Demand for data centers has flourished across the country, especially in Nairobi in the last couple of years.
The rising requirement is because data centers provide a cheaper and more efficient IT capability than inbuilt servers, which is aiding their popularity.
They also offer cloud services and allow organizations to focus on their core functions.
According to Knight Frank, a residential and commercial property consultancy, seen by SonkoNews, landlords and property owners are responding to increased demands for data centers and warehouses by rehabilitating their units to meet investors’ preferences.
“A closer look at the Nairobi market indicates a rising demand for cloud storage requirements as businesses rapidly expand their online platforms, driving a surge in data centre requirements,” Knight Frank stated.
Africa Data Center CEO Snehar Shah in an interview with Business Daily on Monday, October 9 noted that Kenya was an ideal place for data centers due to green power availability.
“Big companies have ambitious targets regarding reducing carbon emissions which puts Kenya in a preferential place to fill in that gap for data centres,” Shah stated.
Some data centers within the city include Telkom Kenya’s facilities include Telkom – Milimani Data Center – Nairobi, PAIX Data Centres’s facilities include PAIX Nairobi, and Safaricom’s facilities include Africa Digital Data Center – Thika.
In January US Ambassador to Kenya Meg Whitman announced that the country was set to receive Ksh3.7 billion to finance data centers in Nairobi County.
The ambassador noted that the financing would go towards the expansion of the Africa Data Center.
“I am delighted to announce Ksh3.7 billion (USD30 million) funding in support of the expansion of the Africa Data Centers here in Nairobi.
“Excited to tour the Africa Data Center and participate in the groundbreaking for their expansion – more than doubling their current capacity and securing Kenya’s digital infrastructure,” she stated.
More investors are expected to set hub in the country following a series of meetings held by President William Ruto in Silicon Valley.
