ARTICLE by
KEVIN Namunwa
How To Be, & Stay, Relevant In Africa In a one-on-one interview with CIO Africa magazine, the CEO of Dimension Data for Middle East and Africa (MEA Region), Alan Turnley-Jones shed light on the company’s strategies, emerging technologies, investments in Africa, and the long-term vision for the continent. What gives them an edge over its competition in Africa? Any company looking to provide technology-related services in Africa now knows it is important to understand what the continent needs at any given moment. That, and how current global trends can be plugged into their service delivery. A company has to make waves in the industry and with a global reach and local relevance. Turnley-Jones is the man charged with getting Dimension Data into this mindset. He does this by emphasizing the shift towards softwaredefined services, a quality that is changing the way clients consume and providers deliver services. With the immense potential of private 5G networks for the continent in bridging the technology gap and unlocking new opportunities in traditionally underserved areas. Add to this the adoption of cloud-based solutions and the growing importance of security in tandem with technological advancements were also acknowledged. “We are one of the early adopters of private 5G. I think this opens up some exciting opportunities in areas that have been traditionally challenged in having technology coverage in Africa,” he said. “While it is still a little early to see the greater impact for private 5G in the continent, if we were to roll forward to a year from now, we would be able to talk about more examples on how it has helped markets in many parts of the continent,” he added. “Private 5G opens up new ways of doing things. As the continent matures and we focus on important things like health and safety, it is important for businesses to plug into our ability to use private 5G to make operations more efficient.” He believes, and rightly so, that the introduction of
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www.cioafrica.co | MAY 2023 | CIO Africa Magazine | by dx⁵
private 5G networks in Africa is a game-changer. It eliminates limitations such as the need for physical infrastructure, allowing businesses to operate more efficiently and safely, all while enhancing various aspects of operations, including health and safety protocols, ensuring compliance, and improving overall productivity. Leveraging On Emerging Technology Through access to global research and development teams, they can develop cutting-edge solutions, particularly in the field of software-defined wide area networking (SD-WAN). By combining global resources with local expertise, Dimension Data provides both underlayed and overlayed services to clients in multiple markets. This approach practically guarantees a seamless experience and enables clients to engage with a single organisation for their technology needs. In fact, it is clear Africa holds great importance for both Dimension Data and NTT as a whole. Turnley-Jones emphasised the company’s continued investment and growth on the continent, particularly in East Africa. By focusing on expanding its services and cloud-based offerings, such as mainframe and application modernisation services. Having been born in Africa, Dimension Data possesses a deep understanding of the continent’s unique challenges and opportunities. It underlines the importance of tailoring responses to different African markets, including addressing specific legislation requirements and access to talent. It also brings about successes attained by leaning on emerging technologies such as assisting their clients in modernising their applications and migrating them to hyperscalers.
