The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has sanctioned a loan of €9.51 million (equivalent to $10.5 million) to the Comoros, an East African archipelago, for the establishment and operation of a brand-new data center. This financial assistance will also cover the enhancement of an existing secondary data center and the creation of an incubator designed to foster a conducive environment for digital innovation and entrepreneurial activities.
The entire cost of the project is estimated at €22.53 million (around $24.9 million). The African Development Fund, which is the concessional wing of the Bank, is contributing €4.02 million ($4.4 million) to this amount. Additionally, the Transition Support Facility of the Bank is injecting €5.49 million ($6 million) into the project.
This ambitious project is a component of the broader initiative known as the Project to Support the Digitisation of the Comorian Economy. The overarching goal of this initiative is to enhance critical sectors such as governance and the delivery of public services to citizens.
The AfDB has disclosed that a private entity will be entrusted with the responsibility of managing the data centers. This includes tasks such as overseeing operations, marketing efforts, routine maintenance, and future expansions. Furthermore, the project encompasses the establishment of a digital administration platform, the development of electronic services, the creation of a digital public payment system, and the implementation of an interoperability and data-sharing platform.
The AfDB has placed a strong emphasis on the importance of digitization, data management, and data protection within this project. To this end, the project includes provisions for the establishment and activation of a National Authority dedicated to the Protection of Personal Data and Access to Information.
Upon completion, the project is anticipated to provide a “comprehensive and coherent” array of digital services that will cater to the needs of the citizens of Comoros, facilitating their access to digitization. This development is significant given that the rate of internet penetration in Comoros has reached 27.3% of the population as of January 2024, marking an increase of 1.8% since January 2023.
The data center market in East Africa is on an upward trajectory, with projections indicating that it will generate revenues of $1.09 billion by the year 2024. Network Infrastructure is expected to be the leading segment within this market, contributing $0.48 billion.
In a related development, Kenya, another nation in East Africa, witnessed the inauguration of a hyper-scale data center by IXAfrica Data Centres and Schneider Electric in July 2024. This facility is touted as the largest and most technologically sophisticated data center in the region.
Moreover, Kenya has secured investments of up to $1 billion from Microsoft and G42. G42 is collaborating with local entities to construct an avant-garde data center campus, which will be powered by renewable geothermal energy and incorporate water conservation technologies.
Ethiopia’s state-owned telecommunications company, Ethio Telecom, is also engaged in strategic discussions with a Chinese firm regarding the construction of a hyper-scale data center, further indicating the growing interest in data infrastructure development in the region.
