Telecom
Stakeholders at MoDiTECH 2019 Harp on Leveraging Digital Services to Boost Nigeria’s Economy
To fully embrace the possibilities that digital technology has to offer both the private and public organisations have to be willing to use agile approaches in which requirements and solutions evolve over time.
Through adaptive planning, evolutionary development, early delivery, and continuous improvement agile development methods encourage rapid and flexible response to change.
These were the thoughts of speakers at the maiden Mobile and Disruptive Technology Forum (MoDiTECH2019) organised by TechEconomy.ng in Lagos recently.
R-L: MD Rack Centre and Chair, MoDiTECH2019, Dr. Ayotunde Coker; Founder, CWG Plc and Keynote speaker, MoDiTECH2019, Mr. Austin Okere and ATCON Coordinator, Internet Services Providers, Mr. Desoye Amoo, during Mobile and Disruptive Technology Forum (MoDiTECH2019) held at Victoria Crown Hotel, VI, Lagos, recently.
Participants at the Forum were exposed to how industry leaders are using disruptive technologies such as Mobile Internet, Automation of Knowledge and Work, Internet of Things (IoT), Cloud Technology etc. to improve the quality of life for people and redefining business models such as Agritech, FinTech, e-Billing, e-Commerce, e-Governance, e-Payments, transportation, smart city, etc.
Speaking at the event, Prof. Garba Danbatta, executive vice chairman (EVC), Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), said that through its regulatory excellence, the Commission is at the forefront of unleashing the digital economy that will spur industrial growth, job creation, and Return on Investment (RoI) for investors.
According to him, the internet is at the leading edge of digital revolution, which informed why NCC is supporting operators to deploy more infrastructure.
“Today, Nigeria has started a test-run of 5G, the latest technology for delivering broadband services and such other services as Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI). The trial will last for three months. Nigeria hopes to join other countries which are in a rush to deploy the 5G technology because of its immense promise for digital communication,” Danbatta said.
R-L: Chief Product Officer, Global Accelerex, Chuks Anakudo; President, Digivation Networks, Dr. Bayero Agabi and the Executive Secretary, African ICT Foundation, Mr. Emmanuel Bassey, during Mobile and Disruptive Technology Forum (MoDiTECH2019) held at Victoria Crown Hotel, VI, Lagos, recently.
Prof. Danbatta who spoke through Engineer Bako Wakil, director, Technical Standards and Network Integrity, NCC, also disclosed that the Commission was “at the verge of sending the N65 billion request for supporting the already six infrastructure companies (InfraCos) licensed to roll out broadband infrastructure across the country, to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for approval”.
Meanwhile, Danbatta expressed concurrence of the Commission to the renaming of the Ministry of Communications to ‘Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy’.
“The renaming of the Ministry shows a demonstration of the future of telecoms in all government sectors and the economy; the EVC, therefore, commended the Minister, Dr. Isa Pantami and members of the Federal Executive Council for the foresight and dramatic change. This, will spur a new debate and redirect the Ministry and other agencies under it as well as the private sector to a new awakening that digital economy brings,” he added.
L-r: Marketing Manager, Galaxy Backbone Limited; Head, Marketing and Communications at Rack Centre, Ejieke Ezeadiugwu and the Conference Manager West Africa – International Data Corporation (IDC), Theresa Etukodo Eshiet, during Mobile and Disruptive Technology Forum (MoDiTECH2019) held at Victoria Crown Hotel, VI, Lagos, recently.
In a keynote presentation titled: ‘Social and Global Impact: Engaging for Growth’, Mr. Austin Okere, founder/vice-chairman, CWG Plc recalled that in 2018, the mobile ecosystem contributed more than $500 billion to the funding of the public sector through general taxation, globally.
According to him, Nigeria as among the three smartphone super-powers to emerge by 2025, stands to benefit from the smartphone ubiquity across the world that enables consumer engagement in numerous use cases
He said, however, slowing unique subscriber growth, regulatory intervention and intense competition continue to put pressure on operators’ traditional mobile revenue.
Cross section of participants at the event.
“Over a fifth of the world’s markets will have launched 5G by 2020, spending combined $244 billion on networks in the process. In 2018, mobile technologies and services generated 4.6% of GDP globally, a contribution that amounted to $3.9 trillion of economic value added.
“The mobile ecosystem also supported almost 32 million jobs (directly and indirectly) and made a substantial contribution to the funding of the public sector, with more than $500 billion raised through general taxation. By 2023, mobile’s contribution will reach
“$4.8 trillion (4.8% of GDP) as countries around the globe increasingly benefit from the improvements in productivity and efficiency brought about by increased take-up of mobile services.
