The Lagos State Government is set to showcase its technology and innovation sector at the 2024 Gulf Information Technology Exhibition (GITEX), held from October 13 to 18 at the Dubai World Trade Center in the United Arab Emirates.

Deputy Governor Dr. Obafemi Hamzat will lead the state’s delegation, which includes a mix of startups and established tech companies.

GITEX, the world’s largest technology expo, draws industry leaders from global tech firms, government entities, startups, investors, and corporate buyers.

The event highlights technology-driven transformations that shape the economies of the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, making it an essential platform for connecting innovators and attracting investments.

Lagos’ contingent this year features companies involved in organizational ERP management, robotics, and software development, all of which are contributing to the state and national economy. Past GITEX events have been beneficial for Lagos, providing investment opportunities and fostering the growth of local tech startups.

The Lagos State Commissioner for Science, Technology, and Innovation, Mr. Tunbosun Alake, emphasized the importance of these engagements, stating, “Lagos State has begun to reap some benefits from its attendance and collaborations at past editions of GITEX. We are looking to secure over $3 million in investments through partnerships for startups and existing companies.”

Alake also highlighted the dividends of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s investments in the technology sector. He noted that since 2022, startups from Lagos have successfully gained grants and global partnerships through GITEX, with several startups achieving high rankings in competitions like the Supanova contest.

He said, “This is Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu’s vision for the ecosystem.”

Additionally, the Commissioner expressed a desire to expand government-to-government partnerships between Lagos and the UAE, as well as increase Lagos’ visibility in the tech ecosystem.

The state’s participation at GITEX has already attracted interest from the Dubai World Trade Center in potentially hosting a similar global technology event in Lagos, which would further bolster the local economy.

Dr. Hamzat is scheduled to participate in high-profile activities, including fireside chats and meetings with investors and government leaders, aimed at bringing further investment into Lagos.

GITEX 2024 promises to be a pivotal event for Lagos State as it seeks to position itself as a leading technology hub, drawing global partnerships and investments into its vibrant tech ecosystem.

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TECHDIGEST – Lagos State government has disclosed that the state attracted over a billion dollars in data centre investment alone in 2021.

The governor made the disclosure as the Guest of Honour at the groundbreaking ceremony of Rack Centre’s 12mw IT power capacity data centre facility, in Ikeja Lagos.

Sanwo Olu who was represented by his deputy, Obafemi Hamzat said the feat depicted the trust investors have in Lagos and the belief tech enterpreneurs have in the state as a safe business environment.

He promised that the state can only improve the business climate and make it more conducive.

Sanwo Olu said the increasing IT infrastructure utilisation in Lagos shouldn’t be surprising to anybody going by the proliferation of technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Blockchain, Software Defined Networks, Smart cities among others which are prevalent in the state today.

Apparently claiming a bragging right, the Governor said that Lagos is at an inflection point in the way businesses are conducted in the state.

According to Sanwo Olu, technology has revolutionised and continues to change industries and business models, adding that companies like Rack Centre are at the heart of making the dreams of a new world future possible.

He said: “Rack Centre is an organisation with a reputation of excellent track record of world-class service delivery. The firm has a great and productive relationship with Lagos State.

“Today’s event is a testament to the trust and faith investors and the wider Lagos IT market have in this company. Expansion like this presents the opportunity not just for growth in services, but also allows for a pushing of the technology envelope.

“in 2021, investments in data centre infrastructure domiciled in Lagos grew by over a billion dollars. This in itself is testament to the enabling environment and attractive market Lagos provides. We are certain that demand for future Rack Centre services are already available within this market from both a private and public sector perspective.”

“From our 3000km metropolitan fibre optic project to our Electronic Geographic Information System and our Smart city initiatives and implementations, Lagos is poised to be a significant IT hub for the region. It is in this vein that this groundbreaking today is lock-step and in line with the future outlook of this city”. He added.

He promised that the state has series of initiatives and programmes that will deliver one of the most digitised cities in Africa.

Meanwhile, Group Chief Executive Officer, Rack Centre, Jasper Lankhorst, said the new data centre project will enhance and broaden the capacity of the company to serve more clients in Nigeria with an IT load of 12MW as against the LGS 1 facility, which has an IT load of 1.5MW.

He said: “With about 85 million Internet subscribers, more than any country in Africa or Europe, and the largest population and GDP in Africa, Nigeria is a key entry point for global telecommunications, content, and cloud players seeking access to the region. We are embarking on this new build to bring applications and data closer to the user and improve the quality and speed of the user experience” Lankhorst said.

Lankhorst explained that the new facility, just like LGS 1 data centre, will offer the unique competitive edge of reliability as a Tier III Constructed Facility offering 100 per cent uptime with Zero downtime and 10 levels of physical security with biometric, CCTV monitoring, and 24/7 Command Centre.

“At Rack Centre, we are 100 per cent Carrier and Cloud Neutral which means we are not owned or affiliated with any telecommunications carrier, ISP or managed service provider and do not compete, therefore offering great opportunities for all our digital ecosystem partners to grow their businesses at Rack Centre. We offer unrestricted interconnects between customers, as it allows them to manage traffic to get better value, lower latency, and higher resilience,” he added.

He said that Rack Centre, with over 60 carriers, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), Cloud and Content delivery networks, offers a wide and unrestricted choice of services for its customers. Fibre access to the facility is through three diverse routes and includes all active undersea cables on the Atlantic coast of Africa.

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