MainOne pledges to construct data centre in Sagamu, Ogun State

25 Apr 2017
Financial Nigeria

Summary

MainOne said it plans to start constructing the data centre later this year. The facility will be based in the Flowergate Industrial Park in Sagamu.

Fola Adeola, Chairman, MainOne

MainOne, a leading provider of submarine cable communications in West Africa, has pledged that it would construct a data centre in Sagamu, Ogun State, according to a statement released on Tuesday.

The company made the pledge when a team of executives led by Fola Adeola, the company's Chairman, recently paid a courtesy visit to Senator Ibikunle Amosun, the Ogun State Governor, in Abeokuta. Adeola said MainOne’s investment in a data centre would boost the development of information and communications technology in the state.

“Given its market and reputation as haven for manufacturing and other enterprises, growth potential, investment-friendly disposition and proximity to Lagos State, Ogun State has the potential to become one of the major hubs of industrialization in Nigeria,” Adeola said. “Technology has a major role to play in that evolution. The focus of the state government on infrastructural development is a welcome development, and technology will be critical to achieve the full potential for economic development.”

MainOne said it plans to start constructing the data centre later this year. The facility will be based in the Flowergate Industrial Park in Sagamu. It will be designed to provide services to the burgeoning industrial base in Ogun State as well as serve as a backup for businesses in Lagos State once ongoing repairs to the Lagos-Ibadan expressway are complete.

“As a pioneering broadband company in Nigeria, we are excited to partner with Ogun State by creating in Sagamu a technology hub, capable of attracting local and international technology companies to do business in the state,” said Funke Opeke, MainOne’s CEO. “This is similar to what we have achieved in Lagos, where we transformed the Yaba area into Nigeria's undisputed 'Silicon Valley' that is now attracting international attention and investments.”

In his remarks, Governor Amosun said his administration has an investor-friendly posture, which is already attracting a significant portion of Nigeria’s new foreign direct investments to the state.

“We believe that infrastructure development is a vital component for Ogun State's economic growth and have continued to invest in new road and rail infrastructure within the state, which is already transforming the ease of doing business,” Amosun said. “In addition, Ogun State has a network of 21 tertiary institutions, which guarantees employers a capable indigenous workforce.”

Since its launch in 2010, MainOne’s submarine cable system has been a leading provider of wholesale Internet services to major telecom operators, Internet service providers, government agencies, large enterprises, and education institutions in West Africa. The company also operates one of the largest data centres in Africa out of a facility in Lekki, Lagos.


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