“Further ahead, 5G technologies are expected to contribute $2.2 trillion to the global economy over the next 15 years, with key sectors such as manufacturing, utilities and professional/financial services benefiting the most from the new technology.
“The mobile ecosystem directly employs almost 32 million people globally; 14 million directly and 17 million through related industries
To this end, Mr. Okere called on State Governments’ to invest in digital economy especially by removing excess taxation on Right of Way (RoW) adding that over the next few years, as the enablers of mobile internet adoption such as infrastructure, affordability, consumer readiness and content/services, continue to improve, millions of people will start using the mobile internet for the first time, and will add value to the nation’s economy.
L-r: Senior Consultant, Digital Encode, Oluafemi Obadare; Chief Operating Officer, Fintech Association of Nigeria (FinTechNGR), Dr. Babatunde Obrimah; CEO, i-Naira.com. Hillary Nwaukor and Chief Technology Strategist at Debbie Mishael Consulting, Engr. Ifeanyi Frank Ogochukwu, during a panel session at Mobile and Disruptive Technology Forum (MoDiTECH2019) held at Victoria Crown Hotel, VI, Lagos, recently
He continued that “Mobile is a powerful tool for achieving the UN’s SDGs: since 2015, impact has increased across all 17 SDGs. 5G is an inevitable network evolution, and will create significant opportunities if the right conditions are in place.
Dr. Ayotunde Coker, managing director,Rack Centre and Chairman of MoDiTECH2019, aligned with Mr. Okere, stressing that content consumption through the mobile channels, is rising hence mobile is a key driver, with more people watching video on their devices for longer and more frequently.
Speaking on the theme: “The Power of Digital Services”, Dr. Coker briefly highlighted the history of the internet and interconnectivity and how it has brought progress to the way businesses and other important economic activities are done in Africa.
Dr. Coker stressed the importance of digitisation on the African continent, and “What it means for us in Africa is to leverage the lots of benefits we can get. Benefits in terms of demographic advantage”
According to Dr. Coker, “the fourth industrial revolution is the next stage of digitisation with Africa has a focus; survival in the present economic structure is dependent on innovation. The journey of digitisation is now a way of life hence the demand for data has exponentially increased.
In his presentation on ‘Impact of Digital Solutions on Financial Services’ Mr. Tunde Ogungbade, managing director, Global Accelerex, traced the history of banking and financial service provisioning to the 90’s when customers had to be physically present at a bank “in an orderly fashion, with a passbook or cheque” in order to carry out a financial transaction.
Thus, between year 2000 and 2011, were the era of search for utility among banks that engaged in fierce competition for the most branches in localities.
He said that this era was disrupted by internet banking and smart phones that paved the way for 24/7 banking; “Prepaid cards, the POS, the ATMs and then debit cards linked to bank accounts”.
“From 2012 to date we are talking about the search for more utility. This is the era of Web Payments; Mobile Payments; Smart POS Payments; Mobile Money & Agency Banking, Then, BVN changed everything!” he said.
Mr. Ogungbade who was represented by Chuks Anakudo, chief Product Officer, Global Accelerex, warned the banks to brace-up for more disruptions as payments will even migrate from traditional banking to native apps and point-of-sales solutions.
He added that Blockchain technology will further disrupt financial services like the internet did to the media.
L-r: Vice President of Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NiRA), Toba Obaniyi; CTO, Medallion Communications. Dr. Kris Ranganath and President, Association of Licensed Mobile Payment Operators (ALMPO), Chinedu Onuoha, during a panel session at Mobile and Disruptive Technology Forum (MoDiTECH2019) held at Victoria Crown Hotel, VI, Lagos, recently.
“Banks of the future may not need to hold funds in the vault, assets will be digitized in a more secured way. Therefore, the future to behold is closing the gap between what the financial institutions offer and what consumers really need”, said Mr. Ogungbade.
Earlier, Mr. Peter Oluka, editor, TechEconomy.ng; conveners of #MoDiTECH2019, said the event was organised “to discuss, brainstorm, learn and review the overall impact of new digital technologies that are disrupting many industries.”
Oluka also reiterated the widespread recognition that Artificial intelligence, for instance, will be key to future business and digital transformation and driving increasingly autonomous and intelligent networks (for telcos) and improving the customer experience through greater learning of customer behaviour.
MoDiTECH2019 was sponsored by Global Accelerex, Digital Encode, Access Bank Plc, ActivEdge Technologies, Zenith Bank Plc, Galaxy Backbone, i-naira.com, Medallion Communications, while the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) provided support to the Organisers.
With its meteoric rise in data centre development and it accounting for 20% of the global population, Africa still only has 0.6% of global data centre capacity.
