Author: Staff Writer

Small businesses could experience some serious downtime, as result of a forced PHP upgrade that local hosting companies have started to rollout. PHP is a scripting language used to create dynamic webpages – as PHP versions reach their end-of-life, upgrading is encouraged to avoid the potential security risks that arise from vulnerabilities and bugs in older versions. “While upgrading your website PHP is important, it shouldn’t be forced on you. Choosing which PHP works for your business needs, and completing the upgrade, requires a lot of attention,” says head of local hosting company 1-grid.com, Thomas Vollrath. “For already cash-strapped…

Vodacom Central Region, encompassing Free State and Northern Cape, is spending R340 million this financial year on expanding broadband coverage in deep rural areas, upgrading base station sites and network resilience. This investment will drive inclusive digital access across the region, as part of the network’s commitment in ensuring connectivity for all. “Our network rollout programme last year brought internet to many communities in the region for the first time. This financial year we want to build on this achievement by extending broadband coverage and investing in network upgrades to increase access to connectivity. As a result, this can provide…

Following their successful training series on cloud computing, Huawei has run the second and third parts of their 2022 Women in Tech digital skills training for women entrepreneurs with sessions on Leadership Development and Digital Marketing. Says Vanashree Govender, Huawei’s Media Relations and Communications Manager, “Over and above the technical training on digital migration and how Huawei’s cloud computing infrastructure can greatly assist SMEs, the first of these additional sessions was designed to assist the women to look at how they integrate business into a balanced home/work life and the importance of taking care of one’s self. The second illustrated…

The EXPLORE Data Science Academy (EDSA), which started out training young data scientists in South Africa in 2018, has grown in just five years to become ExploreAI (EAI), a global solutions company with international reach across Europe, the USA and Africa. ExploreAI also has a new UK-based CEO Has Dosanjh, who is a seasoned executive in digital transformation and data collaboration applications. Commenting on his appointment at ExploreAI Dosanjh said, “I love taking organisations through complex transformations that involve the use of data, digital assets, and new ways of working. The CEO in me measures success by customer satisfaction and…

The six finalists were chosen following extremely strong competition from over 700 fintechs from 59 countries; Grand Finale to be held on 28 October at the Ecobank Group’S Pan African Centre in Lomé, Togo; Finalists will compete for the top price of $50,000 and admission to the ‘Ecobank Fintech Challenge Fellowship’ program. Ecobank Group, the leading private pan-African banking group, has announced the six finalists for the fifth edition of the Ecobank Fintech Challenge. The finalists come from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Togo. The six fintechs stood out from a highly competitive pool of…

MTN SA today announced the appointment of Wanda Matandela as Chief Commercial Operations Officer (CCOO), effective 1 October 2022. The appointment follows a recent announcement regarding the introduction of the CCOO role to the MTN SA Exco as the company gears up to deliver on its Ambition 2025 strategy. “As we strive to achieve our strategic objectives of driving business growth, transforming customer experience and overhauling employee engagement, it is important that we have the right individuals in place to achieve this. I believe that Wanda’s wealth of experience will have a notable contribution towards enhancing our commercial and operational…

ITHUBA Holdings are on a quest to ensure that South African youth receive the education they deserve and to bridge the social divides that exist in the country. ITHUBA is again awarding qualifying students 100% bursaries for the year 2023, and applications are now open. High achieving learners in Grade 12 and first or second-year students are invited to submit their applications to receive an all-inclusive bursary covering everything from academic tuition, technology equipment, stationery, lodging and even living expenses. The ITHUBA Bursary Programme welcomes applicants looking to pursue their dreams in Commerce, including; Accounting, Management Accounting & Finance and…

JSE-listed technology company Altron has appointed Collin Govender Managing Director of Altron Systems Integration with effect from 1 October 2022. Having joined Altron in June 2017 as Group Executive: Shared Services rising to the position of Group Chief Information Officer, Govender was appointed Managing Director of Altron Karabina in January 2021. Over the past 18 months, he has successfully managed to turn around this business. In his new role he will retain oversight of Altron Karabina, putting an operational structure in place to ensure the continued growth trajectory of the business. Altron Group Chief Executive Werner Kapp said, “Collin is…

