No Ordinary Wednesday | South Africa’s race to get connected

South Africa’s digital infrastructure is expanding rapidly, from data centres and fibre networks to satellites. But can the country provide the power, capital and regulatory certainty needed to turn digital investment into lasting growth?

On No Ordinary Wednesday, Jeremy Maggs speaks to Investec CIB’s Louise Pillay, a telecoms and media analyst, and David Abbey, a leveraged finance specialist, about what is driving demand, where the risk of overbuilding lies and what it will take to connect more of the country.

Chapters:

00:00 - Digital infrastructure as a growth engine

01:58 - How digital infrastructure has evolved

03:17 - Coverage versus digital inclusion

04:54 - What is driving demand for data centres and AI infrastructure?

06:08 - Is there a risk of overbuilding?

07:34 - Is grid access the bigger constraint for data centres?

08:45 - Power, water and social licence

10:53 - What makes a digital infrastructure project financeable?

12:04 - Can new rules speed up fibre rollout?