This is based on the 2026 Economic Report: Data Centres in Africa, published by Africa Data Centres Association (ADCA), in partnership with Rising Advisory.
The US hosts about 45% of the world’s data centres, while Africa accounts for less than 1% of global capacity.
According to the report, Africa’s active capacity stands at 360MW, with 238MW under construction and 656MW in the pipeline.
By comparison, global active capacity is at 5.5GW, with 1.5GW under construction and a development pipeline of 13.5GW.
Even if all of Africa’s announced projects materialise, says the report, the continent is projected to maintain rather than increase its global share, as hyperscale expansion accelerates elsewhere.
“This is not a catch-up cycle; it is a race to avoid deeper structural marginalisation in global compute,” notes Faith Waithaka, chairperson of ADCA.
“Capacity development in Africa must be approached with a long-term perspective, recognising that infrastructure growth will precede full utilisation as digital ecosystems continue to evolve.
“Sustainability is now a central consideration for the sector. Improving energy-efficiency and integrating renewable energy sources are essential to the viability of data centre operations. Africa is uniquely positioned in this regard, with vast untapped potential across solar, wind, hydro and geothermal resources. Leveraging these assets can support greener data centres, while strengthening energy security and long-term competitiveness.”
Africa’s data centre market is projected by Mordor Intelligence to reach $4.36 billion by 2031, with the South African market considered a “sweet spot” due to its favourable position on the African continent.
South Africa is the largest data centre market on the continent, with55 data centres already built. The country’s geographical position also makes it a strategic hub for regional and international connectivity.
Firms such as Digital Realty-owned Teraco, Vantage Data Centres, Open Access Data Centres and Equinix have expanded their data centre footprint in SA, while hyperscalers Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google and Microsoft Azure have also built local data centre facilities.
The country’s data centre momentum has been highlighted by president Cyril Ramaphosa on several occasions, notably stating that more than R50 billion in investment is expected in the local data centre space over the next three years.
The data centre capacity buildout has also resulted in government calling for accelerated cloud migration, as the state’s digital transformation efforts require greater use of cloud.
Digital rush
The report notes that the global data centre industry is booming as demand for this “digital gold” accelerates.
Valued at $243 billion in 2025, the market is projected to double by 2032, according to the World Economic Forum.
Meanwhile, UN Trade and Development reports that data centre projects accounted for over one-fifth of all greenfield foreign direct investment in 2025.
“This surge reflects the growing need for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, cloud services and digital networks, positioning data centres as indispensable assets driving global growth strategies,” states the report.
“Several converging trends are driving this expansion. Cloud adoption continues to shift workloads off-premises, while AI and big data are reshaping infrastructure needs.”
On the other hand, hyperscale facilities − operated by giants like AWS, Microsoft, Google and Alibaba − have doubled in number roughly every five years, with hyperscale capital expenditure rising nearly 58% year-on-year in 2024.
“Governments across Asia, the Middle East and Africa are offering incentives to attract greenfield projects, recognising data centres as foundations for innovation, skilled employment, and adjacent industries like fintech and AI. Yet Africa faces a stark challenge.
“The continent’s share is expected to expand only in line with global growth, rather than closing the gap. This opportunity has not stayed unnoticed, and investors, expecting high returns, have poured funds into increasing the sector’s capacity by approximately two-thirds.”
Legal steps
According to the report, the heightened activity in the data centre market has resulted in data sovereignty becoming policy reality.
It notes that as of early this year, over 40 African nations have enacted data protection legislation or established data protection authorities, while five additional countries are drafting laws.
Additionally, 15 countries have formalised national AI strategies.
As noted in the ADCA report, the frameworks aim to protect citizens’ rights, while providing legal certainty for investors and digital service providers.
“Governments are increasingly recognising data centres as critical national infrastructure, central to digital sovereignty, financial stability and AI competitiveness.
“As Africa’s digital economies expand, the rules governing ‘where’ and ‘how’ data is stored, processed and transferred are becoming central to economic competitiveness and state capacity.
“Data sovereignty – the principle that data generated within a country should be governed by that country’s laws – has evolved from a legal aspiration into a strategic policy lever, shaping investment patterns, infrastructure deployment and the localisation of digital value chains.”
Even with the frameworks, enforcement capacity often lags legislative ambition, states the report.
“World Bank and GSMA assessments highlight constraints linked to staffing, funding and technical expertise. Yet this enforcement gap also represents a growth opportunity: stronger, more predictable regulation is increasingly seen by investors as a prerequisite for scaling local digital infrastructure. And well-functioning regulation is increasingly functioning as a demand signal.
