In Africa, as throughout the world, the relentless rise in digital connectivity means that demand for data centre capacity is growing rapidly. And, as the artificial intelligence revolution gathers pace, demand for data centres is set to accelerate even further.
Consulting group McKinsey projects that data centre capacity in the five largest African markets will increase from around 400 megawatts today, to between 1.5 and 2.2 gigawatts GW by 2030. Luca Bennici, a partner at McKinsey, tells African Business that data centre demand is also expanding significantly beyond the continent's traditional leading market, South Africa. He lists Kenya, Nigeria, Morocco and Egypt as key emerging players.
"We would expect these to become tier one markets or hubs that could potentially serve demand locally and in the regions around them."
