For the past five years, the Norrsken Foundation in Sweden has helped social tech entrepreneurs in Africa and elsewhere solve societal and environmental challenges by investing financially in their ideas. In one of its most recent ventures, the nonprofit is constructing the largest startup hub in East Africa in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital. The Norrsken House…
According to Bloomberg, the CDC Group, the United Kingdom’s development-finance arm, will provide a $100 million credit facility to First Bank of Nigeria Ltd. to help support women-owned businesses and small businesses in Africa’s largest economy. The funding will “address the challenge of limited access to capital faced by the country’s under-banked and underserved groups,”…
BlackPay, a South African fintech startup, describes itself as a “no-frills, non-banking” multi-product platform that promotes financial inclusion for economically active but marginalized communities. BlackPay, founded in 2017, operates a multi-product and multi-party platform that simplifies origination services in lending products and financial services. Using its developed alternative credit scoring technology, the startup has created…
MTN, the mobile telecommunications company, has begun a rebranding effort. As part of the rebranding effort, the telco unveiled a new logo ahead of an official event scheduled for February 2022. Furthermore, the company stated that it is transitioning from a telecommunications company to a technology company. The new logo, which will replace MTN’s corporate…
“Binance,” one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges,” is reportedly investing $200 million in the company as it prepares to go public via a special purpose acquisition company, according to Forbes (SPAC). Binance’s investment will replace half of the $400 million in private placement commitments made by Forbes and Magnum Opus Acquisition Limited, the world’s…
Working from home is enjoyable and relaxing. However, it becomes a nightmare when you have a slew of tasks to complete and you’re devoting more than eight hours of your day to doing them all. Fortunately, some readily available technological upgrades can increase your productivity and allow you to complete more work in less time….
Bayo Adekanmbi has been appointed to lead Airtel Africa’s strategy, partnership, and sustainability roadmap. The position is based at the company’s headquarters in the United Kingdom, and Adekanmbi is now a member of the executive committee and reports directly to the CEO, Segun Ogunsanya. Adekanmbi will be “responsible for leading strategic business-wide initiatives, including innovation,…
According to a recent TIME article, Meta-owned Facebook has come under fire for its treatment of African content moderators. TIME revealed that Sama, the company in charge of Facebook’s Sub-Saharan Africa content moderation since 2019, was subjecting content moderators in Nairobi to poor pay and working conditions. Sama also provides data labeling services to tech…
A Nigerian rights group has asked the High Court to compel the government to publish an agreement with Twitter that resulted in the social media company’s services being restored last month after a six-month ban. Last June, Nigeria suspended Twitter after the US company removed a post by President Muhammadu Buhari threatening to punish regional…
Google honors Valentine’s Day with an interactive 3D Doodle featuring two hamsters expressing affection for each other. Users must solve the puzzle in order for the hamsters in the Doodle to clear their path for the meeting. The interactive Google Doodle can be shared online with your loved ones to commemorate Valentine’s Day 2022. It…
Malawi’s government and the African Development Fund (ADF) have agreed to a $14.2 million grant to improve infrastructure and create a more efficient and transparent digital payment system. The Bank Group’s concessional financing window, ADF, will provide funding for the December-approved Support for Digitalization, Financial Inclusion, and Competitiveness (DFIC) project. “The DFIC project is aligned…
South Africa has asked a court to fine Huawei Technologies’ local unit for violating hiring rules and to order the company to change its practices, the labor department announced on Friday. According to the department, approximately 90 percent of the company’s employees were foreign nationals, in violation of “employment equity” regulations that impose a 40…
LAGOS, Nigeria, February 10th, 2022 – Today, Acronis, the global leader in cyber protection announced the availability of a new Acronis Cyber Cloud Data Center in Lagos, Nigeria. The new data center, one of the 111 new data centers being deployed by the company, gives service provider partners access to a full range of cyber protection…
In yet another ambitious move to improve the aesthetics of Lagos, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the government of Lagos, has rolled out 1000 new cars to kick-start Lagos Ride, a government-backed ride-hailing service. The new Lagride in Lagos State, 1000 more to join soon. The goal is 5000 taxis. This is commendable ? pic.twitter.com/wHEISunKP9 — OTUNBA ?? (@ManLikeIcey) February 8, 2022 Some…
AVEVA, a global leader in industrial software that drives digital transformation and sustainability, has announced its participation in the Egypt Petroleum Show (EGYPS) 2022, which will be held from February 14-16, 2022 at the Egypt International Exhibition in Cairo. AVEVA will demonstrate its broad portfolio of cutting-edge solutions in Value Chain Optimization and PEMS (Predictive…
The US government is committed to supporting programs that promote STEM education and give students opportunities to contribute to Nigeria’s long-term and inclusive economic prosperity. On Saturday, the United States Consulate General in Lagos hosted Africa’s first drone soccer competition in collaboration with the Global Air Drone Academy and the Lagos State Ministry of Education….
