Written by Michael Egbejule The Centre for Global Eco-Innovation University of Benin (CGE-Nigeria) has stressed the need for Nigerians to embrace new strategies, especially anaerobic digestion (AD) technology for waste management to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It stated this at the weekend during a RECIRCULATE stakeholders’engagement it organised for secondary school students with…
Written by Yinka Okeowo Focussed on catalysing dramatic change via disruptive tech investments in emerging markets, the Global Innovation Initiative Group (GIIG), has announced the launch of a unique profit and purpose fund aimed at investing in early-stage tech innovation startups across Africa. The GIIG Africa Fund, a Curaçao-based private investment fund, will invest annually in the…
The medical wire business within Sandvik was looking to expand operations in the US, but the pandemic hindered our search for a new site. So, they did it entirely virtual instead. Biotech is booming right now, and many companies are looking to expand into new locations and markets. Certainly, this was the case for Sandvik…
Written by Joan Aimuengheuwa Focused on metamorphosing sustainable and resilient changes in the African tech ecosystem, Google for Africa plans to develop an environment where the internet would be more beneficial to individuals, businesses, and organisations in Africa. The ultimate goal is to keep unlocking the benefits of the digital economy globally, while simultaneously accelerating…
The winners of the inaugural US$1.5 million Heifer International AYuTe Africa Challenge were announced today: Nnaemeka Ikegwuonu, founder and CEO of ColdHubs, a Nigerian company that provides solar-powered walk-in coolers for smallholder vegetable farmers, and Jehiel Oliver, founder, and CEO of Hello Tractor, a Kenyan company that has become known across Africa as the “Uber…
Written by Luis Monzon South Africa’s Department of Transport announced the implementation of the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) Act, which will introduce a new licence points demerit system geared towards imposing stricter penalties for road rule infringements. It’s estimated that between 15 and 20 million fines a year will be issued countrywide once the new system…
Written by Tage Kene-Okafor Funding startups that help manufacturers and sellers distribute products and merchants access them on a single platform keeps increasing across Africa. Today, Cairo-based B2B e-commerce startup Capiter continues that trend by raising a $33 million Series A round. The investment was co-led by Quona Capital and MSA Capital. Other participating investors include Savola, Shorooq…
Written by Luis Monzon Nedbank South Africa has announced the launch of a series of enhancements to its digital services, including the introduction of a conversational AI-powered chatbot. “In line with its commitment to offer cutting-edge digital banking that adds real value to clients, Nedbank works tirelessly to add new features and services across its…
Glovo, a Spanish on-demand delivery service, has announced that it will invest $60 million over the next 12 months to extend its footprint in Africa, including Ghana and Tunisia. “Our mission is to provide everyone simple access to anything in their city, and our platform is at its best when it is linking users and…
Written by TOM JACKSON The Kenya National Innovation Agency (KeNIA) and Villgro Africa have opened a call for healthcare innovators with the potential to improve optimal health outcomes or make healthcare more, with the best solutions to be awarded cash prizes and access to other resources. The Kenya Healthcare Innovation Programme awardees will be given the opportunity…
Written by Luis Monzon One of South Africa’s big four telcos, Vodacom has announced the installation of new solar-powered sites in Polokwane, Vereeniging, and Bloemfontein as part of its energy and carbon management strategy and commitment to reducing its impact on the environment. Vodacom, in a statement today, says it has invested over R8-million ($564K)…
Written by Matthew Sparkes El Salvador has officially adopted bitcoin as legal tender. Draft legislation may soon lead Panama down the same path, while China, the US and the UK are investigating launching their own cryptocurrencies. Here’s what you need to know. Why are countries adopting bitcoin? President Nayib Bukele hopes bitcoin will alleviate El Salvador’s prickliest…
Written by Matthew Sparkes PayPal has two decades of experience in online payments and manages 403 million user accounts. So, it caused ripples when it announced on 23 August it would allow UK customers to buy and sell four cryptocurrencies: bitcoin prices rose to a three-month high. But will this – and last October’s roll-out in…
Written by Russel Ayugi Alliance Microfinance (AMAS) has signed a grant agreement with Norad, based on an application form submitted in partnership with Norwegian Church Aid, Norwegian tech company Bakken & Bæck, and a leading industrial conglomerate in Ethiopia East African Group. AMAS is the lead partner and grant manager running the project and aims to provide farmers across…
Writteb by Joan Aimuengheuwa Implemented by the Tony Elumelu Foundation, the Women Entrepreneurship for Africa (WE4A) programme is set to improve the business capacity of women-led enterprises, increasing scaling changes globally. The programme is organised by a joint effort from the European Union (EU), the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and the…
