Since 2020, Internet traffic and demand for broadband connectivity have been growing steadily in Africa. According to some institutions, IXPs could be a solution to localize traffic and improve connections.
The non-governmental organization "Internet for All" and the German company DE-CIX, in partnership with the Digital Development Agency (ADN), are set to launch Africa Congo Internet Exchange (ACIX), the largest Internet exchange in Central Africa, in Kinshasa today Monday.
“ACIX, Africa Congo Internet Exchange, provides an interconnection ecosystem for Central Africa to fulfill the growing interconnection needs of companies and end users – high-quality affordable connections for a better user experience, and for a more interconnected digital future,” ACIX explains in its “About” page.
The exchange is launched in the context of increasing Internet traffic across Africa, driven notably by digital transformation and new digital consumption patterns. According to the Internet Society (Isoc), Africa should invest more in Internet exchanges (IXPs) to improve connectivity on the continent and reduce access costs. To back its recommendation, in its report “Anchoring the African Internet Ecosystem: Lessons from Kenya and Nigeria’s Internet Exchange Points Growth,” the NGO indicates that Nigeria and Kenya boosted “the levels of Internet traffic that is locally exchanged from 30% to 70%” between 2012 and 2020 thanks to IXPs.
By enabling the local exchange of Internet traffic, IXPs save on large, recurring, and expensive international IP transit costs, reduce Internet costs, and significantly improve the quality and availability of connectivity, which in turn improves ISP revenues.
In that context, ACIX will be extremely useful. It is based in the DRC, the second largest country in Africa with nine border countries that have clearly stated ambitions for transnational and continental connectivity.
The exchange point is also part of the African expansion plan of the Deutscher Commercial Internet Exchange (DE-CIX), the world's largest Internet Exchange Point (IXP) in terms of traffic.
Samira Njoya
