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Data Growth, Improved Connectivity & DRaaS Driving Cloud Adoption in Africa

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Five African countries are experiencing growth in cloud service roll out and adoption. They are Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Mauritius and Namibia, says Trent Odgers, Cloud Hosting Manager at Veeam.

According to Odgers this is because of improved connectivity across the continent, as well as the fact that data has become a core part of many businesses.

“The loss of their data or systems is no longer tolerated and thus needs to be “insured”  backed up and protected and rapidly recovered no matter the scenario. Offsite Backup and Disaster Recovery as a service (DRaaS) has since become a key driver of cloud-based offerings, as it is often the next step on the journey.

“Many partners have delivered hosting services for decades, and those offerings have evolved to add additional services like offsite backup and DRaaS to complement their hosting services,” he said.

Odgers added that in 2020 many organisations may have taken a wait-and-see approach, but the pandemic has forced everyone’s hand and sped up digital transformation in all its guises.

This has spurred the rise of cloud-first strategies.

Security major factor

According to Veeam, security is a major factor that needs to be considered before the first set of data is sent offsite.

“As I have always said, it is about layers of security, having a plan and regularly testing that plan. It is important to ensure that the right people have the right access to the right information at the right time. As technology has advanced, it has become easier in some regards to create a secure connection, but with ransomware and other risks have been introduced, more needs to be taken into consideration,” said Odgers.

“Before, one of the only methods was to use VPNs to ensure that the connection and application was secure. As much as that secured the connection from A to B, it also created a connection into the business that needed additional layers to be secured. Now many products have cloud connect capabilities and APIs built directly into their products, which enables more secure methods of connecting, while ensuring that security is top of mind.”

According to Odgers, when it comes to the protection of those workloads and data, very strict methodologies need to be put in place.

“Data encryption is a good start, in order to ensure that no matter who gets access to the data and that data is kept secure. To send the data offsite, ideally a single port, that is secured with the right rules and that only the backup server can see and connect, will mitigate risk and has been proven to help many customers locally who have had their network compromised, as only the backup server can see the offsite target,” he continued.

Veeam said the adoption of cloud-based services continues to grow across a range of industries, including automotive, manufacturing, hospitality, government, healthcare, media, entertainment and legal.

“This is because data and its availability is important, no matter the size or type of the business,” said Odgers.


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Seedstars Africa Ventures I Announces $42m First Close

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Seedstars Africa Ventures I, a venture capital fund making early-stage investments in highly scalable start-ups in Africa, has achieved a first close of $42 million, with participation from the African Development Bank, EIB Global with the support of the European Union, under the ACP Trust Fund – EU Compartment and Boost Africa among other global investors.

The fund, with offices in Nairobi, Dakar and Paris, has further secured $50 million in commitments towards an $80 million fundraising target.

The milestone was announced at the 2024 Africa Investment Forum Market Days currently underway in Rabat. Both the African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank are founding partners of the Africa Investment Forum, a platform that advances transformative African projects toward financial close.

Seedstars Africa Ventures I is addressing gaps in early-stage financing across Africa through investments of up to $2 million in seed and series A rounds, with significant follow-on capacity up to $5 million, thereby bridging available pools of capital. By leading successive investment rounds, the fund will catalyse co-investment while offering operational support to start-ups.

The Fund was founded by Maxime Bouan, Tamim El Zein and Bruce Nsereko Lule who have over 45 years of experience investing and working across the continent. Seedstars Africa Ventures is a member of LBO France Group, which played a pivotal role in seeding this initiative as part of their multi asset class African strategy, alongside other initiatives.

Robert Daussun, and Stéphanie Casciola, Chairman and CEO respectively of LBO France said “We are delighted by Seedstars Africa Ventures’ latest milestone, and proud to have been the initial supporter of the team.

“The portfolio the team has built with our support is innovative and transformative, already providing significant impact and value to the continent. LBO France appreciates the opportunity SAV provides for us and our partners to be part of Africa’s growth story.”

“The African Development Bank views Seedstars Africa Ventures as a strategic opportunity to provide innovative support to Africa’s venture capital industry.

“It serves as a conduit to improve access to finance for youth and women while also enhancing the availability of risk capital in Francophone Africa. This is an area that has traditionally faced limited access to risk capital,” said Ahmed  Attout, African Development Bank Group Director for Financial Sector Development.

“We welcome the investment of the African Development Bank, our Boost Africa partners, in the Seedstars Africa Ventures fund,” said EIB Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle. “Accelerating digitalisation is a priority for the EIB, and we are committed to supporting African businesses as they drive innovation and prosperity on the continent.”

