NEC XON welcomes HPE acquisition of Juniper Networks - Anthony Laing — Anthony Laing, GM of Networking at NEC XON

NEC XON, Africa’s largest and most experienced Juniper Networks partner, has welcomed the completion of Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s acquisition of Juniper Networks. This strategic, US$14-billion deal brings together the best of enterprise networking – HPE’s Aruba and Juniper’s Mist – to create an unmatched, AI-native, cloud-ready networking powerhouse.

“This is a gamechanger for our customers,” said Anthony Laing, GM of Networking at NEC XON. “We are proud to be Juniper’s strongest partner in Africa and, with access to HPE’s global reach, financing strength and scale, we are now uniquely positioned to deliver end-to-end enterprise and managed services across the continent – backed by the best that both Juniper and HPE have to offer.”

Trusted expertise, recognised partnership excellence

NEC XON has been recognised multiple times as Juniper’s Global Partner of the Year – a reflection of our deep technical expertise and proven ability to deliver mission-critical infrastructure at scale. With a longstanding track record in designing, deploying and managing complex enterprise networks across Africa, we bring unrivalled capability and confidence to every engagement.

The combination of Aruba and Mist – widely regarded as the two leading enterprise networking solution providers in the world – means “customers no longer have to choose between capabilities”, said Laing. “With this acquisition, they get both under one roof – simplified, unified and future-ready.”

Global-scale expertise backed by recognised Juniper partnership

NEC XON is more than a regional leader – we’re part of NEC’s globally recognised partnership with Juniper, supported by hundreds of highly certified Juniper engineers worldwide. As a multiple-time recipient of Juniper’s Global Partner of the Year award, NEC leverages its global engineering capability to deliver consistent, world-class outcomes across markets. NEC XON’s customers benefit directly from this global bench strength, while enjoying deep local engagement across Africa. It’s the same model that global leaders like NTT have used to bring international capability to regional delivery – giving African enterprises access to top-tier skills, infrastructure and innovation at scale. In Africa, NEC XON boasts:

Over 50 dedicated networking engineers, including multiple JNCIEs;
24/7 support desk, from level 1 to level 3;
Multimillion-dollar spares depots across Africa, enabling same-day support in major metros;
Fully managed services across build, operate and transfer models;
Turnkey delivery including project and programme management;
Network operations and maintenance services; and
Advanced labs in South Africa and Kenya, supporting multi-vendor integration and customer innovation.

Financial flexibility to power transformation

“Financing is becoming a bigger part of the conversation,” Laing added. “Where we have been able to offer NEC XON financing in the past, HPE brings a world-class financing capability to the table. This means we can now offer our customers more flexible, creative and compelling deals for long-term investments like combined hardware and managed service agreements.”

No disruption, only opportunity

As stated by HPE CEO Antonio Neri, customer continuity is paramount: all existing product lifecycle and support commitments will be honoured. With the CEO of Juniper now leading the combined networking business within HPE, innovation and execution remain in strong, experienced hands.

“This is a rare moment where global leadership, local delivery and financial strength converge,” said Laing. “We are excited about what this means for Africa’s enterprises – nobody else can offer the combination of global scale, local investment and end-to-end capability that NEC XON now delivers.”

About NEC XON
NEC XON is a leading African integrator of ICT solutions and part of NEC, a Japanese global company. The holding company has operated in Africa since 1963 and delivers communications, energy, safety, security and digital solutions. It co-creates social value through innovation to help overcome serious societal challenges. The organisation operates in 54 African countries and has a footprint in 16 of them. Regional headquarters are located in South, East and West Africa. NEC XON is a level 1-certified broad-based black economic empowerment business. Discover more at www.nec.africa.