by TINTSWALO BALOYI
JOHANNESBURG, (CAJ News) – HYBRID multi-cloud computing firm, Nutanix, aims to make the most of the projected increase in information and communications technology spending in Sub-Saharan Africa to enhance its growth in the region.
Already, the American-headquartered company reports that it continues to grow its footprint and has enjoyed a 10-percent growth in customers over the last year.
This, coupled with a renewed channel focus, is providing customers direct access to Nutanix skills and resources in the region at a time it says other vendors are still uncertain of their commitment to Africa.
Nutanix this week held its .NEXT on Tour event in Johannesburg, providing partners and customers insight into the company’s hybrid multi-cloud strategy while demonstrating the local success of its ongoing commitment to deliver one platform for customers to run all their data and apps.
The International Data Corporation (IDC) predicts that ICT spending across Sub-Saharan Africa will increase at a compound annual growth rate of 6,1 percent over the 2021–2025 period.
According to IDC, the drivers will be investments in digital “innovation accelerators” such as 3D printing, artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality/virtual reality, blockchain, internet of things (IoT) and robotics, which will also increase by more than 19 percent over this time.
“Africa remains invested in using technologies to automate, streamline and reduce the costs of daily operations,” said Alex Russell, Regional Sales Manager, SADC at Nutanix.
SADC is the acronym for Southern African Development Community.
Russell said companies in the continent remained tied down in legacy environments past their sell-by-date or in a cloud environment where cost creep is spiralling out of control.
“Critically, the message we want to take to our partners and customers is that we deliver the flexibility and choice of platform and solution African customers need to run their applications and workloads where they are better suited. And it’s a message that, based on our recent success in the market, is being well received.”
Cloud costs continue to be a priority for IT leaders.
The Nutanix Enterprise Cloud Index indicates 85 percent of enterprises struggle with managing cloud costs. Russell suggests the figure is even higher in Africa.
To help customers meet these challenges head-on, Nutanix says it has equipped its local channel with the skills to act autonomously when working with customers.
“In Africa, our role is to help customers get on top of the skills gap through simplified tools, embrace new technologies with systems that support them, and get on top of their data without landing up in a web of inflated infrastructure costs as a result,” Russell concluded.
– CAJ News