Amazon is stepping up its long-term commitment to South Africa, arguing that patient investment in local skills, infrastructure and partnerships can help expand the country’s digital economy.
The company’s relationship with South Africa began more than two decades ago, when a small engineering team in Cape Town helped develop technology that later became central to Amazon Web Services. The group opened the AWS Africa (Cape Town) Region in 2020 and launched Amazon.co.za in 2024, its first online store in sub-Saharan Africa.
David Zapolsky, Amazon’s chief global affairs and legal officer, said the common thread across those projects is an effort to give South African customers access to new technologies. He pointed to opportunities for retailers to reach wider markets, banks to use artificial intelligence in customer service and rural households to gain reliable internet access.
Local investment and jobs
Amazon says it has invested more than R54 billion in South Africa over the past decade. The company estimates that its operations support more than 20,000 jobs, including direct employees, contractors, seasonal workers and roles generated through construction, logistics and professional services. Consultancy Keystone Strategy estimates the investment has contributed more than R33 billion to the country’s gross domestic product.
The local marketplace has also been designed to give South African entrepreneurs access to customers across the country and abroad. Thousands of local sellers are already active, with more preparing to join. Amazon’s Seller University continues to offer free training resources, videos and webinars for merchants seeking help with listings, pricing, advertising and delivery operations.
Skills, connectivity and sustainability
The company says its cloud and AI training programmes have reached more than 350,000 South Africans since 2017. Since 2018, it has also committed R365 million through an equity-equivalent investment programme that has supported 47 black-owned technology businesses.
Amazon’s next phase includes a partnership with South African internet provider Herotel to bring Amazon Leo satellite connectivity to communities that lack affordable, dependable access. The company says the decision to work through a local provider reflects its preference for building capacity with domestic partners.
Its environmental projects include a 10MW solar plant in the Northern Cape that the company says avoids 25,000 tonnes of carbon emissions a year. Amazon is also participating in a R1.9 billion spekboom restoration initiative in the Eastern Cape, aimed at rehabilitating 50,000 hectares and creating more than 11,000 jobs over the next decade.
Zapolsky said South Africa’s technology talent, institutions and reform agenda support the case for further investment. Amazon expects locally delivered AI services and wider connectivity to create additional opportunities for businesses and communities, and says its presence in the country is still at an early stage.