it has been very successful. But if you add the quantity of the sachet inside an empty bottle, the cost is about 50% higher; but that is what they can buy.
The only way you can turn IT to meet needs of the sachet economy is, first, to co-locate. Secondly, adopt cloud computing. Cloud enables you to buy what you need and consume and buy more as you grow or scale up. You don’t need to acquire big server when you only need 10% of it. There are a quite number of applications people want to use that require cloud, so cloud is what you can use to deliver services to the sachet economy.
An interesting part to it: if you look at Nigeria, one of the problems of consuming technology from abroad is due to latency. That ‘delay’ is annoying and it affects customer experience. Critical facilities hosted here take away that latency. And now you have Internet of Things (IoT) which requires quick ‘interactions. So, you host it closer to the point of consumption.
For instance, Nigeria’s population is near 200 million with a blessing of young middle-age (18-25 years); the age of consuming data. We also have a significant number of SMEs. If you add Micros businesses, they are about 35 million. So, 20 million SMEs (based on estimates that have been given over the last two years, the figure is more than the population of Belgium, Netherlands and Norway combined.
There will consume data if the services are available. Therefore, all we have to do is deliver cloud services. We have started doing that in Rack Centre. We bring down the threshold of the cost of access to technology through cloud services.
There is another angle to the SMEs. I call them the SMEs of the Professions- (every SME should be professional anyway). By SMEs of the Professions, I mean the accountants, doctors, engineering companies, law firms, etc. They are significant and need access to the right technologies at the right price. That is what cloud can provide.
Then, Nigerian broadband penetration is around 24% out of the target of 30% for this year. And there is still promise that we should hit the target before the end of this year. Now, as that continues grow alongside 4G LTE availability, it is really going to become an enabler to businesses.
So, from our point of view, our business is to going to transform the efficiency of the SMEs and it will impact the economy positively.
Cloud technology and data centre inter-relate and have the potential to transform our economy. It makes the SMEs, for instance, more efficient and productive and directly impacts the country’s GDP.
Your recent election as the Secretary General of African Datacentre Association (ADCA).
Actually, the Association was inaugurated early this year and there is a history to it. Last year, I was speaking at the Datacentre Conference in Morocco. We made a comment that Africa needs a Datacentre Association just like they have in Europe, because this is key infrastructure for Africa. The continent has chosen to leapfrog development using technology. So, we need to get the holistic view to build the industry and a voice for the industry in Africa.
So, one of the gentlemen there, Paul-Francois Cattier, MD (West Africa for Schneider Electric, Ivory Coast took on the task; to drive it. I met him at the Africa CEO Conference and he laid down some progressive reports and it took me just five minutes to say yes; we really have to make this happen.
We got calls from top leaders around Africa who aligned with the vision. Therefore, the Association was incorporated in West Africa (Ivory Coast). We then went on and launched it as African Datacentre Association at the Data Centre Conference in Morocco. which is a good indication of the importance of Africa in the global space in terms of cloud technology. It was a successful event.
We will be hiring an MD to operate the ADCA Secretariat. Also, the representation cuts across the entire continent. The Board has Fatoumata Sarr Dieng of Sonatel Orange (Senegal) as the President. It is mixture of Francophone and Anglophone speaking countries; a good balance and pan-African representation.
I am delighted that we got it going and to have taken a role as the Secretary General. It is an honour.
In 2025, nearly 8,500 users from small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) globally faced cyberattacks where malicious or unwanted software was disguised as popular online productivity tools, Kaspersky reports.
Based on the unique malicious and unwanted files observed, the most common lures included Zoom and Microsoft Office, with newer AI-based services like ChatGPT and DeepSeek being increasingly exploited by attackers. Kaspersky has released threat analysis and mitigation strategies to help SMBs respond.
Kaspersky analysts explored how frequently malicious and unwanted software are disguised as legitimate applications commonly used by SMBs, using a sample of 12 online productivity apps. In total, Kaspersky observed more than 4,000 unique malicious and unwanted files disguised as popular apps in 2025. With the growing popularity of AI services, cybercriminals are increasingly disguising malware as AI tools.
