Exclusive Video: Ayotunde Coker, Open Access Data Centres
With spending on public cloud set to triple over the next four years, CEO of Open Access Data Centres (OADC), Ayotunde Coker discussed the 5G rollout, cost-effective fibre strategies and data centre capacity demand at Data Centre LIVE.
During his half hour fireside, he delved into the potential risk of overbuild and over-accelerated investment.
Africa on the Cloud & Wholesale Connectivity Map with Ayotunde Coker
With years of experience working for a number of companies – including Capgemini and BP – Coker has a track record as a leader and builder of technology-based businesses. This experience has given him the drive to continuously provide best-in-class services through the companies he works with.
Coker was appointed CEO of OADC in September 2022, and shared how the company plans to digitally transform Africa.
His fireside opened discussion on how the push for digitalisation and cloudification of enterprises across African nations is well underway, with spending on public cloud set to triple over the next four years.
Talking about the African continent’s competitiveness, he started by introducing African connectivity provider WIOCC, which describes itself as ‘Africa’s digital backbone’ and has implemented fibre connectivity and undersea cables around Africa to connect the continent to the rest of the world for 14 years.
"OADC was set up two years ago now as a part of the WIOCC Group, focusing on the data centres,” he explained
"We're providing converged open digital infrastructure. Transforming and digital Africa is the term that we use.”
Addressing both the prosperity and digital gap in Africa, he continued: “So we have about 18% of the global population on the continent, however, we only have about 4% of the world’s GDP. How would we address that? Broadband, internet and fintech implementation can drive that.
"But we also have this digital gap. We only have 1% of the global data centre footprint across the continent. And of that, 50% is in South Africa. So you can see the depth of available data centre infrastructure across the continent.
"What we are doing to fix that on our part is the core DC and edge DC strategy. We need some sort of policy that moves to encourage adoption of digital and legislation, policy, and sovereign data rules.
"That in itself is how we see the digital have been bridged to enable us to address the prosperity gap.”
You can hear more of Coker’s insights by watching his foreside in full.
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