Amazon Web Services Announces Huge Boost to South African Cloud Infrastructure

Synthesis Software Technologies welcomes the announcement that Amazon Web Services (AWS) will be opening Data Centers, termed an infrastructure region, in Cape Town in 2020. AWS is the world’s leading cloud platform provider, and the new region, the first on the African continent.

The new AWS Africa (Cape Town) Region will consist of three Availability Zones. Currently, AWS provides 55 Availability Zones across 19 infrastructure regions worldwide, with another 12 Availability Zones across four AWS Regions in Bahrain, Hong Kong SAR, Sweden, and a second GovCloud Region in the U.S. expected to come online in the coming months.

According to a recent official AWS press release, the new AWS Infrastructure Region will enable customers to run workloads in South Africa and serve end-users across the African continent with even lower latency and will enable more African organizations to leverage advanced technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Internet of Things (IoT), mobile services, and more to drive innovation. Local AWS customers will also be able to store their data in South Africa with the assurance that their content will not move without consent, while those looking to comply with the upcoming Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) will have access to secure infrastructure that meets the most rigorous international compliance standards.

Synthesis expects the new region to deliver clear benefits to South African companies and to the South African economy, as Michael Shapiro, Synthesis’ Managing Director, explains. “Having full access to the world’s most comprehensive and widely adopted cloud platform is going to provide a huge step up for South African and African companies. Those looking to migrate to cloud or expand their cloud presence will be able to easily build their businesses through the flexibility and cost savings that AWS delivers. Companies such as ourselves are ready to take advantage of dedicated, world-leading infrastructure and the full suite of AWS services to grow and provide even more innovative solutions to our customers. This announcement from Amazon demonstrates global commitment to and confidence in the continent. We agree that technology has the opportunity to change lives and improve economies across Africa”

Judging by the results of AWS expansions in Asia and the Middle East, AWS’ investment is expected to enhance the country’s business environment. AWS opened a region in Mumbai in June 2016. The rollout of the Mumbai Region has demonstrated the kinds of economic growth and opportunities that such data centres make possible. AWS saw a 60% surge in customers – to over 120 000 – after setting up the region The dedicated cloud infrastructure and associated services have encouraged existing and start-up businesses to expand and innovate.

According to Geoff Brown, Africa Leader, Amazon Web Services “Our commitment to Africa started in 2004 when the original idea for Amazon cloud computing was born in Cape Town. Since then, our investments in the Amazon Development Center, Direct Connect, CloudFront, and now a three AZ region in South Africa is a result of our customer feedback. Synthesis represents a further extension of our customer needs. Their commitment to certifying engineers on AWS is best of breed in Africa. We are thrilled to support our customers with the consulting and delivery expertise from Synthesis.”

The South African region will comprise multiple Availability Zones, ensuring exceptional fault tolerance, while its physical proximity to South African businesses means that their data-exchange latency will decrease significantly. Having their data centres on home soil will also simplify regulatory compliance.

As the first AWS Consulting Partner to reach Advanced Partner status in Africa and the Middle East, and with 80 AWS certifications under its belt, Synthesis is perfectly positioned to leverage the benefits of the new region for South African businesses. Recently, Synthesis was awarded AWS DevOps Competency status, following their AWS Financial Services Competency achievement in August 2018.

Shapiro concludes: “We are proud of our longstanding relationship with AWS and to be their top-rated partner in the region. We have a great track record of delivering innovative, transformative cloud solutions, and when the new region is fully operational our ability to do so will be given a significant boost. We are excited to assist more enterprises locally with their migration to cloud, and to deliver the scale, cost savings and innovation that the platform promises.”