The growth of data centres in Africa continues to accelerate.
On the demand side, McKinsey expects a four-fold to six-fold increase in demand for African data centre capacity (to 1.5 to 2.2 GW) by 2030, which presents an investment opportunity of between £7.5 to 15 billion to meet this demand.
On the supply side, the number of African data centres grew by 9% to 243 in the six months between July 2025 and January 2026. The most notable increases are in South Africa (which added four new data centres to bring its total to 60) and Nigeria (which added five new data centres to bring its total to 22).
Private capital continues to play an important role to finance the heavy capital expenditures associated with this growth, whether by providing loans, equity, or both.
Key contacts
Charlie Morgan
Partner, London
Jonathan Ripley-Evans
Partner, Johannesburg
Dominic Rowe
Of Counsel (New Zealand), London
Jake Savile-Tucker
Senior Associate, London
Emma Stones
Partner, London
Sam Cundall
Partner, London
Ziyanda Ntshona
Partner, Johannesburg
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