Connecting Africa is part of the Informa Tech Division of Informa PLC

This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them. Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 3099067.

Home Videos Newsletter Signup Advertise With Us About Us

Blogs

Latest Content
South Africa's fiber-to-the-business market continues to grow
  • Paula Gilbert
South Africa's fiber-to-the-business (FTTB) market saw steady growth in the latter part of 2023, on the back of increasing interest in fiber connectivity by local companies, according to new research from Africa Analysis.
Mobile gender gap narrows slightly in sub-Saharan Africa: GSMA
  • Paula Gilbert
Over 200 million women were still not using the mobile Internet in sub-Saharan Africa in 2023, according to the Mobile Gender Gap Report 2024 from the GSMA, but the mobile gender gap did narrow for the first time in five years.
Egypt, Ethiopia impact Vodacom earnings
  • Paula Gilbert
Vodacom Group reported strong revenue growth in the past financial year, boosted by the addition of Vodafone Egypt, but earnings were pulled down by startup costs in Ethiopia, higher finance and energy costs, and inflationary pressure.
Another subsea cable fail impacts East Africa's Internet
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Internet connectivity in several East African countries has been disrupted after two subsea cables connecting Southern and East Africa went down, slowing connections and causing widespread outages.
Botswana could get Starlink services
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Botswana could soon get Starlink services, after the country's President Mokgweetsi Masisi met with SpaceX executives who expressed an interest in obtaining an operating license in the country.
SA online retail topped $3.8B in 2023, growing 29%
  • Paula Gilbert
Online retail sales in South Africa reached R71 billion (US$3.8 billion) in 2023, making up more than 6% of total retail in the country, according to research by World Wide Worx, with online retail sales forecast to make up 10% of the market by the end of 2025.
Egypt to launch its first digital bank
  • Matshepo Sehloho
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has granted Misr Digital Innovation (MDI) preliminary approval to launch the country's first digital bank.
WACS repaired, Mauritius Telecom to build new subsea cable
  • Matshepo Sehloho
The West Africa Cable System (WACS) has been repaired after enduring weeks of disruptions while Mauritius Telecom is partnering with Orange and Reliance Jio to build a new subsea cable connecting Africa, Indian Ocean islands and Asia.
Madica funds three African startups
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Madica, an Africa-focused pre-seed investment program, has selected three African startups as its first portfolio companies to receive investment funding.
MultiChoice chairman steps down
  • Matshepo Sehloho
South African pay-TV and streaming company MultiChoice Group has announced that its chairperson, Imtiaz Patel, will step down immediately.
Hot startup of the month: Kenya's Ketha Africa
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Connecting Africa's hot startup this month is Ketha Africa, a Kenya-based agrifin platform that seeks to automate agriculture ecosystems by connecting the value chain actors and providing a robust network to ensure the security of transactions.
Ethiopia's ECA cuts mobile termination rates
  • Matshepo Sehloho
The Ethiopian Communications Authority (ECA) has cut mobile termination rates (MTR) for the next five years to encourage more competition in the nation's telecommunications industry.
Omdia View: March 2024
  • Guest Perspectives
The failure of four out of the five submarine cables deployed on the western shore of Africa in March 2024 led to a massive Internet outage across several countries. The outage fueled demand for satellite broadband, with SpaceX's Starlink becoming increasingly popular - that and more 5G and streaming news in the latest Omdia View.
Canal+ edges closer to MultiChoice takeover
  • Matshepo Sehloho
French pay-TV company Canal+ is edging closer to fully acquiring South African pay-TV and streaming company MultiChoice Group by increasing its stake to 40.83%.
Paratus express route from Johannesburg to Europe goes live
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Connectivity solutions provider Paratus Group has launched what it calls the fastest 'fiber express route' from Johannesburg, South Africa, to Europe, making use of Google's Equiano undersea cable infrastructure.
Canal+ makes formal offer to buy MultiChoice Group
  • Matshepo Sehloho
French pay-TV company Canal+ has made an all-cash mandatory offer to buy all shares it does not already own of South African pay-TV and streaming company MultiChoice Group for R125 (US$6.70) per share.
Connecting Africa Podcast: S3 Ep. 2 – Nigeria's king of micro-payments
  • Paula Gilbert
On this episode, we speak to Touch and Pay Technologies Co-Founder and Chief Growth Officer Michael Oluwole about how the startup is digitizing and processing micro-transactions in Nigeria's transport sector and his aspirations to grow the service across the continent.
Ghana, Benin to implement free roaming initiative
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Benin and Ghana's free-roaming initiative, aimed at reducing communication costs for their citizens traveling between the two countries, will go into effect on July 1, 2024.
Paymentology looks to strengthen its African roots
  • Paula Gilbert
Global issuer-processor Paymentology's CEO Jeff Parker spoke to Connecting Africa about the company's African roots and aspirations to work with more banks, fintechs and enterprises both on the continent and globally.
Algérie Télécom to distribute Thuraya skyphone
  • Matshepo Sehloho
UAE satellite operator Yahsat has partnered with Algérie Télécom Satellite to become the authorized distributor of Thuraya direct-to-device (D2D) satellite smartphone in Algeria.
MultiChoice chair stays on to conclude Canal+ deal
  • Matshepo Sehloho
South African pay-TV and streaming company MultiChoice Group has extended chairperson Imtiaz Patel's tenure until the ongoing French pay-TV company Canal+ deal is completed.
Hot startup of the month: Nigeria's Tech Herfrica
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Connecting Africa's hot startup is Nigeria's Tech Herfrica, a social impact organization that focuses on the digital and financial inclusion of women and girls in rural areas of Nigeria.


