Investing in the Core: Infrastructure, Security, and Strategic Presence

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Welcome to this week’s edition of The Digital Bridge.

From Nairobi to Accra to Riyadh, a quiet momentum is taking shape. Investments are being directed not just toward emerging technologies, but toward the systems that will support them. Data infrastructure, coordinated policy, and regional security are no longer peripheral discussions, they are central to how economies are positioning for the decade ahead.

Each of these stories points to the same principle: digital transformation begins with structure. When infrastructure is intentional, when talent is equipped, and when leadership is aligned, progress becomes sustainable.

This week’s edition covers:

• Digital Infrastructure at Scale: Safaricom Commits $500M to East Africa’s AI Backbone.

• AI & Resilience in Practice: Ghana Launches Africa’s Largest AI-Powered Cybersecurity Centre.

• Strategic Scale In Motion: Saudi Arabia's $10 Billion AI Venture Sets Global Ambitions in Motion.

• Connected Africa 2025: Building the Framework for a Unified African Digital Market

DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE AT SCALE:
Safaricom Commits $500M to East Africa’s AI Backbone

At the 2025 Connected Africa Summit in Diani, Kenya, Safaricom announced a landmark investment of Sh65 billion (over $500 million) to build artificial intelligence infrastructure across East Africa. Over the next three years, the company will focus on expanding regional connectivity while creating a scalable foundation for AI-powered services.

Laying the Rails for an Intelligent Economy

Cynthia Kropac, Safaricom’s Chief Enterprise Business Officer, framed the initiative as a strategic push toward a more advanced and self-directed digital future for the continent. She emphasized that this infrastructure would fuel innovation across sectors, support enterprise transformation, and increase productivity across the region. The goal is not just enhanced connectivity, but a foundational shift in how digital services are delivered and developed.

Safaricom has already trained 5,000 employees in AI fundamentals. This signals a broader commitment not just to technology adoption, but to workforce readiness. Kropac highlighted the importance of African-led innovation, stating that the region has the opportunity to shape its own AI future and move toward becoming a creator of frameworks rather than just a consumer of them.

A Regional Commitment to Growth

The initiative is expected to benefit both small and large enterprises by expanding access to AI-enabled tools. It also reinforces Safaricom’s positioning as a digital leader committed to inclusive growth. Kropac noted the company’s dedication to delivering intelligent, accessible, and seamless digital experiences for people and businesses across Africa.

By anchoring infrastructure investment to human capital development and cross-sector innovation, Safaricom is offering a clear example of how telecom leadership can catalyze transformation at national and regional levels. This effort aligns with broader continental priorities on digital inclusion and economic acceleration.

AI AND RESILIENCE IN PRACTICE:
Ghana Launches Africa’s Largest AI-Powered Cybersecurity Centre

Ghana has taken a major step forward in digital defense with the launch of Africa’s largest AI-powered cybersecurity and digital forensics centre, officially opened in Accra in May 2025. Developed by local firm Virtual InfoSec Africa (VIA), in collaboration with global security providers Exabeam and Arctic Security, the centre marks a strategic response to the rising volume and sophistication of cyberattacks facing African institutions.

Designing for Regional Defense

The centre operates as a full-service AI Security Operations Centre (SOC), offering real-time threat detection, managed detection and response (MDR), and vulnerability management. These capabilities are powered by Exabeam’s behavioural analytics platform, which allows analysts to identify threats based on anomalies in user activity and system behavior. Arctic Security supplements the facility with global threat intelligence feeds, ensuring the SOC remains connected to international developments while tailoring insights to local risks.

Divine Selase Agbeti, Director General of Ghana’s Cyber Security Authority, emphasized the need for national infrastructure that can respond to the growing velocity of cyber incidents. Traditional approaches, he noted, are no longer enough to meet the scale or complexity of emerging threats.

Cost-Effective and Scalable Innovation

What sets Ghana’s approach apart is its emphasis on regional affordability and strategic replication. The centre’s architecture is designed to reduce capital investment in cybersecurity by more than 90 percent and cut operational costs by 60 percent. It is intended to serve as a model not only for Ghana but for other African countries seeking to scale modern defenses without over-reliance on external platforms.

Norvisi Addo, Head of Security Operations at VIA, reinforced this goal by calling for an evolution from passive protection to proactive intelligence. The new system allows faster identification and resolution of threats, empowering local analysts to act in real time rather than react after damage has been done.

Cybersecurity as Shared Responsibility

The launch event, chaired by Nana Kwaku Boateng III, Omanhene of the New Juabeng Traditional Area, blended technical ambition with national unity. Traditional leaders, government officials, and private-sector stakeholders stood behind a shared message: defending digital sovereignty requires cultural awareness, inclusive leadership, and long-term investment.

This convergence of perspectives reflects a growing recognition that cyber resilience is not just a technical issue. It is a societal and economic priority, directly tied to the stability of institutions, financial systems, and public trust.

Shaping the Path Ahead

Ghana’s centre presents a tangible example of what AI-enabled cybersecurity can look like when designed for both scale and sovereignty. It highlights a broader shift in the continent’s approach to digital infrastructure, one that prioritizes regional control, resource efficiency, and human-centered implementation. As more governments move to adopt AI across critical systems, cybersecurity will remain a foundational test of foresight and readiness.

