South Africa’s Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) is encouraging data centre providers to reduce their dependence on the country’s electricity infrastructure.
South Africa’s Communication Minister Mondli Gungubele has stressed the importance of data centres’ reliable backup power and water sources to address the country’s persistent energy challenges.
This emphasis is part of the government’s newly released National Policy on Cloud and Data, which aims to ensure the sustainability and resilience of the county’s digital infrastructure.
Read also: Africa Adopts Modern Technology to Improve Governance
With backup power and water sources, data centres can minimize their reliance on the national grid, reduce the risk of downtime, and maintain uninterrupted operations.
This move is critical for the country’s digital transformation and economic growth, as data centres play a vital role in supporting key sectors such as finance, healthcare, and e-government.
Encouraging Sustainability: Government offering incentives for data centres
The policy recommends that the government provide rewards for energy and water conservation to support data centres’ smooth operation without placing undue strain on the nation’s resources.
Data centres, which operate around the clock and consume some electricity, can no longer rely solely on the national grid to meet their power needs. The Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) recognizes that the country’s electricity challenges require data centres to take proactive measures to ensure uninterrupted operations.
To mitigate the risk of service disruptions, the DCDT recommends that data centre operators secure their own reliable sources of electricity and water. This may include investing in backup power generation, such as diesel generators or renewable energy systems like solar or wind power, implementing water conservation measures, and securing alternative water sources.
By taking these steps, data centres can reduce their dependence on the national grid, minimize the risk of downtime, and ensure the continuous delivery of critical digital services to businesses, governments, and citizens.
Read also: AfDB and Intel unite to train three million Africans in advanced AI skills
Ensuring Uninterrupted Operations: Data centers must be equipped
This move is essential to maintaining continuous operations and reducing their dependency on the national network. The policy also emphasizes that data centres must adhere to environmental laws, avoid restricted areas, and not be built in disaster-prone locations.
The DCDT emphasizes that data centre operators must adopt alternative energy options to prevent any operational obstacles to prevent operational obstacles.
A fault-tolerant design that guarantees a minimum uptime of 99.995% should also be the goal for data centres, especially those utilized by the government.