Author: Staff Writer
Electric mobility has been the centre of attention globally for a couple of years. The spotlights have often been turned to Tesla, which is revolutionising the automobile industry. But Africa also holds amazing potential when it comes to electric mobility (often simplified by the term “e-mobility”), especially when it comes to electric motorbikes. Indeed, mobility in Africa relies in a big part on 2-wheelers “moto taxis”. Africa hosts an estimated 27 million motorbikes, out of which 80% is estimated to be used for commercial taxi service. And all these motos have the potential to soon be riding on electricity! REM,…
MTN GlobalConnect today announced the appointment of two Managing Director for its operations in Nigeria and Uganda. Juliet Nsubuga will take the lead as Managing Director, of MTN GlobalConnect Uganda, effective 1 April 2023, and Josephine Sarouk will assume the role of Managing Director, MTN GlobalConnect Nigeria, effective 1 March 2023. “I look forward to working closely with our newly appointed business leaders as we continue to build our business in Africa,” shares Frédéric Schepens, MTN GlobalConnect CEO. “We welcome Juliet and Josephine into the MTN GlobalConnect family and look forward to learning from their knowledge and rich experience in…
The Pretoria-based electronics company Etion Create, recently made part of South Africa’s Reunert, has just revealed its new brand identity at the IDEX 2023 exhibition in the United Arab Emirates. It is proudly showing on Stand 08-A29 at IDEX. Etion Create is now a division within the large South African industrial company’s Reunert Applied Electronics Holdings. “It was felt that the name Etion Create is well-known and firmly established in the Middle East, an important market for our defence solutions,” said Tobie van Loggerenberg, executive manager business development. “At the same time, a new identity coupled with a fresh look…
South African business outsourcing company Sigma Connected has announced it has already created hundreds of new jobs as part of its pledge to create 1,000 roles across the country by 2025. The company, which offers customer contact services to the South African financial services, education, telecommunications, insurance, hospitality, and retail sectors, has already created and filled 500 new vacancies over the past six months at its offices in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Pretoria. Over 100 of the new roles have been created through Impact Sourcing, which provides employment opportunities for high potential but disadvantaged people across several communities. David Neale,…
Upgraded security, improved grid integration, and the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI). Those are just some of the trends identified by David Minnis, Huawei Senior Solution Director of Energy Storage Systems (ESS), which are set to shape the smart photovoltaic (PV) space in the coming years. Speaking at the Solar Power Africa 2023 Conference, which took place in Cape Town, Minnis explained that while increased demand for renewable energy sources has resulted in booming growth for the global solar PV industry, Africa still faces several challenges when it comes to meeting its immense potential. According to the International Energy…
Startup accelerator and early-stage investor Startup Wise Guys has closed the first €25 million or R483 million of €45 million or R869 million that will be used across its various geographies and vertical-focused funds to support its new strategy focused on global markets that remain underserved by capital investment. With the funds, it will invest in a minimum of 200 startups from mostly across Europe and Africa in 2023/24, after making 120 investments in 2022. In 2022, the global economy faced challenges that resulted in a 35% drop in global venture investment compared to the previous year. Europe experienced a…
Axiz today kicked off its SME Connect-to-Connect programme at the Copperleaf Golf Estate in Centurion. With this programme, Axiz is providing a platform for SMEs in the ICT space to share and showcase their capabilities and experiences with leading vendors in the sector. “As the custodian of a superior technology-distribution network, we know that the value of a network increases exponentially with each new node,” says Craig Brunsden, CEO of Axiz. “By reappropriating Metcalfe’s principle for the network between SMEs and vendors, our belief is that connecting more stakeholders through our relationships and through our business and industry network, it will expand…
As impact investing gains momentum worldwide, Intellidex has launched the inaugural Africa Impact Investment Awards. The project is being conducted in partnership with the African Venture Philanthropy Alliance, ANDE West Africa, Impact Investing Ghana, Impact Investing South Africa, the national advisory boards for impacting investing of both Nigeria and Zambia, and the Southern African Venture Capital and Private Equity Association. “We’re introducing the awards to recognise organisations across Africa that are doing valuable work at the intersection of finance and social development,” says Dr Graunt Kruger, managing director of Intellidex. “If we want transformation, we need to encourage investment in transformational businesses,…
The world’s largest student accommodation platform, Student.com has increased its stake in South African tech start-up, DigsConnect. Student.com initially invested an undisclosed amount in mid 2022 and founder CEO Luke Nolan says Africa offers exciting growth avenues for Student.com. “Finding student accommodation can be a confusing and frustrating process, especially if you’re searching in another country or in another language,” says Student.com founder and CEO Luke Nolan. “We have found that DigsConnect aligns with our vision of making student properties immediately accessible in a variety of cities at the touch of a button. The relationship between the two companies has…
Naked — the South African artificial intelligence (AI)-driven insurtech company that offers a new, fully digital way for consumers to insure their cars, homes, and valuables — has announced that it has raised $17 million or R306 million in Series B Funding. International Finance Corporation (IFC) – a member of the World Bank Group and the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets – is leading the funding round. The German Development Finance Institution (DEG), and Naked’s original investors, Yellowwoods and Hollard are also taking part in the funding round. IFC and DEG are both…