News & Views

Content posted in July 2021

Research Bites: The impact of robotics on SA's automobile industry

Guest Perspectives
7/30/2021

This article, in collaboration with the African Journal of Science, Technology, Innovation and Development, explores the collaborative work experience of robotics and human workers in the automobile industry in South Africa.

Orange hails 'outstanding' Q2 in Africa and Middle East

Connecting Africa News
7/30/2021

The Africa and Middle East region remains a key growth driver for Orange with a 14.4% increase in Q2 revenue.

Egypt's Internet penetration lags North African peers

Paula Gilbert
7/28/2021

DataReportal's Digital 2021 report on Egypt shows the country's Internet penetration still below 60%, compared to higher numbers for peers like Morocco and Tunisia.

Telkom SA pays big to keep CEO around longer

Paula Gilbert
7/27/2021

Telkom South Africa will pay leaving CEO Sipho Maseko R20 million ($1.34 million) to stick around until mid-2022.

Another delay for Nigeria's SIM registration process

Paula Gilbert
7/26/2021

Nigerians now have until October 31 to link their SIM cards to their National Identification Number, yet another delay in the ongoing process.

Mobile data usage propels Vodacom to Q1 growth

Paula Gilbert
7/23/2021

Vodacom has reported good growth for the first quarter of the new financial year, with group revenue increasing 9% to R24.8 billion (US$1.7 billion).

CEO Sipho Maseko is leaving Telkom SA

Paula Gilbert
7/23/2021

South Africa's third-biggest mobile operator announced that its long-serving Group CEO Sipho Maseko will leave the group in June 2022.

Orange wants to buy 40% stake in Ethio Telecom

Paula Gilbert
7/23/2021

French operator Orange wants to buy a minority stake in Ethio Telecom, according to a tweet from Ethiopia's ambassador to Paris.

SA startup launches Life.file, the 'Dropbox for death'

Paula Gilbert
7/22/2021

A female-founded South African startup and legal technology company has launched a service called Life.file which helps people create, store and share the legal information loved ones will need when they die.

Hot startup of the month: Nigeria's Gradely

Tom Jackson
7/21/2021

Nigerian AI-based ed-tech solution Gradely is an adaptive learning app that recommends video lessons, practice questions and on-demand tutors to help students master challenging subject areas.

SA operators count the cost of recent riots

Paula Gilbert
7/20/2021

South Africa's telecoms operators are still trying to count the cost of last week's riots and looting that impacted many retail outlets and saw telecoms infrastructure damaged across KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng.

Mobile tech helps drive e-commerce in Central Africa

Paula Gilbert
7/19/2021

Mobile technology is a key driver of e-commerce, with potential for significant social and economic benefits for Central Africa, says the UN Economic Commission for Africa and the GSMA.

How riots have disrupted connectivity across South Africa

Connecting Africa News
7/15/2021

At least 113 mobile towers were destroyed in the unrest, prompting ICASA to call it a 'direct attack on the constitutional right of individuals and communities to access news and information.'

Appy days as African app installations soar 41%

Pádraig Belton
7/15/2021

African apps are growing big time, with installations up 41% in 2021's first quarter, and in-app advertising revenue up 167% from Q2 2020.

Djibouti set to follow Ethiopia and liberalize telecoms sector

Paula Gilbert
7/13/2021

Djibouti looks set to follow in the footsteps of its neighbor Ethiopia and open up its telecoms sector to private investment.

Nokia to deploy Africell's new 5G-ready network in Angola

Connecting Africa News
7/12/2021

Nokia and Africell have signed a major deal to deploy a new 5G-ready network in Angola.

Omdia View: June 2021

Guest Perspectives
7/9/2021

This month, Omdia's analysts provide context and analysis about Nigeria's Twitter ban, the privatization of Ethio Telecom and Vivendi's fiber plans in Burkina Faso.

250,000 Kenyans got a Safaricom smartphone on credit

Paula Gilbert
7/8/2021

Around 250,000 customers bought smartphones through Safaricom's 'Lipa Mdogo Mdogo' financing project between its launch last July and the end of March 2021.

Liquid, Facebook partner on fiber project in DRC

Connecting Africa News
7/7/2021

Liquid Intelligent Technologies and Facebook are partnering on a long-haul and metro fiber network in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Safaricom consortium chooses leader for new Ethiopian operation

Paula Gilbert
7/6/2021

The Global Partnership for Ethiopia has appointed Anwar Soussa as the managing director of its new operating company in Ethiopia.

MTN sued for Internet shutdown in Eswatini

Paula Gilbert
7/5/2021

MTN is being taken to court in Eswatini for blocking Internet services to its users after being instructed to do so by the Eswatini Communications Commission.

VEON sells Algeria's Djezzy to FNI

Connecting Africa News
7/2/2021

Operator to offload 45.7% stake in Omnium to Fonds National D'Invesstissement, the Algerian National Investment Fund.

Amid big M&A, 89% more African fintechs than in 2017

Connecting Africa News
7/1/2021

African fintech will be big money after Stripe buys Paystack and WorldRemit nabs Sendwave. Lagos-founded Flutterwave, valued at $1B, eyes a New York IPO.

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Ivorian fintech takes Ecobank Challenge top prize

Pan-African banking group Ecobank has announced Côte d'Ivoire's Daba Finance as the winner of its flagship Ecobank Fintech Challenge 2024, walking away with the US$50,000 grand prize.

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Elon Musk hosts African leaders while Starlink faces challenges in Kenya

Elon Musk's Starlink satellite Internet service is making waves across Africa, while it navigates competitive dynamics with local telecom companies. He recently engaged with various African leaders.

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Africa Tech Perspectives

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Women in Tech: Spotlight on tech talent with RedAcademy's Jessica Hawkey

RedAcademy's founder and MD Jessica Hawkey spoke to Connecting Africa, as part of a Women in Tech series, about how digital skills development programs are growing Africa's tech talent pipeline while creating jobs for the youth.

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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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Guest Perspectives

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US-Kenya tech exchange aims to bridge digital gap, boost STEM education

By Eden Harris

Connecting Africa Correspondent Eden Harris investigates the USAID Edtech Africa initiative which aims to enhance tech education in Kenya and the US and teach the skills needed to capitalize on the opportunities presented by the digital age.