Revealed! MTN to build biggest West African data centre in Nigeria

• According to MTN Nigeria, the country will be home to the largest data centre in West Africa, a Tier 4 facility with 1,500 racks
• The telecommunication company stated that Nigeria's digital infrastructure will be improved by the construction of the data centre
• He claims that the new data centre will support MTN's infrastructure and be a vital resource for businesses doing business in Nigeria

Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has over 3-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market.

MTN Nigeria said that it is building the biggest data centre in West Africa, a Tier 4 data centre with 1,500 racks.

“Prepare for Future Growth”: MTN Chooses Nigeria to Build Biggest Data Center in West Africa
Source: Getty Images

According to the News Agency of Nigeria, a Tier 4 data centre is designed with 100% fault tolerance, total redundancy for every component, and an anticipated 99.995% uptime.

This indicates that it provides the most dependable infrastructure and can tolerate a broad range of possible disruptions.

MTN to impove digital infrastructure

MTN's Chief Technical Officer, Mohammed Rufai, explained to reporters in Lagos that building the data centre was a step toward improving Nigeria's digital infrastructure.

According to Rufai, the data centre will be essential in helping the nation's businesses and consumers fulfil their increasing data needs and digital requirements.

According to him, the new data centre will help MTN's infrastructure and be an essential tool for companies operating in Nigeria.

He said,

“Businesses that require data centre capacity can now forgo maintaining their server rooms.‘’Our facility will provide the space and services needed, enabling companies to digitalise their operations and improve efficiency.‘’The data centre will also enhance the delivery of content from major tech companies like Meta and Google, bringing content closer to Nigerian users and improving access speeds."

He claims that this local content hosting will greatly improve network performance and user experience.

Rufai emphasized that the advent of new services and the sharp rise in data utilization have made increased data processing capabilities imperative.

“We see a high demand in the market, with data usage growing significantly.“And to cater to demand and prepare for future growth, MTN is expanding and modernising its data centre capacity.”

New centre to improve performance

He claimed that this local content hosting will greatly improve network performance and user experience.

Rufai emphasized that the advent of new services and the sharp rise in data utilization have made increased data processing capabilities imperative.

He emphasized that this would promote efficiency, creativity, and competitiveness in a number of economic sectors.

He emphasized that MTN is willing to work with startups and MSMEs, providing several chances for cooperation, especially in the cloud services sector.

In line with MTN's Ambition 2025 vision, he claims the data center represents the company's dedication to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) objectives.

In the long run, he predicted, the plant would use gas and renewable energy sources in addition to conventional energy sources and effective cooling systems.

Rufai emphasized the significance of these energy-related steps, claiming that they will drastically lessen the country's carbon impact.

He claims that cooling accounts for as much as 60% of the power used in a normal data center in our climate; MTN's extremely efficient technologies will guarantee that the center satisfies the sustainability standards.

146 internet service providers shut down

Legit.ng reported that out of the 252 companies licensed as Internet service providers as of the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2023, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) disclosed data that only 106 ISPs are currently operational.

The NCC data also revealed that during the period under review, the 106 ISPs had a total of 262,206 active customers.

This amount is still quite small, though, when compared to the four mobile network operators that make up the country's internet subscriber base.

Source: Legit.ng