African enterprises often face a complex reality of having to navigate a challenging local business landscape, while simultaneously having to adopt leading-edge digital technologies, such as cloud and AI.
The key to success is down to local expertise, says First Distribution.
With varying market maturity across the continent, struggles with skills availability, as well as infrastructure issues, such as the availability and reliability of power and connectivity, balancing the latest technological developments with the realities of emerging African markets requires a ‘pragmatic, localised approach’.
That’s according to Charmaine Peens, Microsoft Brand Manager, First Distribution.
“Success comes from combining local market understanding with global technology leadership,” she says, referring to the fact that the company works closely with Microsoft as well as a broad and diverse partner ecosystem that includes over 4 000 reseller partners operating in 32 markets across the continent.
While First Distribution’s partner ecosystem does include international players, such as global systems integrators, most of its partners are local African companies, which, she says, bring strong in-country expertise.
With a 100% channel-first model, First Distribution doesn’t compete with its partners, but rather relies upon them to own relationships with customers. Peens says the company sees its role is to empower partners, by providing the infrastructure, expertise, and scalability that they can call on.
“We enable our partners with commercial models, platform access, and credit facilities; we provide pre-sales, technical, and professional services support; and assist with solution design, deployment, and adoption where required.”
The distribution company is currently expanding local in-country resources and technical capability and investing in building partner capability across cloud platforms and AI-driven services.
Peens adds that First Distribution is deepening investments in key hubs, such as Nigeria, Kenya, and Mauritius, and is entering new territories through strategic partnerships, particularly in West and North Africa.
On the subject of Africa’s cloud adoption, Preegan Chetty, Microsoft Azure Product Manager, First Distribution says: “Azure adoption is strongest in Southern, West, and East Africa, with growth accelerating as connectivity improves.”
“As maturity increases,” he adds, “we’re seeing more cloud-native and hybrid workloads. Key verticals adopting cloud include financial services, telecoms, retail, healthcare, and the public sector.”
The main barriers to cloud adoption include connectivity constraints, skills shortages, regulatory complexity, and cost sensitivity, he says. “These are being addressed through improved network infrastructure, Microsoft’s local investments, and strong partner enablement programmes. Funding initiatives and migration incentives are also reducing entry barriers. Over time, these challenges are becoming more manageable, rather than prohibitive.”
With cloud as a foundation, another set of Microsoft solutions that has experienced increased adoption across Africa is the Modern Workplace. A key part of that growth is the consolidation of different elements – including productivity, such as Microsoft365, enterprise-grade security from Microsoft Defender, and AI tools like Copilot – into an integrated single platform.
“Modern Workplace is no longer viewed as just a set of tools – it’s increasingly seen as a strategic platform that evolves with the organisation, from productivity to security and now into AI-led transformation,” says Kejendree Pillay, Microsoft Portfolio Manager at First Distribution.
Although connectivity remains a challenge in certain regions, Pillay says the environment is improving significantly with ongoing investment in digital infrastructure across the continent.
He adds: “Modern Workplace solutions are designed to operate effectively in these conditions by combining cloud services with desktop applications and offline capabilities, ensuring that productivity is not entirely dependent on constant connectivity.”
While cost is always a consideration, Pillay says, organisations are increasingly looking at total value rather than upfront price. “Modern Workplace is a single, integrated solution that delivers measurable business outcomes.”
He explains that many organisations initially adopted Microsoft 365 for collaboration and hybrid work, but that cybersecurity has now become one of the primary drivers of Modern Workplace adoption. Pillay says that combining the different aspects into one platform reduces complexity and the risks associated with multiple disconnected tools.
“By integrating identity management, endpoint protection, and data security into a single platform, organisations can simplify their security landscape while improving visibility and control. This is particularly important in African markets, where organisations are often looking to consolidate vendors while strengthening their security posture.
“Ultimately, Africa doesn’t need more standalone tools — it needs trusted platforms and partners who can simplify complexity and drive real impact for customers,” says Pillay.
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