The African Development Bank has approved two grants for research that will increase African women’s access to a range of digital financial services including loans and micro-insurance. The grants, for $1 million and $300,000 respectively, will be disbursed through the Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Facility, a blended finance vehicle supported by…
Author: Oluwasegun Olukotun
In commemoration of International Women’s Day, the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Basketball Africa League (BAL) today announced the launch of several initiatives to advance gender equality and economic inclusion across Africa. The initiatives build on the NBA family’s collective efforts to advance equality and social justice in the…
Newly inaugurated President of the Nigeria Gas Association (NGA), Ed Ubong, has said there are abundant gas resources in Nigeria to meet the energy demand of over 350 million people and the industrial needs in the West African sub-region “Nigeria, which ranks as the 9th largest gas reserve in the…
MTN Group today announced the appointment of Chika Ekeji as Executive: Strategy and Transformation as part of plans to further bolster management capacity to accelerate the Group’s strategic ambitions. Effective 15 March 2021, Chika joins Africa’s leading mobile operator from management consultancy McKinsey & Company in Nigeria, where he led…
Ghana is preparing to become sub-Saharan Africa’s first LNG importer, with the terminal at the port of Tema set to receive its maiden cargo in the coming weeks. But that is set to change as Ghana gears up to begin LNG imports. “The terminal at Tema will be mechanically ready…
While women entrepreneurs are making strides to overcome gender-related biases and advance their businesses in South Africa, they still face several structural and social obstacles, many of which have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. This is according to the South African results of the latest Mastercard Index of Women…
In celebration of International Women’s Day, and to mark the rollout of the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) Guarantee for Growth program, the African Development Bank and the African Guarantee Fund are showcasing the first beneficiaries of the AFAWA Guarantee for Growth program – an innovation aiming…
Microsoft has launched its latest Garage App, Group Transcribe, which provides real-time transcription and translation for in-person meetings and conversations. Powered by cutting-edge speech and language technology and with a unique multi-device audio input format, the project enables highly accurate speaker attribution so conversation participants can see who said what…
Moderna is teaming up with IBM to explore technologies, including artificial intelligence, blockchain, and hybrid cloud, that could help support smarter COVID-19 vaccine management. Central to the effort will be a pilot of open, standardized, technology-enabled vaccine distribution approaches aimed to improve supply chain visibility and foster near real-time tracking…
The African Development Bank Group today signed a $400,000 grant agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria to strengthen securities market regulation and broaden market instruments. The funds will go towards strengthening the risk-based supervision framework, regulation of derivatives and green bonds, and build capacity for green finance.…
Vodacom, Vodafone’s principle African brand in partnership with Google South Africa is tackling the digital divide in Limpopo South Africa. Through the partnership, hundreds of people in 11 villages across the Limpopo province in South Africa will have access to mobile services through the donation of free Android smartphones. This…
Netflix announced on Thursday that it is committing the first $5 million of its new $20 million Netflix Fund for Creative Equity towards programs that help identify, train and provide work placements for up-and-coming women talent around the world. Bela Bajaria, Head of Global TV made this known on the…
YouTube CEO, Susan Wojcicki, has said that the company will consider reinstating Donald Trump’s channel on the internet video platform after it decides that the risk of violence is minimal. YouTube took drastic actions on the former US President’s YouTube channel on Jan 12, when it decided that Trump’s channel…
One of Egypt’s top banks, Suez Canal Bank, has appointed Temenos, one of the world’s leaders in banking software to reimagine the digital customer experience for its retail, corporate and Islamic banking service. Temenos’ digital banking platform will help Suez Canal Bank drive sustainable growth and financial inclusion in a…
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has unveiled a new e-hailing taxi scheme to redefine road transportation in the State. The Governor, on Thursday, signed a partnership agreement with CIG Motors Company Limited for the take-off of the “Lagos Ride” scheme with a pilot fleet of 1,000 units of brand…
South African payments facilitator and the financial services arm of the Hello Group, Hellopay, and Mastercard today announced a partnership to roll out SoftPOS – a contactless acceptance solution that turns any NFC-enabled Android device into a physical point of sale. This move is expected to boost digital payment acceptance…
WhatsApp has enabled voice and video calls via its desktop app. For now, the new feature will be limited to one-to-one calls initially but the Facebook-owned messaging app will expand it down the line to include group calls. The Desktop calls in terms of display work in both portrait and…
Universal Music Group (UMG), the world’s leading music-based entertainment company has elevated Ethiopia Habtemariam, who has served as President of Motown since 2014 to Chairman and CEO of the label, reporting directly to UMG Chairman and CEO Sir Lucian Grainge. In connection with Habtemariam’s promotion, Motown will have greater creative…
The African Development Bank’s Board of Directors on Wednesday approved $27.2 million in loan financing for the design, construction, and operation of a 200 MW photovoltaic solar power plant at Kom Ombo, in Upper Egypt on the river Nile. The project is expected to lower electricity costs for businesses and…
First City Monument Bank (FCMB) has introduced paperless transactions within the Bank’s over 200 branches in Nigeria. This innovation now allows customers of the bank to carry out an array of transactions with just their fingerprints and Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs). This also implies that customers will no longer need…