Listed outsourcing company EOH wants to offer hosted services in Africa, and is working out a model that would allow it to expand on the continent.
EOH yesterday reported revenue 44.8% higher, at R1.1 billion, for the first half of the year to January. Pre-tax profit leapt 49.5%, to R109 million. The growth was driven by organic gains, at two-thirds, and a third came from recent acquisitions.
FD John King says the company has seen 25 consecutive six-month periods of revenue growth, and there is no reason why this revenue trend should slow down as EOH does not have a large market share in SA.
CEO Asher Bohbot says the company is moving into new areas and sees cloud computing as an exciting growth driver. He says the increasing availability of bandwidth opens up the opportunity for EOH to deliver computing power on the continent.
Bohbot says the future of technology in Africa will be in cloud computing. He explains that the continent has the opportunity to leapfrog the in-house versus outsourcing debate, and can move into a model that will allow for shared resources.
However, says Bohbot, it is still early days and the company has not set any revenue targets or made any firm plans as to how it will move onto the continent yet. EOH currently has operations throughout SA and in Europe.
EOH also wants a larger share of public sector IT spending, says Bohbot. He explains that the company has not traditionally been a strong player in this sector, but believes it has offerings that could aid government in delivering services.
Bohbot says private companies need to help government to fulfil its mandate. “We can't just sit back and moan at dinner tables.” EOH currently provides services for the State IT Agency and the Department of Health, along with its clients in the private sector.
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