STRATEGIC SCALE IN MOTION:
Saudi Arabia's $10 Billion AI Venture Sets Global Ambitions in Motion

Saudi Arabia has formally launched a sweeping initiative to position itself at the forefront of the global AI race, unveiling plans to invest heavily in infrastructure, venture capital, and advanced chip design through a new state-owned company: Humain. Backed by the $940 billion Public Investment Fund (PIF), the entity reflects Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's directive to move swiftly and decisively on AI development across the Kingdom and beyond.

A High-Stakes Play for Global AI Market Share

Led by former Aramco Digital CEO Tareq Amin, Humain is structured to influence every layer of the AI stack, from model training and inferencing to hardware architecture and venture deployment. The company will launch a $10 billion venture capital fund this summer, targeting high-growth AI startups in the United States, Europe, and Asia. At the same time, it is planning one of the world’s largest data center networks, with ambitions to process 7 percent of global AI workloads by 2030.

Humain has already signed $23 billion in deals with US tech giants including Nvidia, AMD, Amazon Web Services, and Qualcomm. These partnerships support rapid deployment of compute infrastructure and the creation of a new chipset design center in Riyadh employing 500 engineers. Though Humain will not manufacture chips, it aims to provide critical capacity for global model development through joint ventures and subsidized infrastructure.

From Oil Wealth to AI Sovereignty

The initiative reflects Saudi Arabia’s broader pivot from petro-reliance toward digital leadership. By consolidating AI investments under one vehicle, the Kingdom is signaling its intent to not only fund but shape the future of global AI standards and infrastructure governance. Humain’s leadership has stated that equity partners are being selected not only for capital but for strategic alignment with the US tech ecosystem. This highlights an effort to maintain transparency, security, and compliance with emerging international norms.

As part of this push, Riyadh has secured over 2.3 square miles of land for new data infrastructure, with plans to scale significantly in both the Eastern Province and the capital. While the government is managing financial pressures from oil revenue fluctuations, Humain remains a clear budgetary priority.

Governance, Security, and the Global Data Question

To address rising concerns around data sovereignty, Amin indicated that new legislation will enable international partners to store and manage data under their home jurisdiction’s legal framework. The Kingdom is also offering real-time audit visibility within its data centers and subsidizing electricity, providing some of the world’s lowest energy costs to attract global operators.

These steps are designed to remove barriers for foreign investment while reinforcing Saudi Arabia’s emerging role as a host country for large-scale AI processing and R&D activity.

A New Center of Gravity in AI

Humain’s emergence signals a recalibration of the global AI power map. The Gulf is no longer simply a funding source for international tech ventures. It is becoming an active participant in designing the technical, financial, and regulatory frameworks of AI development. Saudi Arabia is offering scale, speed, and state support. The question for other regions is not whether to compete, but whether their institutional models are built to move with comparable urgency.

CONNECTED AFRICA 2025:
Building the Framework for a Unified African Digital Market

At the 2025 Connected Africa Summit held in Nairobi, African leaders and digital stakeholders convened to formalize next steps toward closing the continent’s digital divide. Building on momentum from the 2024 Nairobi Declaration, the summit marked a shift from vision to implementation, with a call to anchor Africa’s digital transformation through policy harmonization, infrastructure expansion, and regional collaboration.

From Declarations to Delivery

One of the most significant outcomes was the announcement of a Connected Africa Secretariat, a new coordinating body tasked with overseeing digital policy implementation across African Union member states. This entity will be responsible for driving alignment between national strategies and continental priorities while facilitating joint action between governments and private-sector actors.

The summit reaffirmed the goal of fast-tracking a Single African Digital Market by advancing legislation that allows seamless cross-border services, interoperable digital platforms, and a harmonized regulatory landscape. These efforts build upon the African Union’s Digital Transformation Strategy (2020–2030) and are designed to foster trade, innovation, and inclusive growth across borders.

Priority Areas for Acceleration

The summit outlined eight core priorities that will define the next phase of Africa’s digital development:

• AI, Data Sovereignty, and Cloud Infrastructure: Ensuring Africa retains control over its data pipelines and computing systems to protect digital sovereignty.

• Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and e-Governance: Building secure, open platforms for digital service delivery.

• Digital Skills and EdTech: Expanding youth access to tech-enabled learning and employment opportunities.

• Support for Digital Industries: Growing fintech, healthtech, edtech, and BPO sectors to increase local jobs and exports.

• Green and Sustainable Innovation: Scaling climate-conscious technologies and circular economic models.

• Infrastructure and Connectivity: Accelerating 5G, fiber deployment, and universal access initiatives.

• Semiconductors and Digital Manufacturing: Supporting local device and chip production to enhance industrial resilience.

• Energy Access and E-Waste Management: Powering digital growth with sustainable energy and circular e-waste strategies.

Operationalizing Vision 2063

Beyond infrastructure and policy, the summit emphasized institutional readiness. Ministerial representatives from Namibia, Uganda, and Sierra Leone shared their endorsement of the Digital Future Declaration, outlining proposals for:

Regional Digital Platforms: Aligning cross-border programs and investments.

• Legislative Harmonization: Standardizing laws on cybersecurity, telecoms, data, and trade.

• Continental Digital Marketplace Mapping: Matching solutions with national readiness gaps.

• Capacity Building Networks: Establishing research centers and cross-border training hubs.

The Road Ahead

The Connected Africa Summit 2025 marks a pivotal moment in aligning continental ambition with structural action. By embedding implementation into governance, and defining a shared roadmap for infrastructure, policy, and innovation, Africa is shaping a digital ecosystem built for inclusion, resilience, and long-term competitiveness. The work ahead will require political will, financial commitment, and multistakeholder collaboration but the foundation is now in place.

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