The number of cyberthreats mimicking ChatGPT increased by 115% in the first four months of 2025 compared to the same period last year, reaching 177 unique malicious and unwanted files. Another popular AI tool, DeepSeek, accounted for 83 files. This large language model launched in 2025 immediately appeared on the list of impersonated tools.
“Interestingly, threat actors are rather picky in choosing an AI tool as bait. For example, no malicious files mimicking Perplexity were observed. The likelihood that an attacker will use a tool as a disguise for malware or other types of unwanted software directly depends on the service’s popularity and hype around it. The more publicity and conversation there is around a tool, the more likely a user will come across a fake package on the Internet.
To be on the safe side, SMB employees – as well as regular users – should exercise caution when looking for software on the Internet or coming across too-good-to-be-true subscription deals. Always check the correct spelling of the website and links in suspicious emails. In many cases these links may turn out to be phishing or a link that downloads malicious or potentially unwanted software,” says Vasily Kolesnikov, security expert at Kaspersky.
Another cybercriminal tactic to look for in 2025 is the growing use of collaboration platform brands to trick users into downloading or launching malware. The number of malicious and unwanted software files disguised as Zoom increased by nearly 13% in 2025, reaching 1,652, while such names as “Microsoft Teams” and “Google Drive” saw increases of 100% and 12%, respectively, with 206 and 132 cases.
This pattern likely reflects the normalisation of remote work and geographically distributed teams, which has made these platforms integral to business operations across industries.
Among the analysed sample, the highest number of files mimicked Zoom, accounting for nearly 41% of all unique files detected. Microsoft Office applications remained frequent targets for impersonation: Outlook and PowerPoint each accounted for 16%, Excel for nearly 12%, while Word and Teams made up 9% and 5%, respectively.
The top threats targeting small and medium businesses in 2025 included downloaders, trojans and adware.
Phishing and spam
Apart from malware threats, Kaspersky continues to observe a wide range of phishing and scam schemes targeting SMBs. Attackers aim to steal login credentials for various services — from delivery platforms to banking systems — or manipulate victims into sending them money through deceptive tactics. One example is a phishing attempt targeting Google Accounts.
Attackers promise potential victims to increase sales by advertising their company on X, with the ultimate goal being to steal their credentials.
Beyond phishing, SMBs are flooded with spam emails. Not surprisingly, AI has also made its way into the spam folder — for example, with offers for automating various business processes.
In general, Kaspersky observes phishing and spam offers crafted to reflect the typical needs of small businesses, promising attractive deals on email marketing or loans, offering services such as reputation management, content creation, or lead generation, and more.
Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) has credited a series of strategic reforms under the national Anti-Money Laundering, Counter-Financing of Terrorism, and Counter-Proliferation Financing (AML/CFT/CPF) framework, behind Nigeria’s significant strides toward exiting the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) greylist, marking a critical milestone in the country’s fight against money laundering, terrorist financing, and financial crimes.
In a statement, Chief Executive Officer of NFIU, Hafsat Bakari, praised the collective efforts of government agencies and stakeholders. “Congratulations and a job well done as Nigeria comes closer to exiting the FATF grey list. The results achieved as part of the strategic reforms must be applauded,” she said.
She said the NFIU, serving as the Secretariat of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on AML/CFT/CPF, spearheaded the development of a comprehensive roadmap to address deficiencies highlighted in Nigeria’s 2021 mutual evaluation report. She explained that the roadmap was recently reviewed and endorsed at the FATF Plenary in Strasbourg, France, where it was acknowledged that Nigeria has completed the implementation of its Action Plan within the agreed deadline—a rare achievement among listed jurisdictions.
Bakari emphasised the pivotal role of political leadership in this success: “The clear focus and leadership of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, provided an enabling environment for the reform processes. His dynamic leadership, alongside the support of the Federal Executive Council and the National Assembly, has been a critical success factor.”
