Tech Giants Invest $1 Billion in Nigerian Data Centers to Fuel AI Growth

Nigeria is emerging as a focal point for artificial intelligence infrastructure in Africa, with global and regional tech giants committing nearly $1 billion to advanced data center projects. Equinix, Microsoft, MTN Nigeria, Rack Centre, Airtel Nigeria, and Open Access Data Centres are leading the charge, aiming to support AI workloads and the continent's rapidly expanding digital population.

The country's young, tech-savvy demographic of 240 million is driving a data explosion, accelerating the shift from on-premises servers to cloud and hybrid systems. Equinix alone is investing $140 million in Nigerian operations, with managing director Wole Abu citing AI as a key driver of infrastructure diversification. "As Nigeria works toward its ambitious 70% digital literacy target by 2027, you'll see exponentially more users generating data and requiring AI-enhanced services," Abu said. The current digital literacy rate stands at approximately 50%.