Author: Staff Writer

South African women are emerging as trailblazers, entrepreneurs, and innovators in the world of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). They are breaking new ground and helping to inspire the next generation of female scientists, technologists, and leaders. TCL celebrates some of the country’s top female STEM professionals and founders for Women’s Month.  Sarah Collins Sarah Collins developed the Wonderbag in 2008 as a solution to the South African energy shortage forcing blackouts across the country. The Wonderbag is a non-electric slow cooker that uses heat-retention technology to continue cooking once a pan has been removed from the heat source.…

Junaid Munshi has been appointed as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at MAZIV, the parent company of Vumatel and Dark Fibre Africa (DFA). Dietlof Mare, Chief Executive Officer of Vumatel, DFA and MAZIV has announced Junaid Munshi as Group Chief Commercial Officer. Mushi will report to Mare and will be responsible for sustaining the remarkable growth that the company has achieved in the competitive market. Since starting in 2014, Vumatel has connected nearly two million homes in South Africa and provided free, unlimited 1gbps fibre connections to over 700 schools. DFA is the leading provider of enterprise fibre to major telecom…

Dark Fibre Africa (DFA) announced today that it has embarked on a R400 million fibre network infrastructure expansion project to enhance their provision of connectivity hardware. The investment will allow high-speed connectivity to more businesses and contribute to the country’s digital transformation efforts, enabling greater access to online services and improving economic growth. The project has been in trial phase since February and is now being rolled out at scale. The infrastructure upgrade, which will be carried out in three phases over an estimated period of 18 months, will ensure faster delivery of network services to customers and improved network…

Allmed Healthcare Professionals, a healthcare agency, has launched its Pay Slip App, designed to provide convenience and efficiency to its valued staff. The app, available for both Android and iPhone devices, revolutionises the pay slip distribution process, eliminating the need for staff to physically visit the office. The development of the Pay Slip App began in January 2022 with the vision of addressing the challenges staff faced while collecting their pay slips. “We saw that our staff were spending time and money to come to our offices, which led to inefficiencies and unnecessary expenses,” explained Zukisani Sirwaxa, Operations Manager at…

The National Credit Regulator (NCR)  in partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Government of Japan announces the launch of the NCR Onboarding TechSprint, also known as a hackathon. This collaboration seeks to leverage technological advancements to enhance resilience and regulatory compliance of small credit providers in South Africa. The NCR Onboarding TechSprint will bring together inventive software developers and tech companies, along with industry experts to ideate and build innovative digital solutions for the credit industry. The key focus of the TechSprint is centered on addressing the problem statement, “How can we leverage on technological innovation to…

South Africa’s automotive gig economy is seeing an uptick in activity thanks to tech startups like Screan, an innovative digital platform that connects prospective used car buyers and dealerships with second-hand car inspection experts nationwide. According to statistics 3.9 million South Africans already participating in the gig economy providing much needed income and employment for individuals who may face challenges in finding traditional full-time employment, such as those in rural areas or with limited access to formal job markets. While the gig economy is nothing new what has changed is that technology is now enabling more widespread, flexible and on-demand…

Vodacom announces the launch of the first-ever SME Summit, dubbed #SME Thrive Summit.  This free impactful gathering aims to provide invaluable resources, knowledge, and networking opportunities to help small businesses thrive and contribute to the sustained growth of the South African economy. The day will be jampacked with activities to help SMEs grow their businesses. It will feature a series of informative sessions, exhibitions (exhibitors by small business owners), keynote presentations, live master classes as well as panel discussions. “SMEs remain a crucial foundation of the South African economy. We recognise their vital contribution in fostering innovation, creating jobs, and…

The data centre sector is at the heart of an increasingly digital world, and South Africa is witnessing a rush of construction of data centres in an otherwise stagnant economy. However, without diversity and greater representation of women in its workforce, meeting the growing demands of future digital lifestyles will become ever more challenging. It is also incumbent upon data center owners and operators — whose industry is responsible for between 1% and 2% of global energy consumption — to achieve sustainable, green, and efficient ICT operations within their sector. Energy efficiency and gender equality are both clear objectives of…

The go-to-market strategy implemented by 4Sight continues to deliver strong business performance, with the company maintaining its momentum from the previous financial year, again reporting double-digit growth in revenue and profit. Revenue for the six-month period under review increased by 37.1% to reach R451.3 million, compared to R329.2 million for the corresponding period in 2022, with revenue growth experienced from all business clusters. The company’s maiden dividend declared at 2,5c per share is another milestone achieved by the 4Sight team. “Since my appointment as CEO in November 2019, my focus remains driving innovation through product-focused digital transformation, with the support…

From AI hype to uncertain China’s reopening: join the international broker OctaFX as it compiles the 12 most important events that shaped the Forex market in the past year. The past year thoroughly shook the financial markets and had a lasting impact on the Forex market. As OctaFX celebrates its 12th anniversary, the company took this opportunity to compile a list of the most important events in the world of finance, along with their implications for investors and traders in 2023 and 2024. 1. The end of the U.S. Federal Reserve interest rate hike cycle. Starting in March 2022, the…