Africa: Mastercard launches Africa Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence as cyber threats escalate

Mastercard has unveiled a new Africa Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence, a strategic initiative aimed at strengthening cyber resilience across the continent as digital adoption accelerates and cybercrime grows increasingly sophisticated.

The move comes amid projections that Africa’s digital economy could reach $1.5 trillion by 2030, underscoring the urgent need for stronger cybersecurity infrastructure to safeguard businesses, institutions, and consumers.

According to Mastercard, cybercrime continues to inflict substantial economic losses across Africa, with only an estimated 35 per cent of incidents formally reported. The company attributed this significant underreporting to persistent gaps in cyber maturity, limited threat detection capabilities, and reputational concerns among affected organisations.

These challenges, Mastercard noted, have created a fragmented view of the continent’s cyber threat landscape, weakening coordinated response efforts and reducing overall preparedness against emerging digital risks.

The Africa Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence is designed as a multi-year initiative and will begin a phased rollout in 2026, starting with South Africa and Nigeria.

Structured as a pan-African hub powered by connected digital platforms and advanced security capabilities, the centre will support participating organisations in identifying, monitoring, and responding to evolving cyber threats.

As part of its first-year implementation, the initiative will conduct ecosystem-wide cyber risk assessments covering up to 50 organisations. Participating institutions will also gain access to a dedicated Africa-focused threat intelligence feed developed by Recorded Future, a Mastercard company specialising in threat intelligence and cyber risk analysis.

Mastercard said the centre is expected to improve visibility into emerging threats while fostering stronger collaboration between public and private sector stakeholders across Africa.

Commenting on the launch, Mastercard Chief Executive Officer Michael Miebach stressed the critical role of trust in driving digital transformation across the continent.

“Africa is dynamic, fast-growing, and ready to scale its digital future. That won’t happen without trust,” Miebach said.

He added that cybersecurity must remain central to Africa’s digital growth agenda, noting that stronger collaboration and knowledge sharing would be essential to improving collective defence mechanisms.

“People don’t use what they don’t trust. That makes cybersecurity foundational to driving economic resilience and growth across the continent,” he said.

Mastercard added that by strengthening partnerships between governments, regulators, financial institutions, and technology providers, the initiative aims to create a more secure, inclusive, and resilient digital ecosystem across Africa.