Safaricom has partnered with iXAfrica Data Centre, Kenya’s hyperscale-ready data center operator, to provide enterprise and cloud solutions clients with East Africa’s first AI-ready data center services.

The collaboration will provide end users, such as corporations and governments, with scalable, cost-effective solutions for data storage, backup, and computing resources that suit their evolving needs. Furthermore, as Kenya advances to become a leader in this megatrend, enterprise clients that have adopted AI will be able to collaborate with Safaricom to host their AI-intensive workloads.

“As East Africa’s digital economy continues its rapid expansion, businesses increasingly require robust, scalable, and secure infrastructure solutions that can support the next wave of innovation, including AI workloads. Through this partnership with iXAfrica, we are enhancing our enterprise portfolio with premium data center services that meet the highest global standards while supporting sustainable digital growth in the markets we serve in line with our vision to be Africa’s leading purpose-led technology company by 2030,” said Dr. Peter Ndegwa, CEO, Safaricom PLC.

The partnership combines enterprise and cloud suites with integrated connectivity solutions to serve businesses across East Africa. The infrastructure is designed for high-density computing, cooling, and resilience, ensuring the ability to handle modern AI workloads.

Enterprises can now run advanced workloads and AI right here in Kenya, ensuring data sovereignty, compliance, and speed. The end-to-end enterprise solution delivers an integrated infrastructure stack—from 2U+ to connectivity, from cloud to managed services, cybersecurity, and business resilience—all under one contract and one trusted Safaricom brand.

“This collaboration represents a perfect synergy between technological excellence and market leadership,” said Guy Willner, Chairman of iXAfrica. “By combining our purpose-built, world-class, AI-ready infrastructure with Safaricom’s unparalleled market presence and customer relationships, we’re creating a digital ecosystem that will accelerate innovation and growth across the region.”

The iXAfrica’s NBOX1 Nairobi Campus features a design capacity of 22.5 MW, making it the largest data center project in Greater East Africa. The facility serves a regional population of more than 300 million people and is strategically positioned along major fiber optic routes with access to resilient, low-carbon power sources.

For financial services, this unlocks AI for fraud prevention, credit risk modeling, and hyper-personalized services—all while maintaining data compliance. In manufacturing and retail, AI can now power supply chain optimization, real-time IoT analytics, and demand forecasting—locally and securely.

The collaboration harnesses the unique advantages of Kenya’s digital landscape, including its strategic location and access to renewable energy sources that power over 90% of the country’s electricity grid.

This collaboration is a big step forward in Kenya’s digital transformation path and strengthens East Africa’s position as an emerging technological powerhouse.