“Clear localisation and data-protection requirements create predictable demand for compliant, in-country infrastructure, improving bankability for data centre projects and attracting long-term capital.
“Data localisation policies are emerging as part of this broader regulatory maturation. When aligned with market realities, localisation can strengthen oversight, improve accountability and support the development of domestic data centre ecosystems.”
GigaLayer, a prominent player in Africa’s cloud infrastructure and domain services sector, has announced the acquisition of Registeram, a Nigerian domain registration and hosting firm.
GigaLayer
This move marks a significant consolidation in the local tech ecosystem, as GigaLayer continues its aggressive expansion strategy to dominate the digital infrastructure market in Nigeria and across the continent.
Consolidating the Digital Backbone
The acquisition of Registeram, which has been operational since 2008, is the latest in a series of strategic buyouts by GigaLayer.
The company has previously integrated brands such as Trudigits, Hub8, MainOne’s SMEinaBox, and LagosHost, effectively positioning itself as a primary consolidator in a fragmented hosting industry.
According to Ahmad Mukoshy, Founder and CEO of GigaLayer, the deal is less about increasing headcount and more about infrastructure resilience.
“This acquisition reinforces our commitment to building resilient, locally operated cloud and domain infrastructure for African businesses. We are not just acquiring customers; we are strengthening Africa’s digital backbone,” Mukoshy stated.
What this means for Registeram customers
GigaLayer has assured Registeram’s existing clientele of a seamless transition with no immediate service disruptions.
Key highlights of the integration include:
Infrastructure Upgrade: Services will be migrated to GigaLayer’s enterprise-grade platform to improve performance and redundancy.
Security & Support: Users will gain access to enhanced security standards and GigaLayer’s robust support system.
Product Expansion: Existing customers will now have access to broader cloud compute and high-availability hosting solutions.
Focus on Local Cloud Sovereignty
As Nigerian businesses face increasing pressure to comply with local data residency regulations, GigaLayer is doubling down on local cloud sovereignty.
The company currently operates infrastructure across two data centers in Lagos, focusing on bare-metal and cloud compute capabilities designed for enterprise workloads.
By reducing reliance on offshore providers, GigaLayer aims to provide high-performance solutions that are both compliance-ready and tailored for the Nigerian economic climate.
“We believe Africa’s digital future must be built on African infrastructure,” Mukoshy added.
Strategic Outlook
The founders of Registeram are expected to exit to pursue other ventures, while GigaLayer takes full operational control of the assets and client portfolio.
This acquisition signals a maturing market where local players are scaling up to compete with global giants by offering localized support, Naira-based pricing stability, and low-latency infrastructure.
Olugbenga Agboola, Flutterwave CEO has joined a $22 million funding extension for Nigerian defensetech start-up Terra Industries as Africa’s fast-growing drone and security technology sector begins to attract capital far beyond traditional venture circles.
The round was led by Lux Capital, with participation from Agboola through Resilience17 Capital and returning investors including 8VC and Nova Global.
It follows an $11.75 million raise just weeks earlier, bringing Terra’s total funding to $34 million as the company accelerates expansion into high-risk security markets.
Terra, founded in 2024 by 24-year-old chief engineer Maxwell Maduka and CEO Nathan Nwachuku, builds autonomous drones and surveillance systems designed to protect critical infrastructure such as energy facilities, logistics corridors and industrial sites. The startup says it is already safeguarding assets worth billions of dollars while securing early federal and commercial contracts.
Agboola’s involvement highlights a broader shift in African tech investment patterns. While fintech has long dominated venture flows, escalating infrastructure sabotage and terrorism threats have elevated demand for locally developed security hardware.
“Nigeria’s drone ecosystem is rapidly evolving from hobbyist and mapping use cases toward industrial monitoring, border surveillance and energy protection, areas increasingly seen as foundational to economic stability.
“This is about backing infrastructure security at scale. Africa’s growth depends on resilient systems that protect critical assets,” said Agboola.
Terra CEO Nwachuku is adamant that locally engineered systems are better suited to African operating conditions. “We are building tools designed for the realities on the ground. Security technology should not always be imported when local innovation can respond faster and more effectively,” he stated.
Lux Capital partner Brandon Reeves underlined that the investor appetite, which has drawn fintech heavyweight interest such as Agboola, reflects rising cross-sector confidence in African defense technology as a commercial category. “Security is a prerequisite for economic growth,” he said.
“As Terra ramps production and expands regionally, its funding milestone illustrates a wider transformation. Drone and autonomous security platforms are no longer peripheral experiments but emerging pillars in Africa’s technology landscape, where fintech leaders and venture capital converge around safeguarding the infrastructure powering the continent’s next growth phase,” said Reeves
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