As policymakers, regulators, investors and operators assess the financing hurdles that stand between ambitious digital strategies and projects that can be delivered by 2026, they will be scrutinized at a high-level summit session convened by African hyperscalers aiming to expand Africa’s broadband and data center infrastructure.
Governments across the continent are rolling out national broadband plans, announcing new data center pipelines, refining cloud computing policies and rolling out artificial intelligence roadmaps. However, despite this momentum, gaps remain between ambition and implementation, and between what is announced and what is ultimately funded, built, interconnected and used.
This implementation gap is the central focus of the Africa Digital Infrastructure Outlook session, which aims to identify the realities of Africa’s digital infrastructure drive.
Rather than predicting distant trends, the summit sessions will ask questions about delivery economics, examining where capital is flowing, where there is hesitation, and why so many broadband, data center, and cloud infrastructure projects stall between policy declaration and physical completion.
The session, themed “From Ambitions to Assets: Building a Reality for Africa’s Digital Infrastructure in 2026”, is positioned as a reality check for policymakers and investors alike. Rather than predicting future trends, the debate is expected to focus on the economics of delivery, where capital is flowing, where there is hesitation, and why so many broadband, data center, and cloud infrastructure projects stall between policy declaration and physical completion.
The proceedings will begin with a keynote market overview from Guy Zibi, founder and principal of Xalam Analytics. He provides a pan-African perspective on demand signals, infrastructure readiness, and capital flows across connectivity, data centers, and cloud services. His presentation is expected to outline areas in Africa where investor interest continues and where uncertainties around regulation, power supply, currency risks and market depth continue to limit financing.
The keynote address will be followed by a high-level panel discussion on the theme ‘Transforming Africa’s digital infrastructure ambitions into bankability’. The panel will consider the practical steps needed to transform policy frameworks and national digital strategies into projects that can attract long-term funding, achieve financial closure and deliver on time.
Confirmed speakers for this session are Akin Akin Taylor, Investment Principal at Africa Infrastructure Investment Managers; Alma Nurshaykhova, Senior Digital Specialist at the World Bank. Dr. Ayotunde Coker, Chief Executive Officer, Open Access Data Center; Mr. Elias Jue, Vice President of Investments, Africa Finance Corporation; Dr. Kashif Inuwa Abdullahi, Director-General, National Information Technology Development Authority of Nigeria; Raxio Group CEO Robert Skjodt, African Infrastructure Development Association CEO Vivek Mittal. The discussion will be moderated by Kazeem Oladepo, Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President of IHS.
Participants are expected to ask questions about why, despite strong policy momentum, many digital infrastructure projects are struggling to obtain funding and completion. Issues being discussed include capital costs, data center power and energy constraints, uneven broadband demand across markets, regulatory uncertainty, and the challenges of building projects that meet the risk thresholds of both private investors and development finance institutions.