The fund has already deployed over $10 million to five pioneering African startups in the climate, food systems, energy access, internet connectivity, financial inclusion, and payments infrastructure sectors.

These businesses serve over 60 million people, including by connecting 60,000 households to the internet, supporting 50,000 farmers, and empowering 30,000 individuals with financial inclusion services across eight African countries. The portfolio is also fully 2X compliant, empowering women in startups and ecosystems.


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Nigeria Records ₦5.81 Trillion Trade Surplus in Q3 2024

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National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reports that Nigeria recorded a trade surplus of ₦5.81 trillion in the third quarter (Q3) of 2024.

A trade surplus occurs when a nation’s exports exceed its imports, reflecting a positive trade balance.

In its report titled Foreign Trade in Goods Statistics (Q3 2024), released on Friday, the NBS stated that Nigeria’s exports totalled ₦20.48 trillion, while imports stood at ₦14.67 trillion. The bureau noted that the country’s total merchandise trade increased by 81% from ₦19.38 trillion in Q3 2023 to ₦35.16 trillion in Q3 2024.

“Nigeria’s total merchandise trade stood at ₦35,160.44 billion in Q3, 2024. This represents an increase of 81.35% compared to the value recorded in the corresponding period of 2023 and a rise of 13.26% over the value recorded in the preceding quarter,” the NBS said.

“In the quarter under review, exports accounted for 58.27% of total trade with a value of ₦20,486.39 billion, showing an increase of 98.00% rise over the value recorded in the third quarter of 2023 (₦10,346.60) and 16.76% compared to the value recorded in Q2 2024 (₦17,545.62).”

The report highlighted that exports were predominantly crude oil, valued at ₦13.4 trillion and accounting for 65.44% of total exports. Non-crude oil exports, including gas, amounted to ₦7 trillion, representing 34.56% of total exports. Non-oil products, such as agricultural commodities, contributed ₦2.5 trillion, or 12.21% of total exports.

The NBS also revealed that imports represented 41.73% of total trade in Q3 2024, amounting to ₦14.6 trillion. “This value indicates an increase of 62.30% compared to the value recorded in Q3 2023 (₦9,041.24 billion) and 8.71% over the value recorded in Q2 2024 (₦13,497.90 billion),” the bureau stated.

In terms of export destinations, Spain, the United States, France, The Netherlands, and Italy emerged as the top five trading partners. “The main export destination was Spain with a value of ₦2,267.83 billion or 11.07% of total exports, followed by exports to The United States of America with ₦1,689.48 billion or 8.25% of total exports, France with ₦1,588.30 billion or 7.75% of total export, The Netherlands with ₦1,434.29 billion or 7.00% of total exports, and exports to Italy with goods valued at ₦1,377.37 billion representing 6.72% of total exports,” the bureau said.

“These five countries collectively accounted for 40.79% of the value of total exports in Q3, 2024.”

On the import side, China remained Nigeria’s largest trading partner, accounting for 24.36% (₦3.57 trillion) of imported goods.

Other top import partners included India (₦1.66 trillion or 11.33%), Belgium (₦1.63 trillion or 11.13%), the United States (₦1.02 trillion or 6.98%), and Malta (₦766 billion or 5.23%)


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Nigeria to Launch Certificate-Based Digital Literacy Course Nationwide

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The Federal Government of Nigeria is set to launch a certificate-based digital literacy course across universities nationwide. This initiative aims to enhance students’ proficiency in digital skills, preparing them for the evolving technological landscape.

The program will be implemented in collaboration with the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and other stakeholders. It aligns with the government’s goal to achieve a 70% digital literacy rate among Nigerians within three years, targeting the training of 30 million Nigerians.

To further promote the Digital4All initiative, Director General Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi CCIE led a delegation from NITDA to meet with the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Chris J. Maiyaki, to discuss collaboration on digital literacy.

The discussion focused on integrating digital literacy and skills as a general course in all universities to accelerate the goal of achieving 70% digital literacy by 2027 and positioning the nation as a global talent exporter. This aligns with the agency’s strategy of fostering digital literacy and cultivating talent in line with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

During the visit, the Executive Secretary expressed readiness to collaborate with the agency in embedding and streamlining the initiative to further promote the digital economy.

This collaboration underscores the importance of integrating digital literacy into higher education curricula to equip students with essential skills for the digital age. By embedding digital literacy into university programs, Nigeria aims to produce a workforce adept in technology, thereby enhancing the nation’s competitiveness in the global digital economy.


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