Based on its recent analysis of the data center market, Frost & Sullivan has recognized the Djibouti Data Center (DDC) with the 2014 East Africa Frost & Sullivan Award for Enabling Technology Leadership. DDC would be the first colocation facility in East Africa with access to all major international fiber optic cable systems connecting Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific with Africa.
The award is part of Frost & Sullivan’s Best Practices awards, recognizing top industry performers in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service and strategic product development. The company’s industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.
Djibouti Internet Exchange Point
DDC’s strategic partnership with Djibouti Telecom has allowed DDC to benefit from unrestricted and unprecedented access to global and regional fiber cable systems. Among others, the colocation facility has been selected by MTN, a global provider of international carrier services, to serve as Africa’s gateway point of presence. This is due to Djibouti’s favourable geographic position, near the meeting point of North, South and East Africa.
The DDC Tier 3 colocation facility would stand out as a reliable and cost-effective gateway hub to many of the fastest growing markets and service providers in Africa. It offers a robust product portfolio, which includes flexible options for simplified, competitively-priced cable head access; backhaul, for both global and regional network operators; colocation; virtual point of presence (vPOP); and the Djibouti Internet Exchange Point (DjIX).
Regulatory environment
“Africa has historically been challenged by high Internet costs,” said Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Lehlohonolo Mokenela. “The DjIX has been designed to not only reduce costs for operators, but to also add significant value by being a tool for carriers, content providers and other service providers to improve the efficiency, resilience and performance of their networks.”
Djibouti Data Center would offer high-value services in a region and market sector that historically has been marked by an inflexible and stringent regulatory environment. It addresses the issue of prohibitive import duties for technology equipment by assisting customers in customs clearance and the shipping of their equipment to the DDC. In addition, it created a special zone to provide customers with turnkey support. In this zone, customers do not need special permits or licenses and are not required to pay high import taxes for equipment designated for colocation in the DDC.
