Digital Realty Expands Peering Network with New Internet Exchange Point in Lagos
In a significant move to bolster Nigeria's digital landscape, Broadband Cloud and carrier-neutral data centre platform, Digital Realty, has activated a new Internet exchange point of presence (PoP) for the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN) at its recently commissioned data centre in Lekki, Lagos. This development marks a pivotal milestone in strengthening the nation's digital infrastructure and elevating connectivity across West Africa.
Enhanced Reach and Strategic Positioning
Building on IXPN's existing PoP at Digital Realty's campus in Victoria Island, the newly activated PoP at the Lekki data centre extends IXPN's reach, now offering access from 12 data centres across Nigeria. By implication, IXPN is now available in all major data centres in Lagos, further solidifying the city's role as a hub for local and regional interconnectivity.
Strategically located, Digital Realty's Lekki data centre serves as the landing point for the 2Africa subsea cable system, one of the world's most expansive subsea cable projects. This system links over 46 locations throughout Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, delivering reliable, high-speed connectivity that can enhance Nigeria's position in the global digital economy.
Resilience and Operational Benefits
With the opening of Digital Realty's Lekki data centre alongside its campus in Victoria Island, Digital Realty has become the first carrier-neutral data centre provider in Lagos to operate two campuses. This dual-campus setup offers enhanced resilience and disaster recovery options for the industry, ensuring greater stability in digital operations.
Improved access to IXPN at Digital Realty's Lekki campus allows networks and service providers to benefit from expanded, resilient public peering options. These enhancements are expected to reduce latency, improve efficiency, support robust data exchange for content providers and cloud platforms, and enable enterprises to meet growing demands both locally and internationally.
Leadership Perspectives on the Activation
Managing Director of Digital Realty in Nigeria, Ike Nnamani, commented on the activation, stating, "This activation at our Lekki campus represents a deepening of Digital Realty's commitment to connecting the local and regional digital economy to global networks. By integrating IXPN's exchange point, we are delivering resilient peering that enables lower latency and can increase operational efficiency for our customers."
For IXPN, this move supports its expanding community of over 130 peering members, which includes ISPs, global content, and cloud operators. It aims to deliver greater resilience and more efficient local Internet traffic exchange. CEO of IXPN, Muhammed Rudman, added, "Expanding IXPN to Digital Realty's Lekki campus is a significant step in our journey to enhance connectivity across Nigeria. Our members are expected to benefit from faster, low-latency pathways, allowing broader digital inclusion and fuelling Nigeria's digital economy."
