Airtel Launches 'Nxtra' to Meet Africa's Digital Needs
Nxtra aims to build "one of the largest networks of data centres in Africa with high-capacity facilities in major cities," Airtel said in a statement Tuesday.
LILONGWE, Malawi - Airtel Africa has launched a new data centre business called Nxtra to meet the growing demand for reliable digital infrastructure across Africa, writes Moses Nyirenda.
Nxtra aims to build "one of the largest networks of data centres in Africa with high-capacity facilities in major cities," Airtel said in a statement Tuesday.
The centres will be located strategically across Airtel's African footprint, complementing existing infrastructure. Nxtra seeks to serve African enterprises and host next-generation computing, while providing multi-megawatt capacity.
"Nxtra's ambition will allow it to serve the growing needs of African enterprises and its data centre infrastructure will be designed to host the next generation of computing, while providing multi-MW capacity in a phased manner," the statement said.
By improving speed and reducing data costs, Nxtra hopes to "power increased innovation" and support tech talent across Africa. The centres will help customers meet data sovereignty needs and enable more local cloud services.
Airtel has appointed Yashnath Issur, former head of Global Data Centre Portfolio Management at Amazon Web Services, as Nxtra's CEO.
"A rapid increase in data centre capacity is needed to support the growth potential of Africa’s digital economy," said Airtel Africa Group CEO Segun Ogunsanya.
The first major Nxtra facility in Lagos, Nigeria has been designed for efficiency. It is expected to go live by mid-2025.
"We're proud to drive the future of Africa's digital infrastructure," Ogunsanya said.