Latest resources

More Information resources

Innovation hub

Story

Leveraging agritech to build resilience against climate change

ICT analyst Francis Hook discusses agritech in Africa and how the agricultural sector is using technology to build resilience against the negative effects of climate change and to ensure food security.

Story

AI startups dominate Qualcomm Make in Africa 2024 shortlist

Qualcomm has announced the shortlisted startups for its Make in Africa 2024 mentorship program, and six out of the ten are related to AI.

More Innovation hub

Latest video

More videos

Partner perspectives

All Partner Perspectives

Sponsored video

More videos

Twitter Feed

Industry announcements

More Industry announcements

Upcoming events

Africa Tech Festival 2024
November 11-14, 2024
Cape Town, South Africa
More Upcoming events

Africa Tech Perspectives

Story

Uber's Marjorie Saint-Lot on inclusion and sustainability in Africa

Uber's Country Manager for Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire, Marjorie Saint-Lot, shares how the ride-hailing company is approaching public-private partnerships, environmentally friendly initiatives and gender inclusion in Africa.

Story

The 100 most influential African leaders in 2023

A new report from Africa Tech Festival and Connecting Africa puts a spotlight on the top 100 African leaders in the telecoms and technology sector in 2023.

Story

Deep dive into East Africa's tech startup ecosystem

New survey reveals a lack of access to investors, reliance on international VCs and global recession trends as the biggest barriers for East African tech startups to access funds.

More Africa Tech perspectives

Guest Perspectives

Story

Leveraging agritech to build resilience against climate change

By Francis Hook

ICT analyst Francis Hook discusses agritech in Africa and how the agricultural sector is using technology to build resilience against the negative effects of climate change and to ensure food security.

Story

Omdia View: March 2024

By Omdia Analysts

The failure of four out of the five submarine cables deployed on the western shore of Africa in March 2024 led to a massive Internet outage across several countries. The outage fueled demand for satellite broadband, with SpaceX's Starlink becoming increasingly popular. That and more 5G and streaming news in the latest Omdia View.

More Guest Perspectives

Like us on Facebook

Newsletter Sign Up

Sign Up
Tag id test-002