Microsoft's
Office 365 suite is now available through data centers in South Africa. Office 365 offers Microsoft’s communication and collaboration tools and makes them available as a cloud-based solution paid on a subscription basis. The solution includes global favorites like Outlook, OneDrive, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote, alongside Microsoft's more recently introduced Slack competitor, Microsoft Teams. Making the suite available through South African data centers will benefit the corporation’s South African and other African customers.
Microsoft has been expanding its presence on the African continent and made Azure available there earlier in 2019. The move will be of particular importance to South African Office 365 users as having data stored within South Africa’s borders will allow them to adhere to the country’s increasingly strict data residency requirements. This is key to users operating in government sectors and industries like healthcare and financial services.
“The combination of Microsoft’s global cloud infrastructure with the new regions in Africa will increase economic opportunity for organizations in Africa, as well as connect businesses across the globe through improved access to cloud and internet services,” explained Microsoft’s Corporate Vice President Yousef Khalidi on the company’s blog. “In addition, the availability of Microsoft’s cloud services delivered from Africa will mean local companies can securely and reliably move their businesses to the cloud while meeting compliance requirements.”
Microsoft suggests it was the first company to offer cloud services in Africa. With South Africa now a new location for Office 365, the suite is available in 16 geographical regions globally, improving security and accessibility for local users around the world.
Do you know of any other companies offering services through data centers in South Africa? Let us know the details. Add your comments below.