Written by Luis Monzon MTN today announced a new mobile money partnership with one of Africa’s leading payments technology companies and unicorn startup, Flutterwave. This partnership will allow businesses integrating Flutterwave in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zambia to receive payments via MTN Mobile Money (MoMo), the South African telecom behemoth said in a…
Written by Luis Monzon A collaborative project in Botswana is getting essential and emergency healthcare products to remote communities quicker than ever before through leveraging unmanned drones. The Drones for Health project sees a partnership between the country’s Ministry of Health and Wellness, the Botswana International University of Science and Technology (BIUST), the United Nations Population…
Written by Yinka Okeowo The #TwitterBan in Nigeria is no news anymore, as the country hits 100 days post-Twitter ban. On Monday, September 13, Nigerians would have witnessed 100 days of #TwitterBan by the Federal Government. The measure taken by the government declaring the platform suspended has been heavily criticized as undermines Nigeria’s corporate existence; a…
Written by Luis Monzon According to an announcement made by South African Health Minister Joe Phaahla, digital vaccination passes will be issued to all eligible vaccinated South Africans in less than a week. The country’s Department of Health says that currently, the digital vaccine certificates are “under development.” According to Mia Malan, editor-in-chief of Bhekisisa Health Journalism…
Written by Luis Monzon Kenya’s job sector took a serious blow last year, having contracted for the first time in over 20 years. Overall, 737,500 jobs were lost as Kenya’s economy shrunk for the first time since 1992 as a result of COVID-19 induced lockdowns and restrictions, reports Business Daily. Kenya Bleeds Jobs in 2020 According…
Written by Luis Monzon Facebook is collaborating with Nigerian companies Big Cabal Media and Comic Republic to launch the #NoFalseNewsZone educational campaign aimed at helping individuals identify fake news and educate them on how to minimise the spread of false information across Nigeria’s internet and otherwise. “We are super excited to be working with Big Cabal Media and Comic…
Written by Manish Singh, Zack Whittaker WhatsApp said on Friday it will give its two billion users the option to encrypt their chat backups to the cloud, taking a significant step to put a lid on one of the tricky ways private communication between individuals on the app can be compromised. The Facebook-owned service has end-to-end encrypted…
Plentywaka, the Toronto-headquartered shared mobility startup which provides hassle-free shared rides on-demand, is making a significant shift in its business today as it announced that it has changed its name to Treepz. The name change which is effective as of now presents an opportunity to align the company name with its Pan-African expansion plan. It…
Written by TOM JACKSON Nigerian auto-tech startup Autochek has expanded to Kenya and Uganda after acquiring the Cheki platforms for each of those countries from ROAM Africa. Autochek aims to build digital solutions that will enhance and enable a seamless and safe automotive commerce experience across Africa, starting with Nigeria and Ghana. It plans to use…
Written by Sarah Perez Twitter today is introducing a new feature that will allow accounts to self-identify as bots by adding a label to their profile. This feature is designed to help people better differentiate between automated accounts — like bots that retweet the news, public service announcements or other updates — from those operated…
Written by Tage Kene-Okafor We like to buy things online ranging from e-commerce stores to subscription-based sites. However, no one enjoys the hassle when you have to always re-log into different sites and stores. I mean, shopping can be a whole lot more fun if a fast logging and checkout system existed across all your favorite online…
The Stories realize the vision that Snap’s Spectacles dreamed Written by Lucas Matney Facebook’s first pair of smart glasses doesn’t feel like much of a Facebook product. You won’t find the Facebook logo emblazoned on them or even its name in small print by the serial code. They aren’t “Facebook Stories” or “Ray-Ban’s Facebook Stories” or…
Written by Victoria Fakiya Emeka was eight years old when he dropped out of primary school. He couldn’t read and write at the time, and his environment was not conducive for learning. “When I was in primary school, I used to think I wasn’t cut out for school. And the fact that I was living…
Written by Yinka Okeowo Mallam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, director general of National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), has referred Digital Media as one of the key enablers of Digital Economy, according to him, awareness is fundamental for the growth and development of any nation. Abdullahi said this while playing host to Colonel Aliyu Yusuf, the commandant of the…
Written by Yinka Okeowo Female representation in senior management and executive roles in companies around the world remains low, however in South Africa it is stagnant. Worse still, women make up a mere 10% of CEOs at the world’s biggest tech firms, so one can only imagine how low the number is in South Africa. This is…