South African-owned data centre solutions provider Digital Parks Africa (DPA) has expanded its offering with the addition of global Tier 1 carrier Cogent Communications at its Samrand data centre, aimed at giving customers access to one of the world’s largest Internet Protocol (IP) backbone networks.

As a Tier 1 Internet service provider (ISP), Cogent owns and operates its own global infrastructure, enabling direct connections to data centres and end-user locations, only exchanging traffic with other Tier 1 ISPs where necessary and without the need to buy Internet service from any other provider.

This means that DPA customers will have closer proximity to global content and fewer intermediary networks between source and destinations. DPA asserts that the new development will strengthen its international connectivity capabilities, enabling enhanced global routing, traffic exchange, and overall network performance for customers operating within the facility. 

Cogent chief revenue officer and VP: global sales Mark Harris says through this partnership DPA customers will gain direct access to a Tier 1 global network with more than 22 000 customers and over 7 600 independently connected networks, and he emphasises that Cogent’s end‑to‑end control of traffic flow is a key differentiator. 

The partnership is also set to unlock new opportunities for direct traffic exchange and interconnection.  

“The real advantage is how quickly and efficiently traffic can move from point to point without transiting multiple networks. We carry more than two zettabytes of data across our backbone every day, which speaks to the scale and efficiency customers gain through DPA,” says Harris.

“In an AI‑driven world, that level of direct interconnection and data movement is essential. This partnership gives DPA customers immediate access to that capability, creating a faster, cleaner and more controlled path for global traffic exchange,” he explains.

DPA notes that access to Tier 1 global carriers also strengthens its position as an interconnection point in the South African market, enabling international‑scale workloads to be delivered locally.

“For customers that need global reach, content delivery networks, hyperscalers, and international service providers, Tier 1 connectivity is a critical enabler,” says DPA COO Jacques de Jager.

“It allows them to bring their content into South Africa and serve it from local compute and storage with far greater efficiency. While some local businesses rely mainly on regional Internet exchanges, global organisations need seamless access to their content and users worldwide. Tier 1 access gives them that reach and positions DPA as a natural landing point for international players entering the South African market,” he concludes.