The growth trajectory of an average African child is usually linear. Take Zuga, an ambitious young man who grew up in the interiors of East Africa with an adventurous mind and a love for gaming. His closest encounter with mobile games would be listening attentively to country folk discuss medieval adventures and combat series while…
In this new age of technology, the software supply chain is the new battlefield for cybersecurity attacks. With the adoption of open-source libraries, third-party integrations, and cloud dependency, the ecosystem of the software is under threat at record heights. Steve Adodo, the seasoned software developer who dedicated his professional career to hardening the development of…
After Elon Musk entered a group chat with journalists who had been barred from the network, Twitter appears to have temporarily removed its Spaces group audio feature. The most recent controversy occurs after Twitter suspended a number of well-known journalists who had covered a previous report about the Elon Jet Twitter account, which was shut…
In the MENA region’s hotels, restaurants, and catering (HORECA) industries, Suplyd, an Egypt-based startup, digitizes supply chain operations. It has received $1.6 million in pre-seed funding from Endure Capital, Seedstars, Camel Ventures, Falak Startups, as well as other local and regional investors. The company will be able to grow the staff, make additional investments in…
A Pan-African early-stage venture capital firm called Ventures Platform closed its fund at $46 million with the intention of investing even more in “category-leading” businesses all over the continent. The 11-person company, which is six years old and has gone public to seek $40 million for this fund, had an undisclosed first closure in December….
Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Viasat (NASDAQ: VSAT) launched a new cooperation on Wednesday to help 10 million people gain access to the internet globally, including 5 million in Africa. Global communications giant Viasat is the first satellite partner to collaborate with Microsoft’s Airband Initiative. Together, the two organizations will deepen Airband’s work in the…
Grand Africa Initiative (GAIN) in collaboration with Africa Export-Import Bank (AFREXIMBANK) trained young African Entrepreneurs from across Africa. The program GAIN-AFREXIMBANK Masterclass on Entrepreneurship and Intra-Africa Trade is an empowerment program. This is part of the Africa Export-Import Bank’s effort to increase participation of African young entrepreneurs in cross border trade and expand trading activity…
Startups from Africa are encouraged to apply for the Making More Health Business Accelerator, a structured program for business growth aimed at social entrepreneurs with ground-breaking ideas in the healthcare industry. Since 2011, Boehringer Ingelheim, a family-owned global leader and research-driven pharmaceutical firm, and Ashoka, one of the world’s largest networks of social entrepreneurs, have…
The Africa Innovation Platform, a collection of mentorship, education, and training initiatives developed to assist the growth of Africa’s burgeoning technology ecosystem, was officially unveiled today by Qualcomm Incorporated. Through the platform, Qualcomm Technologies Inc. engineers and its cutting-edge capabilities suite for mobile platforms and technologies, including 4G, 5G, IoT, AI, and machine learning, will…
Visa, a global payments company, has pledged to invest $1 billion in Africa over the next five years. The announcement was made at the ongoing US-Africa Business Forum in Washington, DC, alongside the US-Africa Leaders’ Summit. Visa has ten African offices from which it accepts payments in all 54 countries. The financial services provider says…
MyHealth Africa, a Kenya-based healthtech startup, has raised $1 million in seed funding to expand its presence in Africa. The round was led by GIIG Africa Fund, with participation from Samurai Incubate, a family office, and existing investors. The funding comes after the startup was named the Top HealthTech Startup in Africa by the Global…
Truecaller recently introduced a Family Plan, which allows up to five users to use its premium services with a single subscription. Truecaller will allow up to five family members to access its features such as checking profile views and advanced spam blocking on a single user account for Rs. 132 for a monthly membership or…
It’s officially the holiday season, and for many of us, that means the countdown to “presents o’clock” – AKA December 25th is on. Real-life shops get crazy during the festive season, seeing more and more people choosing to hop online, point, click and proceed to checkout. Shopping online is also much easier now that more…
JuicyScore, a global leader in antifraud and risk management technologies for online businesses, recently expanded its global footprint to Nigeria, appointing Lawrence Osayemi as Regional Director of Sales and Business Development. Lawrence is a professional risk and fraud management expert and sales guru with a track record of success in the financial and nonfinancial services…
MEST, the Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology, has opened applications for the 2024 cohort of the MEST training programme, a 12-month initiative based in Accra that aims to provide young people from across Africa with commercial skills in technology and entrepreneurship. The Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST) is a seed fund, incubator, and training…
Grand Africa Initiative (GAIN) on the 28th and 29th October, 2022 held the third edition of her annual youth summit tagged GAIN Youth Summit 2022. This pan-African summit had Prof Benedict O. Oramah, The President and Chairman, Board of Directors, African Export-Import Bank, Egypt as the keynote Speaker who was ably represented by The Afreximbank’s Regional…
Twitter CEO Elon Musk continues to want to take the micro out of microblogging, pledging to increase the platform’s character limit once more. The proposed increase this time is from 280 to 4000, which is more than 14 times the current cutoff. Over the weekend, Musk revealed his latest Twitter plans via his personal account….
