Namibia's Prime Minister tours Paratus Group's Brakwater data center

Namibia's Prime Minister, Elijah Ngurare and Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Emma Theofelus conducted an inspection tour of Paratus Group's Brakwater data center. The high-level visit underscores the government's commitment to strengthening national data infrastructure and cybersecurity capabilities as part of its digital sovereignty agenda. 

The inspection comes as Namibia accelerates its digital transformation strategy, which prioritizes domestic data storage solutions and enhanced cyber defenses. During the facility tour, officials evaluated current storage capacities, software systems, and security protocols that could support government digitization initiatives. Minister Theofelus emphasized the importance of such infrastructure in safeguarding sensitive national data while reducing reliance on foreign storage solutions. 

"Data sovereignty forms the bedrock of our digital future," stated Prime Minister Ngurare during the assessment. "By understanding and leveraging existing local capabilities, we can develop policies that ensure Namibia controls its critical digital assets." The visit allowed policymakers to benchmark current private sector capabilities against upcoming government data center projects outlined in Namibia's digital economy blueprint. 

Namibia joins several African nations pursuing data sovereignty strategies, with recent legislation requiring certain categories of citizen data to be stored domestically. The Paratus facility, as one of Namibia's leading data center operators, represents a potential partner in this national digital infrastructure development. 

Communication and Technology Minister Theofelus confirmed the government's intention to collaborate with private sector providers while developing state capacity. "Our goal is creating an ecosystem where government and industry work together to build secure, resilient digital infrastructure," she remarked. The visit forms part of broader consultations preceding Namibia's anticipated National Data Governance Policy, expected to address data protection, cross-border flows, and critical infrastructure security. 

By:  Kanto Kai Okanta