By Patrice Nzianse Pognon – Consultant
and Rudy Casbi, Entrepreneur and Contributor
The greatest gold mine of the 21st century is neither in Ghana nor South Africa, but in the roughly 1,000 exabytes of data Africa is expected to generate by 2030. The paradox is stark: 80% of this data is currently hosted outside the continent, primarily in Europe and the United States. For investors, this is a glaring market anomaly: a continent of 1.4 billion people, with a digital economy growing at 12% per year according to GSMA, remains almost absent from major global investment portfolios.
A Cold War Over Data Centers and Submarine Cables
China has gained a considerable lead. Through its Belt and Road Initiative, Beijing injected $39 billion in digital investments in Africa in the first half of 2025 alone. Over 60% of new submarine cables along African coasts are financed or constructed by Chinese companies – Huawei Marine, China Telecom, China Mobile. The goal is no longer purely technical: it is about creating directly monetizable assets, whether via BRI bonds convertible into equity or subsidiaries listed in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
Brussels is striking back with the Global Gateway: €150 billion pledged by 2027, with €47 billion already disbursed this year. The European approach is different: it emphasizes renewable-powered data centers and partnerships with local operators – Raxio Group in Africa, PAIX in the Netherlands and Côte d’Ivoire – to ensure Africa does not become the digital appendage of any single power.
The Missing Investment Vehicle
Currently, investors seeking exposure to Africa’s digital revolution have only partial, diluted options: the VanEck Africa Index ETF allocates just 4% to pure digital plays, while major emerging market ETFs almost entirely exclude African data infrastructure and submarine cables.
It is time to fill this gap with a genuine pan-African ETF: the Digital Africa Infrastructure ETF (suggested ticker: DAFR). Primarily listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, with dual listings on Euronext Paris and the London Stock Exchange, it would track a new “Africa Digital Infrastructure” index comprising 35–40 companies.
Target allocation would be roughly: 35% in data center and cloud operators (Africa Data Centres, Raxio, MDXi-MainOne, PAIX), 25% in telecom and fiber networks (Liquid Intelligent Technologies, WIOCC, SEACOM, Paratus), 20% in renewable energy providers dedicated to data centers (Globeleq, Scatec, Mainstream Renewable Power), 15% in fintech and digital Interswitch, Network International), and 5% in major submarine cable and satellite constellation projects (2Africa, Equiano, Starlink Africa).
Numbers That Make Fund Managers Take Notice
As of now, Africa’s data center market is projected to grow 25% annually through 2030, according to BroadGroup. The continent will need at least 700 new data centers by 2050 and $100 billion in investment to achieve universal broadband coverage. Underlying assets already deliver cash-flow yields exceeding 10% for data centers, with fintech companies growing more than 30% per year. The index could thus offer a 6–8% dividend yield and a four-to-sixfold growth potential by 2035 if Africa captures 5% of the global cloud market – compared with less than 1% today.
Why 2026 Is the Year to Launch
Today, the combined market capitalization of African digital companies already exceeds $400 billion as of November 2025. European pension funds under ESG pressure, and Gulf sovereign wealth funds, are actively seeking assets combining growth and impact. Above all, the AfCFTA finally enables the rise of truly pan-African listed champions. Africa no longer has to choose between the Chinese model – fast but risky – and the European model – slower but sustainable. It can finance both, turning its digital sovereignty into a top-tier listed asset.
Currently, African data is no longer a silent battlefield. This is the continent’s next major IPO. It is high time to list it.