Buildinng Cloud For Africa

Before she became the Vice President of Cloud at Angani, Anne Mukiri was simply a young tech enthusiast with a passion for science and a curiosity for how things worked. Growing up, she was the kind of person who loved taking things apart just to figure out how to put them back together. That curiosity followed her into university, where she pursued a degree in telecommunications engineering – imagining, at the time, that she’d end up working in GSM networks with companies like Safaricom or Airtel.

But life had other plans.

“I got my first internship at Angani,” Anne says, “that one opportunity changed everything. I discovered cloud technology and knew right away that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.”

Eight years later, Anne now leads one of Kenya’s most respected local cloud companies, helping clients across industries manage infrastructure, deploy services, and embrace new technologies. Her journey is more than just a personal success story, it’s a case study in what’s possible when technical passion meets opportunity, mentorship, and purpose.

As she reflects on her path from intern to VP, Anne is also increasingly focused on something bigger: building the next generation of women leaders in technology, and shaping a future where Africa doesn’t just consume digital infrastructure, but builds it.

A Career Spun From Curiosity

Anne describes herself, without hesitation, as a tech enthusiast. Her path into cloud wasn’t deliberate at first. After graduating with a degree in telecommunications engineering, she was headed for the telco industry. But then came an internship at Angani – then a little-known startup in the cloud space – and that internship became a career.

“When I joined, not many people even knew what cloud technology was,” she recalls. “We were just a small team offering infrastructure as a service.”

Angani didn’t stay small for long. Anne played a direct role in the company’s growth, especially in shaping how Angani engages with its clients.

“I started the service delivery department,” she says. “It was all about sitting with the customer, understanding their needs, designing a solution, and seeing it through. That process of building something with a client and making it work. That’s where I thrive.”

As VP of Cloud, Anne’s role today is part technical, part operational, and very much people-focused. Her days are packed with check-ins across departments, support, service delivery, infrastructure, as well as external meetings with clients, suppliers, and technology partners.

“I like keeping in touch with our customers,” she says. “We check if the solutions we provided are working for them. Do they need improvements? Is there new technology that can solve a current pain point?”

It’s a hands-on leadership style rooted in responsiveness and collaboration. And it’s backed by a deep understanding of the challenges that businesses, especially in Kenya, face when dealing with digital infrastructure.

Angani’s model is simple: provide cloud as a service, but tailor it for local needs.

“Hyperscalers have built amazing products, but they were built for the U.S. and Europe,” Anne says. “Who’s building for Kenya? For Africa? That’s what we’re doing.”

The company started by offering just virtual machines. Now it provides a full range of services: from voice solutions like SIP trunks and PABX, to email hosting, ERP deployment, CCTV analytics, and data backups.

“As our CEO likes to say, we’ve built a cloud supermarket,” she explains. “Whether you’re a startup or a big company, you walk in, take what you need, and we meet you where you are. Even our support has evolved and we now offer 24/7 personal support because, let’s be honest, when your VM is down, you don’t want a bot. You want a real person.”

Retaining Talent, and Letting It Go

When asked about challenges, Anne doesn’t point to tech failures or project roadblocks. What sticks out more is the challenge of retaining talent.

“There’s something bittersweet about grooming an engineer from scratch, watching them grow, and then seeing them scooped up by the big players,” she says.

It’s flattering, of course. Working at Angani is now a badge of honour, a sign that you’ve been trained well and exposed to real challenges. But it also means constant recruitment, mentorship, and reinvention.

“We can’t always match the big companies in salary,” she admits. “But what we can offer is impact. Being part of something meaningful, helping build Africa’s cloud, and being seen and valued as an individual.”

Women in Tech

When Anne joined Angani, she was one of only two women in her department. Today, the support team is evenly split, and the office staff is mostly women. It’s a shift she’s proud to have witnessed and helped shape.

“We have so many young ladies coming in now,” she says. “And the amazing thing is that when you give them a challenge, they rise to it.”

Throughout her journey, Anne has had mentors who pushed her, encouraged her, and helped her see her potential. Interestingly, most of them were men – not by choice, but by availability.

“Our CEO, Riyaz, has been a huge influence on my career,” she says. “He gave me chances before I had the credentials. He believed in me, and that made me believe in myself.”

Now in a leadership role, Anne is doing the same for others. She speaks glowingly of women within Angani who are rising fast, including Omaira, head of service delivery, and Susan, head of support.

“You always spot someone with promise,” she says. “And you do your best to give them the space to grow.”

She also challenges the common idea that women need male sponsors to succeed in tech.

“I think we say that because, historically, men held most of the positions of power. But that’s changing. We have women-led tech companies now, and women are increasingly taking up space in boardrooms and server rooms alike.”

Why Africa Needs Its Own Cloud

Anne is deeply passionate about building a cloud ecosystem tailored for Africa. She talks about pricing shifts in global products like VMware that have made them inaccessible to smaller African enterprises. She talks about the gaps in local customization, support, and user understanding that global platforms can’t fill.

“There’s pride in building something for your people,” she says. “Look at Mpesa. It’s Kenyan. It’s ours. Why can’t we have an Angani in every African country, something built here, by us, for us?”

That kind of ambition fuels her every day. It’s also why she has stayed at Angani for eight years, a lifetime in tech.

“As long as the work is challenging and meaningful, I’m here to stay,” she says.

AI, Innovation, and What’s Next

Like many in tech, Anne is fascinated by AI. But while others focus on the hype or the risks, she’s more interested in application.

“Everyone’s talking about AI,” she says. “But how are we using it to improve our customers’ workflows? How do we build products on top of it that solve real problems? That’s what I want to figure out.”

She doesn’t view AI as a threat. “It’s not scary. It’s a tool. A model. It still needs human beings to train it, to refine it. So instead of resisting it, we need to learn how to work with it.”

Leadership Rooted in Purpose

Anne Mukiri’s story is one of passion, persistence, and purpose. She entered the cloud industry when few people in Kenya even knew what it was. She rose through the ranks not because someone handed her a title, but because she proved, again and again, that she could build, lead, and lift others as she climbed.

Her story is also a reminder of what leadership in African tech should look like: locally grounded, globally aware, and relentlessly focused on people.

Whether she’s mentoring a young engineer, building new cloud products, or advocating for inclusive workplaces, Anne is part of a quiet revolution, one where African women aren’t just participating in tech; they’re driving it.

And with leaders like her at the helm, Africa’s digital future looks just a little more powerful, a little more personal, and a lot more possible.

Off the Clock

Outside of work, Anne describes herself as “very introverted.” Her downtime is quiet and intentional, spending time with close friends and family, reading, singing, or just taking a drive to explore something new.

“I love learning about different cultures, seeing how people live and think. Even a long-drive can open your mind in ways you didn’t expect.”