Author: Gugu Lourie

To understand the new smart monitors and other pro devices of tech health, we should look to Silicon Valley and the quantified movement of the latest generation. Apple’s Watch records exercise, tracks our moves throughout the day, assesses the amount of time we are stood up and reminds us to get up and move around if we have been sat for too long – let’s not forget Tim Cook’s “sitting is the new factor” line. Routinely evaluating your risk factors for various medical conditions, screening for cancer and other diseases, and assessing your lifestyle habits helps you stay healthy. It’s…

aYo, a mobile micro-insurance joint venture between MTN and SA’s third-biggest insurer Momentum Metropolitan, seems to be winning the minds, hearts and wallets of existing and new customers. In 2017, Momentum Metropolitan and MTN launched aYo, a micro-insurance joint venture. It began its roll-out in Uganda in January 2017 and has also been deployed in Ghana and Zambia. With insurance penetration low in many countries in the African region, aYo aims to draw on the resources and capabilities that both companies provide to improve this and offer relevant, accessible and easy-to-use insurance solutions to consumers. “Our aYo joint venture recorded…

The hybrid BMW i8 Coupé and the BMW i8 Roadster will make way for a new range of all-electric models. BMW announced on Wednesday that the production of its i8 plug-in hybrid sports car will end next month, nearly six years after it was introduced in a big way to the German automaker’s lineup. This is the final stretch on the way to the “Hall of Fame” of BMW sports cars for the i8. The BMW i8 started its worldwide success story as a unique symbiosis of futuristic design and pioneering technology. The BMW Group’s first plug-in hybrid model paved…

The SA Post Office announced on Wednesday that Coronavirus or COVID-19 delays mail to and from the Far East. he South African Post Office advises its clients that it cannot accept mail destined to the following countries: China Malaysia Indonesia Taiwan South Korea Sri Lanka Vietnam Bangladesh and Kuala Lumpur The Post Office said mail to Hong Kong is not affected. The airline carriers currently used by the SA Post Office for transport to and from these countries are unable to uplift mail due to challenges caused by the Coronavirus pandemic, it added. “As a result, mail from these counties…

MTN, Africa and the Middle East biggest mobile phone operator delivered a strong set of results for the year to end-December 2019, as it signs up more data and mobile money service customers plus mobile telephony subscribers. “We added 18 million customers to reach a total of 251 million and increased our data users by 17 million to 95 million and our fintech customers by 7 million to 35 million,” said Rob Shuter, the CEO of MTN Group. “This growth is central to our belief that everyone deserves the benefits of a modern connected life. We also saw improvements in…

The latest data released today by MTN shows that the number of active Mobile Money (MoMo) users increased by 7,5 million to a total of 35 million, generating a monthly ARPU of $1,15 in the year to end-December 2019. “The value of MoMo transactions in the year was $96,1 billion ()R1.54 trillion), with 9 200 transactions processed per minute (up from 6 800 per minute in 2018),” the company said. The launch of MoMo in South Africa and Afghanistan brings to 16 the number of markets in which we are currently live. “In November we launched MTN Homeland, a mobile remittance…

MTN Group on Wednesday disclosed that its instant messaging platform, Ayoba has reached 2 million monthly active users. To ensure Africa doesn’t miss out on the instant messaging revolution, MTN launched its own instant messaging platform, Ayoba, in March 2019. “Ayoba is now live in 12 markets and has registered two million monthly active users,” said  MTN’s CEO, Rob Shuter. Ayoba was integrated into 12 MTN markets and is also available across multiple markets on the Google Play Store and via the Ayoba website as an OTT offering. MusicTime! is now live in six MTN markets. “We plan to continue…

Rob Shuter, MTN Group CEO, would be stepping down from his role at the end of his contract in March 2021, Africa and the Middle East biggest mobile phone operator announced on Wednesday. “The board thanks Rob for the contribution he has made and continues to make, to MTN. The succession process will be concluded during the year, enabling a seamless handover,” the company said in a statement. MTN group chief technology and IT officer Charles Molapisi has been appointed to the group executive committee and the fixed contract of the group chief operations officer, Jens Schulte-Bockum, has been extended…

Cape Town-based Privacy-by-Design startup that specialises in secure data sharing for businesses, Omnisient, has secured undisclosed pre-Series A funding from Nedbank CIB, Investec and Compass Venture Capital. Omnisient has created intersect.ai, the secure data exchange platform that ensures companies can protect personal information and intellectual property while sharing data internally or externally. Since launch, the intersect.ai platform has gained major traction amongst SA businesses, including leading banks, insurers and retailers. “Consumers now demand speed, ease and convenience in every sphere of life – and businesses can only meet these needs if they have seamless access to data on consumer behaviour,…

According to the Statistics SA’s Living Conditions Survey, approximately half (49,2%) of the adult population in South Africa are living below the upper-bound poverty line and the severity of poverty measures are larger for female-headed households compared to households headed by males. It is this grim reality that has compelled global beauty and personal care company, Avon Justine, to launch a poverty alleviation programme in 2010 known as Thuthukisa, which loosely translates to building together. This initiative is the first of its kind within the company and has, to date, invested approximately R600 000 in two early childhood development projects…