Hardy Pemhiwa - Afrikan Heroes

Africa Data Centres to Build its First Data Centre in Kigali, Rwanda

November 28, 2022

Hardy Pemhiwa, President & CEO of Cassava Technologies

The Africa Data Centres (https://www.AfricaDataCentres.com/) has announced that it is building its first data centre in Kigali, Rwanda; The facility will have 2MW of IT load and will break ground in the first quarter of 2023.

Africa Data Centres, a business of Cassava Technologies, a pan-African technology group, is pleased to announce that it is building its first data centre in Kigali, Rwanda. The data centre will have 2MW of IT load and will be purpose-built to meet growing demand in the region.

“It is an exciting time for Africa Data Centres,” says Tesh Durvasula, the company’s CEO. “Our decision to build a data centre in Kigali was an easy one, given Rwanda’s robust economic recovery post the COVID-19 pandemic and the Government of Rwanda’s focus on digital transformation”.

“This latest announcement adds to and complements our existing investments in Rwanda and elsewhere in East Africa. We will work closely with both public and private enterprises in Rwanda to ensure that they can harness the benefits of our data centre facility to enable the provision of digital services that Rwandan citizens need,“added Hardy Pemhiwa, Group President & CEO of Cassava Technologies.

According to Durvasula, “This new data centre brings three main benefits to the market – global standards, high quality of service and affordability. In addition, enterprises will achieve cost savings associated with building and maintaining their own facilities”.

Although Rwanda is a landlocked country in East Africa, there is stable network connectivity and infrastructure connecting it to Uganda and from there to the Kenyan coast into Uganda. Africa Data Centres will ensure that Rwanda becomes part of their ecosystem in East Africa by connecting the new data centre to their site in Nairobi.

Speaking of the need for colocation services in the country, Durvasula says the local enterprise market is eager to benefit from Africa Data Centres’ colocation services and a stable data centre environment. “They will also be able to make the most of global connectivity through a range of global service providers and cloud service providers”.

Ultimately, Africa Data Centres wants to extend the same experience to clients in Rwanda as it does in other countries by building a world-class ecosystem to which the Rwandan market can connect.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Cassava Wins $50-Million Investment for Africa’s Cybersecurity

July 20, 2022

African integrated tech firm, Cassava Technologies, today announced that it has secured a $50-million investment from C5 Capital (C5), a specialist venture capital firm that invests in cyber security, space, and energy security. The investment is part of a broader funding round to accelerate Cassava’s growth.

The investment by C5 will contribute to the acceleration of the work that Cassava has undertaken to increase digital connectivity and inclusion on the continent.

Hardy Pemhiwa, the President and CEO of Cassava

As part of the investment plan, Cassava will be the go-to-market partner in Africa for C5’s cutting-edge portfolio companies to deliver best-in-class cyber security, satellite and space technology and clean energy.

C5 and Cassava already announced a joint venture through which Haven Cyber, a C5 portfolio company and Cassava will scale Microsoft’s suite of cybersecurity products across Africa to help combat the threat of cybercrime.

“This investment from C5 is part of our plan to raise additional growth capital whilst diversifying our investor base. We are delighted that C5 has joined us to help realise our vision of a digitally connected future that leaves no African behind,” says Strive Masiyiwa, Founder and Executive Chairman of Cassava Technologies.

Cassava Technologies has operations in more than 20 African countries and has been at the forefront of bringing innovative technology solutions to local businesses and individuals.

The company provides digital solutions (in fibre networks, renewable energy, cloud, cyber-security, fintech and digital platforms) to over 1 million enterprises and access to the internet for over 500 million people in Africa.

“We are delighted to partner with Cassava Technologies, to bring the most innovative cyber security, space and energy security products and services to African markets,” said André Pienaar, Chief Executive and Founder of C5 Capital.

Through the partnership between Haven Cyber (a portfolio company of C5) and Liquid Cloud & Cybersecurity (a business of Cassava), C5 and Cassava aim to bring expertise in cyber security to Africa by launching a network of state-of-the-art Cyber Security Operations Centres (CSOCs) across Africa.

The CSOC network will enable the rapid delivery of cyber security services and operations on the continent. The first such CSOC is set for launch in South Africa later this year.

“Recent industry reports highlight that cyber security threats cost Africa close to $4.1 billion in lost GDP in 2021. This is primarily due to the massive increase in the adoption of technology in businesses and governments across Africa and increased vulnerabilities as cyber-attack technologies evolve,” said Hardy Pemhiwa, the President and CEO of Cassava.

“Today’s investment from C5 and our pan-continental partnership will enhance our ability to enable our customers to build secure and stable cloud-based digital services critical to transforming lives on the continent.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Tesh Durvasula To Lead Africa Data Centres As CEO

February 14, 2022

Cassava Technologies has announced the appointment of Tesh Durvasula to lead its transformation process at Africa Data Centres (ADC) as the new Chief Executive Officer. Durvasula will be responsible for driving growth, innovation and strategy of Cassava Technologies’ data centres to meet Africa’s accelerating demand for data and digital infrastructure.

Durvasula is an experienced technology and real estate industry executive with a 25-year track record of successful leadership and value generation in the digital infrastructure sector. He will lead the ADC team as the organisation rapidly expands its footprint of hyperscale data centres throughout Africa with a plan to add an additional ten data centres in the top ten economic centres in Africa.

The Chairman and Founder of Cassava Technologies Mr. Strive Masiyiwa, said that, “At Cassava Technologies our objective is to empower individuals and businesses with technology, based on our vision of a digitally connected future that leaves no African behind. Through our digital infrastructure and services, we are empowering our customers to fully participate in the fast-growing digital economy in Africa. Expanding our data centres footprint and management capacity is key to our strategy”.

Hardy Pemhiwa, President & CEO of Cassava Technologies, “We are delighted to welcome Tesh into the Cassava Technologies family and look forward to leveraging on his extensive industry experience as he leads our data centres business into its next phase of rapid expansion to meet the increased demand for data centre capacity in Africa. Following the conclusion of our $300m funding with the US IDFC and the recent $90m equity investment by IFC, it was imperative that we scale up our management team”.

Prior to joining ADC, Tesh served in a variety of executive roles at CyrusOne, culminating in his appointment as the Chief Executive Officer of the company. And, before that, he served as president of Europe operations for CyrusOne, overseeing CyrusOne’s expansion into England, Ireland, France and Germany, helping grow CONE into one of the largest publicly traded REIT’s in the US.

“The potential to grow digital infrastructure is bigger in Africa than anywhere else and this will provide a number of opportunities for economic transformation. I am extremely pleased to be joining Africa Data Centres and Cassava Technologies, especially now as Africa has become one of the fastest-growing data usage regions in the world. I feel we are well poised to make an invaluable contribution to Africa’s rapidly developing digital ecosystem,” concluded Durvasula.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has travelled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry