South Africa’s oldest internet exchange point operator, INX-ZA, has announced a plan to upgrade its infrastructure using high-performance routers from Nokia that offer throughput of up to 400Gbit/s each.

INX-ZA, which forms part of the Internet Service Providers’ Association – an industry body that represents most of South Africa’s ISP community – will deploy 400GE (gigabit Ethernet) technology from Nokia to upgrade its peering infrastructure, enhancing service reach and performance.

Though INX-ZA is no longer the largest internet exchange point, or IXP, in the country – that title has been claimed by Teraco-owned NAPAfrica – it is the oldest and longest-running such facility.

“INX-ZA will deploy Nokia’s high-performance IP routing portfolio to offer new 400GE and expanded 100GE services to its customers across the country. As a result, businesses and internet users can now experience faster, more resilient and future-ready internet connectivity in South Africa,” said Nokia in a statement on Thursday.

“Internet exchanges are a critical component of the digital ecosystem, enabling data to be exchanged locally and reducing dependency on expensive international bandwidth. Yet many IXPs across Africa still operate on ageing platforms that lack scalability and efficiency. INX-ZA’s shift to Nokia’s solution addresses these limitations head-on, opening the door to more energy-efficient, scalable and high-density infrastructure that can evolve alongside the region’s digital ambitions,” it said.

Jinx first

Nokia has been tasked with upgrading INX-ZA’s IXPs in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban, beginning with Johannesburg – home to Jinx, Africa’s oldest IXP, which has achieved 100% uptime since its launch in 1996.

Read: NAPAfrica traffic tops 5Tbit/s mark

“Together, Nokia and INX-ZA will expand Jinx from seven to 10 data centres by year-end, deploying 30 high-performance platforms in phase 1 to preserve its industry-leading availability while extending its reach,” the statement said. – © 2025 NewsCentral Media

Get breaking news from TechCentral on WhatsApp. Sign up here.