She also highlighted the crucial contributions of the Judiciary, which has demonstrated the effectiveness of Nigeria’s legal framework in combating financial crimes. The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, and the Minister of Interior, who led the Inter-Ministerial Committee, were credited for providing strategic direction.
“The commitment of these key officials, along with support from the National Security Adviser and various ministers, has been instrumental in driving the reforms forward,” Bakari noted.
A broad coalition of agencies formed the backbone of the national effort, including the Central Bank of Nigeria, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Police Force, and many others. Their coordinated efforts have strengthened Nigeria’s defenses against illicit financial activities.
Despite the progress, Bakari cautioned that key steps remain before Nigeria can officially exit the greylist. “A critical upcoming milestone is the onsite assessment by the FATF in the next few weeks. This assessment is an opportunity to demonstrate Nigeria’s highest political commitment to sustaining the reform programme and to showcase the impressive results achieved by both public and private sectors in preventing, detecting, and disrupting serious crimes.”
She reaffirmed the NFIU’s dedication to the ongoing fight: “The NFIU remains committed to supporting and working with all stakeholders in strengthening our collective defenses against money laundering, terrorist financing, and other serious crimes.”
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is strategically positioning Africa to tap into a $712 billion digital trade market by 2035, leveraging key partnerships and trade-enabling infrastructure to deepen continental integration and economic sovereignty.
Wamkele Mene, Secretary General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, made this known on Wednesday at the 2025 Afreximbank Annual Meetings (AAM2025) in Abuja.
According to him, the Protocol on Digital Trade is central to AfCFTA’s strategy for unlocking the potential of Africa’s growing digital economy.
“We intend to harness this significant market, which is estimated to be over $712 billion by the year 2035, presenting opportunities for young entrepreneurs, investment in data centres, the commercialisation and movement of data, and the development of digital public infrastructure,” Mene said.
He emphasised the critical role of Afreximbank in providing the financial architecture required to support the AfCFTA’s implementation, especially in reducing and eliminating tariff and non-tariff barriers.
“Without the support of Afreximbank, the AfCFTA will not succeed. It requires trade finance tools, support for industrial development, green trade, and green industrialisation,” he added.
Among the tools introduced in collaboration with Afreximbank is the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), which enables intra-African payments in local currencies, reducing dependence on the US dollar and lowering transaction costs. Mene stressed that trading in foreign currencies like US dollar between African countries is no longer sustainable.
“We must use our own currencies. We must ensure the economic sovereignty of our continent and guard ourselves against ever-shifting global geopolitical tensions that affect payment systems,” he said.
He also disclosed that $10 billion has been mobilised under the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund to support countries implementing the agreement, with an initial ZIP package of $1 billion. Furthermore, a $1 billion AfCFTA Automotive Fund has been established to support component manufacturers and vehicle assembly on the continent. The sector, if well-supported, could generate $46 billion by 2035.
Additional initiatives include the AfCFTA E-Tariff platform, the Rules of Origin Manual, and the soon-to-be-launched Transit Guarantee System, which are all geared towards simplifying trade procedures and boosting intra-African trade.
“We have moved beyond political aspirations to establishing a functional and legally binding multilateral African trading system. This includes protocols on investment, competition policy, and digital trade,” Mene said.
Despite these milestones, he warned that numerous challenges persist. These include inefficient customs systems, high trade costs that limit SME market entry, political instability, and persistent food insecurity which blocks smallholder farmers from accessing markets. He called for continued collaboration between political leaders and development finance institutions to address these obstacles.
“We should be proud of what we have achieved, but also mindful of the difficult journey ahead. Conflict and instability, particularly in rural regions, continue to prevent millions of farmers from accessing markets. We must tackle these issues with urgency if the full potential of AfCFTA is to be realised,” Mene said.
During a question and answer after the launch of African trade and economic outlook report, Yemi Kale, Group chief economist and managing director of Research and Trade Intelligence at the African Export Import Bank, said between May 2024 and 2025 transaction volume through Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) increased by over 1,000 percent, reflecting increased adoption of the payment system.
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