Servercore: Bridging Global Expertise And Local IT Infrastructure In Kenya

Africa’s IT-sector is dynamic, multifaceted, and brimming with local specifics and contradictions. Victoria Kleinbort, Country Manager Kenya, Servercore shares how Serverore’s IT infrastructure and global expertise are tailored to foster innovation, growth, and success for companies in Kenya.

Please describe the services that Servercore offers?

Servercore is the first international IT-infrastructure provider who launched an availability zone in Nairobi. We focus on emerging markets with high tech potential and Kenya is our first country in Sub-Saharan Africa. By this point, we have already built a sustainable business in Central Asia – in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. We secured a strong position in these markets and gained a loyal base of regular customers. And now we are ready to expand further!

Servercore helps businesses to manage their IT-infrastructure, as well as scale computing power using a simple UX-friendly control panel. We work with three levels of infrastructure – bare metal servers, cloud and PaaS-services. Our customers also benefit from additional services designed to enhance the stability and security of their operations, including load balancing, firewalls, and backup solutions. Additionally, we provide free basic DDoS protection for servers and other security tools.

Why did Servercore choose to set base in Kenya and became the first global provider with a local availability zone?

Our mission is to help companies deliver their services to users in countries with rapid technological growth.  Kenya is one of the ten fastest growing digital economies in the world. The country’s ICT sector has on average grown 10.8 percent annually since 2016 and its digital economy is expected to contribute to 9.24 percent of the country’s GDP by 2025. National initiatives like Kenyan National Digital Master Plan 2022-2032 and the Kenya Vision 2030 aim to position the country as a leader in digital innovation across Africa.

Sectors driving digitalization, such as finance, healthcare, education, and e-commerce, require robust IT infrastructure to support their growth and transformation, leading to a noticeable increase in demand for cloud services. This adoption of cloud technologies is likely to continue to grow and gain momentum in the region in the coming years.

However, the existing demand is faced with challenges in the form of latency issues, data protection concerns, pricing management complexities as well as the need for high reliability). These limitations are often influenced   by the presence of global players, who have their own constraints and local representatives who have not yet built up their expertise to the level of global providers Our approach is to address these gaps by offering a robust, locally integrated solution that combines our global capabilities with a strong understanding of the Kenyan market. We will also continue to monitor other countries in Africa and neighbouring territories to make decisions on launching certain products depending on the market demand.

How different is Servercore from other global companies offering the same services?

By combining global standards with local set up, Servercore delivers a unique, customer-focused experience in the Kenyan market. Our servers are hosted locally in Nairobi, ensuring compliance with DPA 2019 while delivering top-tier performance and security. Unlike industry giants, we offer more flexible solutions tailored to client needs, with pricing adapted to the local economy rather than imposed uniformly across regions. Our billing options are also designed for convenience, allowing payments in KES, via MPESA or bank transfer. Storing data locally enables our clients to meet regulatory requirements and maintain data sovereignty. We provide free 24/7 technical support and guarantee a 99.98 percent SLA, demonstrating our commitment to reliability and customer satisfaction.

What should local companies looking for cloud computing services focus on most?

There are several key points that are important to pay attention to. Flexible server configurations and rapid availability are essential for businesses that need scalable solutions tailored to their specific needs. Minimizing signal delay is crucial for maintaining seamless operations, especially for real-time applications. Prompt and free technical support is also a vital component, as it ensures quick resolution of any issues that may arise. Compliance with DPA 2019 and GDPR is critical for safeguarding sensitive data and meeting legal requirements. Lastly, companies should seek value for money, allowing them to optimize costs based on their budget and business scale.

What tools that Servercore use to help companies forecast and control infrastructure-related expenses? Cost is a huge factor for companies when it comes to IT projects, how can companies prioritize cost-saving measures without sacrificing performance or reliability?

We conduct regular audit of our products and actively engage with clients’ feedback to ensure we deliver the best possible service tailored for their needs. In the control panel, reports on the use of our services are available for each client, so we strive for maximum transparency.

We also offer features designed to reduce costs for our clients. For example, Frozen instances allow users to avoid paying for virtual machines that are not in active use but still need to be retained.

Using shared cores on cloud platforms is another effective strategy for reducing cloud costs. When configuring your server, you can reserve a share of vCPU: 10 percent, 20 percent, or 50 percent. This is cheaper than renting an entire core. Your server’s performance will never drop below the reserved share and may reach 100 percent.

The Kubernetes (K8s) auto scaler is also a powerful tool that can significantly help businesses reduce their cloud costs. It automatically adjusts the number of nodes in a cluster based on resource utilization.

Also, to create a comfortable financial load, we introduced the “pay as go” payment format.

How does Servercore ensure compliance with data residency requirements across different regions and especially Kenya?

We take all security and data privacy regulations, both global and local, very seriously. Servercore complies with GDPR and Kenya’s DPA 2019 requirements, and we have developed comprehensive guidelines and policies for personal data processing by our employees, along with a robust set of technical and organizational measures.

As a registered data processor with the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, Servercore holds a special certification, underscoring our commitment to data protection and compliance.

Servercore’s clients can rent servers located in Tier 3 data centre in Nairobi, Kenya and thus comply with the regulator’s requirement to store personal data of their users and clients inside the country

Which industry verticals forms part of your target market and why?

We see an increased demand for cloud technologies among companies from the e-commerce, retail, fintech and cybersecurity industries. But even among representatives of more conservative industries, there is interest in cloud IT infrastructure. The key factor that influences decision-making in favor of clouds is the multiple acceleration of time to market for products and services. But, in general, we are an area agnostic provider. Our solutions are suitable for both startups and large corporate giants. At the same time, it is important for us to maintain comfortable conditions and high-quality support for everyone.

How important is to keep in touch with the other industry players?

We believe that cooperation is the key to success. We are actively developing our reseller program and maintain close ties with our partners to help them better serve their clients. Participating in industry events and conferences as speakers and exhibitors is essential for us. It enables us to exchange expertise, share insights, and stay at the forefront of industry developments while strengthening our visibility in the market. We are deeply committed to supporting young projects and emerging talent, which is why we host our own Servercore developers’ meetups for technical specialists offline in Nairobi. Additionally, we collaborate with local startup communities like Tech Safari and Startup Grind Nairobi to foster innovation and growth. With Startup Grind Nairobi, we have even launched a special grant program to provide additional resources and opportunities for promising startups.