China promotes ‘digital silk road’ as solution to Africa’s data needs

Huawei and other Chinese companies are building data centres and cloud facilities, as well as installing 5G networks in many countries

It is estimated 1,000MW capacity and 700 new data centres will be needed to keep pace with Africa’s economic and social transformation

Reading Time:6 minutes

Africa’s young and fast-growing population is recognised by Chinese tech companies as a big potential market. Photo: AP

Published: 6:00pm, 26 Dec 2021

The digital silk road featured prominently in Chinese President Xi Jinping’s keynote speech to the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), in which he promised that Beijing would fund 10 digital economy projects in the continent over the next three years.

In his address via video link, Xi reiterated his vision for a digital silk road (DSR), first articulated in a 2015 government white paper as part of China’s global infrastructure plan, the Belt and Road Initiative.

The DSR covers e-commerce, smart cities, undersea fibre optic cables, 5G, data centres, smartphones, internet of things, artificial intelligence, and fintech.

In Dakar, where the forum was held, China is funding and building a data centre to host Senegal’s government data and digital platforms, which will move from servers in the US and Europe.

Tech giant Huawei Technologies is building and supplying the centre’s equipment, at a cost of 46 billion CFA francs (US$79 million) through a Chinese government loan.

Senegalese President Macky Sall has said the move will boost his country’s digital sovereignty.

The ‘digital silk road’ featured prominently in Chinese President Xi Jinping’s keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation on November 29. Photo: Xinhua

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