News & Views

Content posted in October 2020

MTN sees Q3 boost, steady subscriber growth

Connecting Africa News
10/30/2020

Pan-African telco sees growth in subscriber numbers, with performance lifted by key markets South Africa, Nigeria and Ghana.

Nearly half the world has never used the Internet

Paula Gilbert
10/28/2020

Nearly half of the global adult population has never used the Internet, and the majority live in Africa and South Asia, according to a recent ITU report.

MTN Nigeria, 9Mobile test network sharing

Connecting Africa News
10/27/2020

The Nigerian Communications Commission is encouraging network resource sharing through a national roaming service trial between MTN Nigeria and 9Mobile.

Karl Toriola appointed new MTN Nigeria CEO

Connecting Africa News
10/26/2020

Karl Toriola to take over as CEO of MTN Nigeria, and Ferdi Moolman will return to South Africa to take on role of MTN Group chief risk officer.

New report shows digital gender gap in Ghana, Uganda

Paula Gilbert
10/23/2020

The digital gender gap stands at almost 43% in Uganda and 5.8% in Ghana, according to the World Wide Web Foundation's new Women's Rights Online Report.

AfricaCom Interview: Onica Makwakwa on closing the digital gender gap

Africa Tech Perspectives
10/22/2020

The Alliance for Affordable Internet's head of Africa, Onica Makwakwa, shares her views on how to narrow the digital gender gap and the challenges keeping women offline on the continent.

Hot startup of the month: Nigeria's VNTS

Tom Jackson
10/22/2020

Nigerian startup VNTS manufactures network devices that solve last-mile connectivity and last-inch Wi-Fi signal issues using existing electrical cabling.

COVID-19 hits Ericsson's MEA sales

Paula Gilbert
10/21/2020

Ericsson's third quarter sales in the Middle East and Africa declined 9% year-on-year, due to COVID-19-related macroeconomic uncertainty and delayed investments in the region.

Cell C's financial struggles continue

Paula Gilbert
10/20/2020

South African operator Cell C recorded a net loss after tax of almost R7.6B (US$460M) in the six months to June 2020 and lost 4.5M customers in a year.

AfricaCom Interview: Tunde Fafunwa on how the ACIP is fighting COVID-19

Africa Tech Perspectives
10/19/2020

Tunde Fafunwa from the UN Economic Commission for Africa explains how the Africa Communication and Information Platform (ACIP) is helping Africa's battle against COVID-19.

API marketplace Chenosis is gaining traction

Paula Gilbert
10/19/2020

MTN Group CTIO, Charles Molapisi, shared his ambitious plans for API marketplace Chenosis which has already signed up over 250 developers in just two months.

Safaricom contributed 6% of Kenya's GDP

Paula Gilbert
10/16/2020

Safaricom's 2020 Sustainable Business Report places its overall social impact over the past year at 6% of Kenya's GDP.

Vodacom denies Rain deal is a merger

Paula Gilbert
10/15/2020

Vodacom is confident its agreements with Rain do not constitute a merger and do not contravene the South African Competition Act.

Telkom SA wants Vodacom, Rain spectrum deal scrutinized

Paula Gilbert
10/14/2020

Telkom has approached South Africa's Competition Tribunal to get it to look into spectrum deals between fellow local operators Vodacom and Rain.

MTN Ghana pulls back on dominance court case

Paula Gilbert
10/14/2020

MTN has withdrawn a court case in Ghana related to its market dominance, and is trying to find an amicable resolution with the National Communications Authority.

Telkom SA launching streaming service

Paula Gilbert
10/13/2020

Telkom South Africa is launching a new streaming service called TelkomONE and is looking for original local content.

Vodacom gets a lifeline in Lesotho

Paula Gilbert
10/12/2020

The High Court of Lesotho has granted an interim interdict stopping the Lesotho Communications Authority from revoking Vodacom's unified license in the country.

New MTN Liberia CEO announced

Connecting Africa News
10/12/2020

MTN has announced that Rahul De will take over as CEO of MTN Liberia in November.

Vodacom Lesotho's license revoked

Paula Gilbert
10/9/2020

Vodacom's license in Lesotho has been revoked by the Lesotho Communications Authority for failing to pay a hefty fine, but the telco will fight the decision in court.

Orange commits to keep intra-African data traffic in Africa

Connecting Africa News
10/8/2020

Orange has announced it is creating two new international voice points of presence in Nigeria and plans to open a data clearing house in Africa next year.

Ericsson tapped to modernize Airtel Kenya 4G network

Connecting Africa News
10/8/2020

Airtel Africa selects Swedish equipment maker for network overhaul.

Airtel, Samsung in smartphone financing deal

Paula Gilbert
10/7/2020

Airtel Africa is partnering with Mastercard, Samsung and Asante Financial Services to launch a smartphone financing project as a way to entice users to upgrade from feature phones to smartphones.

COVID-19 exposes West Africa's digital education divide

Paula Gilbert
10/6/2020

Africa Web Services CEO Dr. Momar Dieng told West Africa Com that the COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the education system and highlighted the region's digital divide when it comes to learning.

West Africa Com 2020: EduTech in focus

Connecting Africa Video
10/6/2020

The CEOs of CyberSmart Africa and Africa Web Services discuss EduTech in West Africa

MTN Zambia signs fiber deal with ZTE

Connecting Africa News
10/5/2020

MTN Zambia and ZTE have signed a partnership to construct a cross-border optical transmission network backbone, promising better connectivity and lower data costs for Zambians.

Ericsson, Telenor Connexion power smart water purification solution in East Africa

Connecting Africa News
10/2/2020

Ericsson and Telenor Connexion are bringing connectivity and enabling IoT solutions for micro-brewery and water filtering firm Wayout's water purification micro-factories in East Africa.

SA operators allowed to keep COVID-19 emergency spectrum longer

Paula Gilbert
10/1/2020

South Africa's telecoms regulator says operators don't have to give back temporary 4G and 5G spectrum until March next year.

US-Africa Tech Challenge to take place in 2021

Connecting Africa Video
10/1/2020

David Bray, inaugural director of the GeoTech Center at The Atlantic Council, spoke at East Africa Com, giving more details about the US-Africa Tech Challenge.

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Innovation hub

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VC investment into South African ICT startups rises

Venture capital (VC) investment for startups in South Africa reached $178.8 million in 2023, with investments in the ICT sector almost doubling compared to 2022, according to a new report from SAVCA and VS Nova.

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Connecting Africa Podcast: S3 Ep. 4 – Africa's future as a tech talent powerhouse

In this episode, Utiva CEO Eyitayo Ogunmola returns to the podcast to talk about Africa's opportunity to become a tech talent powerhouse. The discussion covers upskilling African talent for the global job market and how outsourcing local tech professionals can provide opportunities for the youth, with a focus on growing female talent.

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Leadership Lessons: Networking towards career advancement

By Nollie Maoto

Nollie Maoto, First Rand Group's compliance chief data and analytics officer and Africa Tech Festival Leadership Council member, reflects on the importance of networking for career growth especially for African women in data analytics.

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Leadership Lessons: The importance of mentorship for career growth

By Nollie Maoto

Nollie Maoto, First Rand Group's compliance chief data and analytics officer and Africa Tech Festival Leadership Council member, reflects on the importance of mentorship for career growth for African women in data analytics.

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