Investors pour into Africa’s digital backbone as data centre projects near 900 MW

Africa’s data centre industry is attracting a new wave of investment as developers race to build the infrastructure needed to power artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing and digital services, with nearly 900 megawatts (MW) of new capacity under development across the continent.

A report by Fortren & Company shows Africa now has more than 500 MW of operational data centre capacity, while another 890 MW is in the development pipeline, highlighting growing investor confidence in one of the continent’s fastest-expanding digital infrastructure sectors.

While South Africa still accounts for more than 60 percent of Africa’s operational data centre capacity, investment is increasingly shifting towards emerging technology hubs including Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, Ghana, Ethiopia and Morocco.

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The report said Africa’s digital economy has witnessed significant investment over the past decade as businesses migrate to the cloud, governments digitise services, and AI applications require more computing power than conventional IT systems can provide.

“As of today, Africa boasts over 500 MW worth of operational data centre capacity. As expected, South Africa dominates the region by a considerable margin of over 60 percent market share,” the report said.

It added that regional gateway markets such as Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana, Egypt and Morocco are steadily diversifying Africa’s digital infrastructure landscape.

The report noted that investors increasingly see data centres as strategic infrastructure assets because they generate stable long-term revenues through customer contracts while supporting national digital economies.

Africa currently has about 890 MW of planned projects, including Oracle Cloud Infrastructure’s facility in Kenya, Khazna Data Center’s expansion in Egypt and Airtel’s planned data centre in Nigeria.

Industry analysts now measure data centres by megawatt capacity rather than building size because power capacity better reflects how much computing work a facility can perform and its long-term revenue potential.

South Africa remains the continent’s clear leader, hosting four of Africa’s seven largest operational data centres. However, Nigeria, Ghana and Egypt each now feature among the continent’s biggest facilities, underlining the geographical spread of new investment.

Johannesburg’s Teraco Isando Campus is Africa’s largest operational data centre with 70 MW of IT capacity, followed by other South African facilities.

Nigeria’s 21st Century Technologies Ikeja Campus ranks fourth on the continent with 36 MW of IT capacity, reflecting the country’s growing position as a West African digital hub.

Ghana’s Agility Logistics Park Data Centre Campus currently has 30 MW of committed IT capacity but has been designed for future expansion to 150 MW, while Egypt’s East Cairo Logistics Park Data Centre Campus operates at 25 MW with plans to expand to 45 MW.

The findings reinforce projections that Lagos is becoming one of Africa’s fastest-growing data centre markets.

According to the Lagos Real Estate Development Pipeline Report 2025/2026 by Estate Intel, Lagos’ total data centre capacity is expected to exceed 218 MW by 2030, almost four times its current 78.6 MW capacity.

Major developments include 21st Century Technologies’ planned 50 MW facility in Ikeja, Airtel’s 38 MW Nxtra data centre in Eko Atlantic and Open Access Data Centres’ 24 MW campus in Ilasan.

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Estate Intel noted that although installed capacity is growing faster than current demand, the market remains balanced because data centres are long-term infrastructure investments designed to meet future digital growth.

The rapid expansion reflects Africa’s changing digital economy, where demand for AI computing, cloud services, fintech platforms, streaming, e-commerce and government digital services is increasing the need for secure, high-capacity data infrastructure.

For Nigeria, the growing pipeline of investments presents an opportunity to strengthen its position as West Africa’s digital gateway. However, analysts say sustaining the momentum will depend on improving electricity supply, expanding fibre connectivity and creating policies that continue to attract global cloud providers and infrastructure investors.