Blogs

Content tagged with Digital Inclusion posted in February 2024

Four AI trends to look out for in 2024

Matshepo Sehloho
2/29/2024

Connecting Africa has compiled a list of four artificial intelligence (AI) trends to look out for on the African continent in 2024.

Intelsat, AMN expand rural connectivity in Madagascar

Paula Gilbert
2/27/2024

Satellite operator Intelsat and Africa Mobile Networks (AMN) are working to connect 500 sites in rural Madagascar, while Intelsat has also announced it will modernize more than 900 sites for Openserve in South Africa.

Paramount+ streaming service to launch in Africa through MultiChoice

Matshepo Sehloho
2/27/2024

Paramount Global Content Distribution has signed a deal that will see its streaming platform Paramount+ launched through the MultiChoice Group in Africa.

Hot startup of the month: South Africa's Botlhale AI

Matshepo Sehloho
2/23/2024

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
2/23/2024

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
2/22/2024

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.

Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire implement ECOWAS free roaming initiative

Matshepo Sehloho
2/20/2024

Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire have successfully implemented the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) free roaming initiative.

Airtel Africa to build second data center in Kenya

Matshepo Sehloho
2/19/2024

Pan-African operator Airtel Africa has announced that its sister data center business, Nxtra, will build its second data center, which is to be located in Kenya.

SA's iKhokha invests $105M in small businesses

Matshepo Sehloho
2/16/2024

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
2/15/2024

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
2/14/2024

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
2/13/2024

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
2/12/2024

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
2/9/2024

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.

Airtel Nigeria expands IHS Nigeria partnership

Matshepo Sehloho
2/8/2024

IHS Towers and Airtel Africa have entered into a partnership for Airtel Nigeria to take over 3,950 tenancies for the next five years.

Safaricom users in Ethiopia tick up

Paula Gilbert
2/7/2024

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.

Mastercard invests $200M into MTN fintech, MoMo offers loans via JUMO

Paula Gilbert
2/6/2024

Mastercard is investing $200 million into MTN Group's fintech business, and MTN's mobile money platform MoMo has partnered with banking tech company JUMO to launch short-term loans in South Africa.

SA's MultiChoice Group rejects Canal+ buyout offer

Matshepo Sehloho
2/5/2024

South Africa's MultiChoice Group has announced that it will not continue talks with French pay-TV company Canal+.

Oracle to open cloud facility in Kenya

Matshepo Sehloho
2/2/2024

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.

France's Canal+ targets acquisition of SA's MultiChoice

Matshepo Sehloho
2/1/2024

French pay-TV company Canal+ has submitted an offer to acquire South African pay-TV and streaming company MultiChoice Group.

Google launches first African cloud region in SA

Paula Gilbert
2/1/2024

Google Cloud has officially launched a new cloud region in Johannesburg, South Africa, its first in Africa.

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South Africa intensifies rollout of EV charging stations

South Africa is intensifying the rollout of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, with state-owned power utility Eskom now joining the framework.

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Airtel Africa unveils $500K fellowship program in Tanzania

Pan-African operator Airtel Africa has launched its 'Airtel Africa Fellowship Program' for undergraduate students at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras in Zanzibar, Tanzania.

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Women in Tech: Spotlight on digital skills with Kreative Campus' Keitesi Aisha

Kreative Campus' operations and finance lead, Keitesi Aisha, talks to Connecting Africa as part of our Women in Tech series about how skills development can make Africa's tech ecosystem more inclusive.

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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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South Africa intensifies rollout of EV charging stations

By Daniel Itai

South Africa is intensifying the rollout of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, with state-owned power utility Eskom now joining the framework.

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Omdia View: August 2024

By Omdia Analysts

August 2024's telecom highlights in the Middle East and Africa included a satellite deal between Eutelsat Group and Bayobab, the sale of MTN Guinea-Bissau to Telecel, and the sale of a 60% stake in Uganda's Utel to Rowad Capital Commercial.

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