Côte d’Ivoire is preparing to open its first state-owned national data centre in 2027, marking a significant step in the West African country’s effort to strengthen digital sovereignty and bring more government information systems under secure domestic infrastructure.
The facility is being developed at the Village of Information Technology and Biotechnology, VITIB, in Grand-Bassam, with financial backing from the United States Export-Import Bank.
Recent reports indicate construction is already underway, with the project expected to become operational next year.
The project forms part of a wider US-backed digital infrastructure programme valued at approximately $170 million, while the US Export-Import Bank is providing a financing guarantee of about $66 million for the data-centre component.
Government Data Comes Home
The strategic objective goes beyond increasing Côte d’Ivoire’s computing capacity.
The new infrastructure is intended to host strategic state information systems and sensitive public-sector data domestically, reducing dependence on infrastructure outside the country’s direct control.
Digital Transition and Digitalisation Minister Kalil Konaté has presented the project as part of the government’s wider push for digital sovereignty.
As governments digitise taxation, identity systems, border management, healthcare, public finance and other services, the amount of sensitive information they generate increases dramatically.
Where that information is stored therefore becomes a national-security and sovereignty issue.
A modern national facility gives the government greater control over infrastructure supporting those systems.
Grand-Bassam Becomes Digital Infrastructure Hub
Locating the facility within the VITIB technology zone at Grand-Bassam also fits Côte d’Ivoire’s broader ambition to develop a stronger technology ecosystem.
Reports indicate the project involves technology from companies including Cisco, Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Schneider Electric, combining networking, computing and power-management infrastructure.
The choice of Grand-Bassam could help concentrate digital infrastructure and technology businesses around an established technology development zone rather than treating the data centre as an isolated government project.
That could create opportunities for technology companies, cybersecurity specialists, cloud providers and other digital-service businesses.
US Deepens Technology Presence
The data-centre project also reflects expanding American technology engagement with Côte d’Ivoire.
The country has separately approved the introduction of Starlink satellite internet services, another development backed during recent US-Ivorian engagement over digital infrastructure.
Taken together, these initiatives cover two different layers of the digital economy.
Satellite broadband can expand connectivity, particularly in areas poorly served by terrestrial networks.
Data centres provide the infrastructure needed to store, process and protect the information travelling across those networks.
A mature digital economy ultimately needs both.
Data Sovereignty Becomes African Priority
Côte d’Ivoire’s investment follows a broader continental trend.
African governments are increasingly questioning whether critical national data should depend heavily on overseas infrastructure.
The growth of cloud computing, digital public services and artificial intelligence is accelerating that debate.
Local data centres can reduce latency and potentially strengthen control over sensitive information, while also creating a foundation for cloud and AI services.
But constructing the building is only the beginning.
Data centres require uninterrupted electricity, high-capacity fibre connectivity, sophisticated cooling, strong cybersecurity and highly skilled technical personnel.
Côte d’Ivoire will therefore need to ensure that the Grand-Bassam facility is not merely completed but maintained to international operational and security standards.
If the targeted 2027 opening is achieved, the project could become an important component of Côte d’Ivoire’s effort to establish itself as a West African digital-services hub while retaining greater control over its own government data.