The total amount of data created and consumed globally is projected to grow to more than 180 zettabytes by 2025, almost three times the 64 zettabytes of 2020. This makes data the cornerstone of any successful business in a digitally-transformed world. Several trends will help guide organisations on their path to becoming more data-driven. “Increasingly, data science…
E-hailing platforms have become significantly popular because of their convenience and reduced pressure to own a car in today’s tough economic times. As we head into the festive season, e-hailing apps will see an increased demand for rides as people shop and head to various holiday destinations. To ensure that people have a pleasant experience…
By supporting real-time decision-making, combining edge computing with digital signage improves the customer experience and boosts sales. Although in-store purchases continue to make up the bulk of retail sales, a tightening economic situation means it’s essential to maximise every opportunity to make a sale once a customer reaches your door. We also know that brick…
Small Foundation and Village Capital have chosen 20 African entrepreneur support organizations (ESOs) that work with rural-impacting businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa to participate in the Rural Impacting Entrepreneurship research project, which aims to identify gaps and solutions to deepen impact within the rural business ecosystem and develop a thriving support community. Small Foundation and Village…
Owoafara, a Nigerian fintech startup that provides digital banking to help the world’s unbanked population gain access to financial products and services, has received funding from gender lens investment firm ShEquity. Owoafara, founded by Tale Alimi, provides financial solutions such as payments, credits, savings, health insurance, and pensions on a single platform. Member businesses are…
Sophos, a global leader in innovating and delivering cybersecurity as a service, has announced the appointment of Gerard Allison as its Senior Vice President of Sales for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). “We are very excited Gerard joined Sophos to lead and help accelerate our growth efforts in EMEA, one of the largest regions for the company. Gerard has a…
Is artificial intelligence taking over the world? The latest “groundbreaking” AI chat bot, trained to interact with advanced users, is certainly causing quite a stir in the technology world. The software, known as ChatGPT and developed by the company OpenAI, is designed to generate human-like responses to a wide range of inputs using algorithms. “ChatGPT…
Africa is undergoing a digital revolution at the rate at which various countries keep harnessing emerging technology. More people now have better internet access, making it easier for the younger generation to become tech-savvy. But the continent will continue to lag if we overlook challenges such as outdated policies and weak technology infrastructure. Decision-makers and…
In recent years, Africa has witnessed a significant increase in technological advancements, with a burgeoning tech ecosystem gaining wide acceptance across the continent. In the midst of this rapid growth, cybersecurity is seen as a critical concern which needs expertise and innovation to protect digital infrastructure and data integrity. Here, we shine a spotlight on…
Over the past five years, Africa’s fintech sector has rapidly grown and transformed financial services through mobile payments, digital banking, and other lending platforms. This transformation is due to the high internet penetration of Africa’s young demographics. Customers expect on-the-go financial tools that are as convenient and intuitive as their favourite social media apps. Fintech…
To increase access to digital and fundamental skills, Microsoft has announced the beginning of a global skilling program in Kenya. As a stepping stone to the success of Microsoft’s Global Skills Initiative, which was launched in June 2020 and has since equipped over 80 million people worldwide with digital skills, the Skills for Jobs Learning…
InfraCo Africa, a division of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), has committed US$2 million to expanding the product line of Mobility for Africa, a provider of solar-powered battery charging systems and cargo-carrying e-tricycles for underserved communities in rural Zimbabwe. Shantha Bloemen, the director and chief executive officer of Mobility for Africa, said, “We are…
The 2022 MEST Africa Challenge winner, Senegalese B2B marketplace Kwely, received US$50,000 in equity capital as well as the title of champion. MEST is a pan-African software and entrepreneurship training program, seed fund, and incubator that supports the establishment of technology firms all over the continent. It was established in Ghana in 2008 by serial…