Author: Staff Writer

While there has been headway toward greater workplace diversity in recent years, there is still much more work to be done. In all businesses, there is undeniably a gender divide, and one of these historically male-dominated industries is technology. In fact, according to a PwC report, women presently hold only 19% of tech-related roles at the world’s top ten technology corporations, compared to men who hold 81 percent. Women have 28% of leadership roles at major worldwide technology organisations, while men hold 72%. Additionally, the report asserts that South Africa might achieve greater economic development by narrowing the gender gap…

In the post-COVID-19 environment, access to digital devices and the internet has become a must-have for school assignments, healthcare, communicating with friends and family, finding a job, or starting a business. Yet many South African families remain unconnected and are thus excluded from the opportunities that connectivity provides. According to The State of ICT in South Africa report, most South Africans cannot afford to connect online due to data costs, and lack of internet-enabled devices. Data costs in South Africa are notoriously high when compared to other emerging markets, with research showing that SA’s data costs are about six times…

Bosch and Amazon Web Services (AWS) aim to improve efficiency and sustainability in the transportation and logistics industry. Their plan is to offer logistics companies and freight forwarders across the globe quick and easy access to digital services through a platform powered by AWS. Going forward, they will offer support for topics ranging from capacity utilisation of commercial vehicle fleets to monitoring goods flows to order processing – all from a single source. To this end, Bosch and AWS have now entered a strategic collaboration. Bosch will be responsible for developing and operating the logistics platform, the core of which…

Online payment gateway PayFast has partnered with consumer finance business, RCS, to launch a new payment method that enables consumers to make purchases using a range of store cards within the RCS stable of finance brands. This includes store card products from brands like Game, Makro, Cape Union Mart, Builders, CTM, and more. The payment method will benefit both merchants, who will be paid upfront in full, and customers, who can pay off their purchases through flexible monthly instalments. “Alternative payment methods provide customers with convenience, enabling them to pay in a way that suits them,” says David Kusel, Head…

Luno, the crypto company founded by two South Africans, now has 10 million customers in over 40 countries. Luno’s latest one million customers were onboarded in just six months. South Africa is one of Luno’s strongest and most active markets. Customer growth in South Africa is almost 40% year-on-year.  Over 40% of the new customers added in the last six months are based in South Africa. On average South Africans deposit R480 when they open their Luno account and tend to hold for 10 months (the longest time of all Luno markets). 82% of new customers who bought crypto purchased…

The heavy rains in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) has caused widespread infrastructure damage and power outages resulting in over 500 MTN sites down in the region. Due to the serious nature of the outages, MTN has activated contingency plans for site restoration, however, access to many of the impacted sites remains a major challenge. “The flooding in the KZN region has caused power outages at many of our sites and while we have battery back-up at many of the sites, these batteries have been depleted,” says Jacqui O’Sullivan, MTN SA’s Executive for Corporate Affairs. Our major challenge right now is gaining access…

MTN announced today that it is investing R749 million into the Western Cape as part of its Modernisation of Network South Africa project (MONZA). MONZA will see an additional 1,350 sites finalised across South Africa, with total 5G coverage set to reach 179 sites in the Western Cape alone. “Our top three targets for the province in 2022 are improving availability of the network, increasing data throughputs, and expanding our 5G footprint,” says Paul Newman, MTN’s General Manager for Western Cape Operations. “With improved access to data changing lives, our aim is to make significant inroads into plugging existing data gaps…

Capitec Bank reported today 84% growth in group headline earnings to R8.4 billion for the 2022 financial year, boosted by digital solutions. The bank said it increased its active client base by 14% to 18.1 million, which translates to nearly 190 000 new clients per month. Active digital banking clients (app, internet banking and USSD) grew by 17% to 10.1 million, of which 6.6 million clients use the banking app, up 25% since 2021. Despite the challenges presented by COVID-19, several hard lockdowns and the civil unrest in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, Capitec’s accessible product offering continues to resonate with all…

Spurred on by young people’s ingenuity, creativity and audacity, digital technology is changing the face of Africa. Africa has been known for its vast natural resources for decades, including diamonds, platinum, cobalt, iron ore, gold, etc. However, the continent will now need to enter the speed race for ICT skills, which have become a critical part of any national digital strategy to promote economic and social development. Moreover, ICT skills are not only related to technology job roles, and they become essential for every aspect of life and work. They have become transversal and crucial to nearly all workers. Tech…

South African pure-play software testing company, Inspired Testing, is on a continent-wide drive to attract, develop and place Africa’s digital talent on the global stage. The company is on a determined path to ensure that African talent plays a meaningful role in the 4th Industrial Revolution and believes that the continent’s digital-savvy talent is the answer to a worldwide software skills shortage. Andre Barnard, Chief People and Culture Officer at Inspired Testing, says, “We are currently headquartered in Cape Town, South Africa and in Edinburgh and London, the United Kingdom, servicing local and global clients from both locations. Our endeavour…