Kenya Data Networks has completed a new data center it said will be used for hosting and data center services.

And it is now on the hunt for three technology firms that can provide information security for another facility, for electronic data storage, that will open in coming months.

The Kenya-based telecommunications company has grown its operations rapidly in recent times, investing heavily in network and data center infrastructure.

It is hoping to capitalize in the new demands seen for cloud computing and other IT services and a growing interest form multinational companies in African business.

KDN Chief Commercial Officer Atul Chaturvedi told Africa Business Daily that hospitals and banks, and other multinational clients concerned with data privacy from across East Africa, South Africa and Europe will be using the storage center.

“Some of the potential clients have demanded a guarantee to the security of the information we will be hosting for them and as such we are currently looking for three firms that can offer us this and other value-added services,” Chaturvedi said.

It said it is already talking to companies from South Africa, India, Europe and the US that have security solutions on offer.

The new data center is situated in Nairobi and has been set up to target global customers and international telecommunication companies requiring point-of-presence solutions.

Kenya Data Networks has also committed Kshs 1.2bn to a fiber-optic cable being laid in greater East Africa.

KDN already operates the largest data and Internet backbone in East Africa.

It plans to have connections to Rwanda and activate an undersea cable network to its international fiber links from Mombasa.