Pius Ang’asa has been named Country Manager for Kenya by Nokia. He will serve as the primary interface with local authorities and the government, and he will be in charge of establishing and leading the Country Sales Committee (CSC) to grow Nokia’s business in the country across all customer segments. “Kenya is a key market…
Adapting Global Products to Local Needs and Preferences | by: Oluwadamilola Ojo In the dynamic and eclectic setting of African Market, the success of every Product Manager lies on how they embrace the needs and preference of local consumers. As a Senior Products Manager at Kromium Health, I stand at the corridor of this challenge building resilient…
The Kigali International Financial Centre (KIFC) has announced the establishment of Africa’s first and only Fintech Fund, with a capitalization of $50 million. The fund, which is backed by MyGrowthFund Venture Partners, will focus on African fintech startups with proven technology. With the establishment of the fund in KIFC, African investments in the fintech sector…
Meta’s plan to discontinue its low-cost Express Wi-Fi internet, which was launched five years ago to drive connectivity in underserved regions, has had the greatest impact on countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Meta (formerly Facebook) quietly issued this notice, stating that the program will be phased out later this year. However, in countries such as Kenya,…
The African Coding Network is now accepting applications for its professional certificate programs, which will begin in 2022 in collaboration with Grow with Google and Facebook (Meta) Blueprint. The professional certificate programs last 3-6 months and are entirely online. You can learn from anywhere, at your own pace, with assistance from the African Coding Network…
The education technology space has reached new heights with the release of the Afrilearn Mobile App, which is now freely available to Primary and Secondary School students across Nigeria and beyond. This was stated in a statement issued by Afrilearn on Wednesday, February 3, 2022. Afrilearn, founded in 2019, provides free, fun, and world-class education…
Former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan launched a new national identity project in August 2014. The new e-ID card was billed as the “super app” of civil registers and traditional ID cards, combining digitally verifiable identification with the ability to make electronic payments and even withdraw cash from ATMs. To cut a long story short, it…
Facebook’s parent company, Meta, reported a bleak mix of a larger-than-expected drop in profit, a drop in users, and threats to its ad business on Wednesday, sending shares down 22 percent in after-hours trading. Already, jittery markets have punished pandemic-era darlings such as Netflix for disappointing results, and Meta has had a taste of that…
Following their selection as winners of the Techne Corporate Innovation Programme, four Egyptian startups have been awarded a total of US$40,000 in cash prizes. Techne, a network of initiatives that supports tech and tech-enabled startup ecosystems throughout the Mediterranean region, launched its Corporate Innovation Programme in November, enrolling over 300 startups across four tracks: CleanTech,…
Co-Creation Hub (CcHub), a Lagos-based hub, accelerator, and investor that has recently expanded across Africa, has chosen three Namibian startups to participate in the Seedr accelerator it is running in collaboration with local partner Startup Namibia. CcHub has been on an expansion spree in recent years (see here), and now claims to be Africa’s “largest…
Stitch, a South African API fintech startup, is hosting a “startup showcase” in collaboration with Paystack and Disrupt Africa to provide an opportunity for early-stage fintechs from across the continent to share their solutions with local and global investors and access support. The Stitch API, which is currently available in South Africa and Nigeria, enables…
Over the course of a record-breaking 2021, investment into the African tech startup ecosystem nearly tripled, with total funding passing the US$2 billion mark for the first time. This is according to the seventh edition of the annual African Tech Startups Funding Report, which was released by startup news and research portal Disrupt Africa as…
Six more African startups have been confirmed as participants in the renowned Silicon Valley-based Y Combinator accelerator’s W22 batch, bringing the total to ten. Between now and March, the W22 batch of the Y Combinator program, which has played a role in the early days of companies such as Airbnb, Coinbase, and Dropbox, will take…
The Sandbox, Animoca Brands’ metaverse subsidiary, has committed a $50 million fund to venture capital firm Brinc as part of a new program seeking to invest in and mentor startups building beyond the platform’s Open Metaverse. Mentorship, education, and development support for startups will be a major component of the accelerator, as will access to…