German IT security specialist gateprotect has partnered with the Westcon Group in South Africa and Africa in a bid to strategically enhance its presence in the region.
With the integration into the Westcon-Comztek data security portfolio, the company now has access to further market potential through the group’s Comztek Africa business as well as the enterprise market of Westcon South Africa.
The market for IT security solutions on the African continent continues to grow as public and private organisations are increasingly investing into network and data protection as a result of economic growth in many countries.
Likewise, the interconnection of external branches and mobile devices are on the agenda of many investors, which is raising the desire for companies to turn to respected and lauded security specialists such as gateprotect.
In order to satisfy the growing demand in the region for reliable security products, gateprotect has been actively growing its own footprint by placing more feet on the ground.
The gateprotect Africa team will, in addition to working with customers, provide support to Westcon-Comztek in exploring new markets and winning new partners by way of joint marketing activities, training and certification of resellers. In addition, gateprotect is the only German vendor to offer local support in Africa.
“The African market offers immense potential. Thanks to our easy-to-use security solutions for the protection of highly complex networks and mobile devices, we believe we will be able to capitalise on this potential. The partnership with Westcon-Comztek is an important step for us to further strengthen the presence of gateprotect in the market,” says Dr Peter Smeets, CEO of gateprotect AG.
“African companies are experiencing a period of growth as a result of foreign investment and internal growth,” says Andrew Potgieter, business practice director at Westcon Security Solutions. “This growth is fuelling a need for technology systems, which is in turn driving up the need for robust security solutions to protect these solutions.
“We believe that the next generation firewalls from gateprotect are perfectly suited to meet the future challenges in the field of IT security, and optimally complement the Westcon Group and its Comztek Africa’s portfolio of security solutions in both South Africa and on the continent,” he adds.