On 10 March in Johannesburg SAP Africa demonstrated SAP Business Suite 4 SAP HANA (SAP S/4HANA), a next generation business suite now launched to the Africa market.

S/4 HANA is a new release available with cloud, on premise and hybrid deployment options, and, according to the company, is ready for the digital and networked economy.

The Company says it represents the next step in the evolution of SAP's original in-memory database and is optimised on the HANA global database platform to provide enterprises with the ability to enhance their ERP function.

SAP Africa stressed that with this release, it aims to help customers 'reimagine business processes' by simplifying business collaboration, acquiring insight on any data from anywhere in realtime and being able to focus on essential tasks in realtime.

The Company believes the new offering will add value to companies in Africa operating in assets-driven sectors, including mining, retail, manufacture and ICT, to monitor assets in realtime. Reference was made to the relevance of this offering to the establishment of public sector automation and eGovernment.

The offering was officially launched in February 2015 at the New York Stock Exchange by SAP CEO Bill McDermott and the on-premise solution is now available in Africa. The public cloud solution will be launched in 2 to 3 weeks time, and the managed cloud option will be made available in May.

Robert Enslin, SAP exec board member and president global customer operations, described the offering as a 'global game-changer' and said "it will transform the way businesses do ERP going forward."

"It offers the ability to define business logic on the fly," he added.

Pfungwa Serima, SAP Africa CEO, said the Africa market is eager to pursue ways to reinvent business models, to benefit from realtime systems and drive new revenue streams. "Africa is the last frontier of choice where the real opportunities are and where flexible business models are needed to create revenues."

"This launch, for me, is more applicable to Africa than anywhere else," Serima added. "Many African businesses are looking to extend their reach deeper into the continent and engage with their consumers in all channels."