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Digital Inclusion

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Latest Content tagged with Digital Inclusion
Hot startup of the month: South Africa's Botlhale AI
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Connecting Africa's hot startup this month is South Africa's Botlhale AI, which creates conversational AI tools for African languages while helping businesses engage customers in languages they understand and trust.
Omdia View: January 2024
  • Guest Perspectives
Highlights in January 2024 in the Middle East and Africa included a $200 million fintech deal between MTN and Mastercard as well as 5G network trials by Telecom Egypt – that and more in this month's Omdia View.
SA's Teraco to power data centers with 120MW solar plant
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Teraco, the vendor-neutral data center provider, is planning the construction of a 120 megawatt (MW) utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) energy facility in the Free State province of South Africa.
SA's iKhokha invests $105M in small businesses
  • Matshepo Sehloho
South African fintech firm iKhokha has distributed more than 2 billion South African rands (US$105 million) in working capital to its small and midsized enterprise (SME) customer base.
Mastercard appoints new West Africa head
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Global payments firm Mastercard has appointed Folasade Femi-Lawal as its new country manager and area business head for West Africa.
IHS Cameroon to build tower kiosks in rural areas
  • Matshepo Sehloho
IHS Cameroon has committed to provide connectivity and digital services to rural communities in the Northwest and Southwest of Cameroon through its 'Tower Kiosk' initiative.
Satellite key for African connectivity in 2024 – Hughes
  • Paula Gilbert
Vaibhav Magow, VP of the international division at Hughes Network Systems, spoke to Connecting Africa about the satellite trends Africa can expect in 2024 and how service providers aim to connect more underserved regions.
Starlink cuts off users in South Africa
  • Matshepo Sehloho
SpaceX's satellite Internet service, Starlink, has cut off hundreds of South African users over alleged trademark and copyright violations.
SA mobile data prices likely to increase – Africa Analysis
  • Paula Gilbert
South Africa has seen major reductions in mobile data prices over the past two decades, but ICT market research and analysis firm Africa Analysis warns that local prices will likely increase in the short-to-medium term.
Safaricom users in Ethiopia tick up
  • Paula Gilbert
Kenyan-headquartered Safaricom now has 9 million mobile customers in Ethiopia and just over 3 million M-Pesa users after a year of operating in the Horn of Africa nation.
Oracle to open cloud facility in Kenya
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Tech company Oracle has announced that it will establish a public cloud region in Kenya's capital city of Nairobi, its second cloud region in Africa.
Four African cloud startups to watch in 2024
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Connecting Africa has compiled a list of four cloud-powered startups that have been making an impact on the lives of the communities they serve and are worth watching in 2024.
Cassava Tech Talks Ep. 5: Harnessing the power of data centers
  • Paula Gilbert
In the latest Cassava Tech Talks podcast we discuss how African businesses can harness the power of data centers and the importance of data residency. Guests are Africa Data Centres CEO Tesh Durvasula and Dan Thompson, principal research analyst at S&P Global Market Intelligence. #sponsored
Eutelsat OneWeb signs satellite deal with Paratus South Africa
  • Paula Gilbert
Satellite operator Eutelsat OneWeb has announced a deal with specialist connectivity provider Paratus South Africa to enhance Paratus' connectivity offering in South Africa and provide satellite connectivity to more rural areas.
Vodafone, Microsoft partner to move M-Pesa to the cloud
  • Paula Gilbert
Vodafone and Microsoft have announced a $1.5 billion, ten-year strategic partnership across Europe and Africa, which includes housing mobile money platform M-Pesa on Azure and enabling generative AI services.
Telecom Egypt, Zain to build digital corridor
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Telecom Egypt and Zain Omantel International (ZOI) have partnered to establish a new digital corridor connecting the Mediterranean to the Arabian Sea and Arabian Gulf.
Togocom lands $60M IFC loan
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Togocom signed a financing agreement with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) for around US$60 million towards upgrading its infrastructure and expanding its 4G network.
Bolt Kenya adds feature to stop offline trips
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Ride-sharing platform Bolt in Kenya has introduced a new feature on its app called 'Driver Asked to Pay Off-the-App' to discourage riders from taking trips offline and paying off the app.
Algerian telco rivals agree to share infrastructure
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Algerian operators Algérie Télécom (AT) and Ooredoo Algeria have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to exchange ideas on innovative services and share infrastructure.
SA's RedAcademy connects young people to IT jobs
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Connecting Africa sat down with SA-based RedAcademy to find out more about the skills and experiential learning hub that specializes in teaching coding and technology skills inside a live software environment.
Hot startup of the month: Nigeria's Enricher
  • Matshepo Sehloho
Connecting Africa's hot startup is Nigerian Enricher, a halal wealth management platform that enables individuals and corporates to grow their wealth while adhering to the principles of Sharia law.
Cassava Tech Talks Ep. 4: More than mobile money
  • Paula Gilbert
In the latest Cassava Tech Talks podcast we discuss financial inclusion in Africa and how the ecosystem is evolving beyond just mobile money. Guests are Darlington T Mandivenga, CEO of Sasai, and Kalvin Bahai, principal economist at GSMA Intelligence. #sponsored
Qualcomm launches 2024 Africa startup mentorship program
  • Paula Gilbert
Qualcomm Technologies has completed the first year of its Make in Africa Startup Mentorship Program and is opening applications for 2024, adding on new features like intellectual property rights training and a patent filing incentive fund.
Onafriq aims to create digital pathways for Africa
  • Matshepo Sehloho
African fintech platform Onafriq believes its on a journey to become an omnichannel, multichannel digital platform for African consumers to connect to the rest of the world.
Intelsat, AMN expand rural coverage across Africa
  • Paula Gilbert
Satellite operator Intelsat and off-grid tower provider Africa Mobile Networks (AMN) have now deployed more than 3,000 rural base satellite antennas across Africa, with plans for more deployments in 2024.


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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.

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Google opens applications for its Africa startup accelerator

Google has officially opened applications for its Google for Startups Accelerator Africa program's eighth cohort.

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Africa Tech Festival 2024
November 11-14, 2024
Cape Town, South Africa
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Africa Tech Perspectives

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Omdia View: February 2024

By Omdia Analysts

Highlights in February 2024 in the Middle East and Africa included 5G launches in Senegal and 5G trials in Egypt as well as Kenya's first 5G MVNO. Airtel also launched a new wholesale connectivity business while MTN and Huawei are planning a joint Innovation Technology Lab in South Africa – that and more in this month's Omdia View.

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