Signal Africa needs 500 more data centers within nine years, says AfCFTA secretary-general

Summary

Speaking at the AfCFTA Digital Trade Forum in Lagos, AfCFTA Secretary-General Wamkele Mene said Africa needs more than 500 additional data centers over the next nine years to achieve digital sovereignty and build a competitive digital-trade economy. He projected that by 2035 the continent will need more than 700 data centers in total to process, manufacture and manage its own data. Africa's digital economy is currently valued at roughly $180 billion but is projected to grow to $700 billion by 2035. The continent's current data-center market remains underdeveloped, with an estimated 220 to 230 facilities across 38 countries accounting for less than 1% of global capacity, according to the Africa Data Centre Association's 2026 report. Mene identified energy and water infrastructure as a key constraint, noting that many governments remain hesitant to invite private-sector participation in power generation and transmission, and said such resource issues must be solved at the national level.