In a bid to mitigate against soaring petrol and diesel prices and reduce its carbon footprint, facilities management company Servest is planning to convert 70 of its over 700 national fleet vehicles to be fuelled by compressed natural gas (CNG). The first vehicles operating with dual fuel are already in the field, and the positive results have built confidence with the company’s drivers, their operational teams and more importantly, its customers. Servest, which celebrates 25 years in business this year, expects to see a return on this investment of about nine months’ worth of fuel savings. More importantly, customers have…

The global launch of the new BMW M2 will get underway in April 2023. It will be built alongside the new BMW 2 Series Coupé at the BMW Group’s San Luis Potosí plant in Mexico. Compact dimensions together with powertrain and chassis technology adapted from the BMW M3/BMW M4 are at the heart of a vehicle concept that endows the new edition of the two-door model with beguiling agility and handling that remain easily controllable even as the driver explores the car’s limit. The new BMW M2 continues the brand’s tradition of ultra-sporty models with compact dimensions that began in 1973 with the…

Vodacom South Africa has announced that all new, existing and upgrading customers are now eligible to subscribe to Prime Video or Prime Video Mobile Edition, regardless of price plan, whether prepaid or post-paid. Vodacom is the first telecommunications company in Africa to offer Prime Video Mobile Edition. With Prime Video Mobile Edition, customers benefit from Prime Video’s full catalogue of thousands of movies and TV series and Amazon Originals on a single mobile device The Prime Video app allows for streaming and downloading of content in standard definition. At launch, Vodacom customers signing up for Prime Video Mobile Edition will…

Infobip, a global cloud communications company and a leader in omnichannel engagement, recently hosted a webinar on how digital transformation drives cross-border ecommerce in Africa. Entitled “Driving Cross-border eCommerce Through Digital Transformation”, the session included presentations by several speakers from Infobip, as well as other organisations, including a presentation by Konga, one of Africa’s top 5 ecommerce start-ups. Infobip Key Accounts Executive Loren Lubanga set the scene by outlining Africa’s thriving ecommerce markets – South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya, with 22 million, 76.7 million and 13 million shoppers respectively, with ecommerce penetration of 37% in both South Africa and Nigeria…

Financial services group Discovery joins the ranks of 50 companies recognised in Fortune Magazine’s 2022 Change the World list, released today. The seminal list features organisations from around the globe that are positively impacting society through activities that form part of their core business strategy. Discovery ranked fourth on the list for the application of its disruptive shared-value banking model, helping people to adopt better financial behaviours – and rewarding them for it. This is in line with the Group’s core purpose of “making people healthier”. Fortune writers and editors, with help from the Shared Value Initiative, evaluate companies based…

The BMW Group sold a total of 128,196 fully-electric BMW and MINI vehicles in the first nine months of 2022 – more than double its BEV sales in the same period of last year (+114.8%). The company was thus able to translate strong interest in its fully-electric products into robust growth. “The dynamic growth of our fully-electric models reflects how the BMW Group’s electric lineup is winning over customers – as we continue to press ahead with the transition towards electromobility,” said Pieter Nota, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Customer, Brands, Sales. “With our attractive,…

At the lavish International Property Awards ceremony held at the exclusive Habtoor Grand Resort in Dubai on 6 October 2022, Waterfall Management Company was honoured with the Best Mixed-use Development in South Africa award for Waterfall (which recently rebranded as Waterfall City) for the eighth time in nine years. In addition, Waterfall City walked off with two more Best in SA 2022-2023 accolades. LYT Architecture was awarded Best Leisure Interior for the Highline – Courtyard Hotel Rooftop Bar and Restaurant, while Balwin Properties won Best Leisure Architecture for the Munyaka Lifestyle Estate. Besides scooping these prestigious awards, all three winners were also nominated for Best in Africa accolades by the International Property Awards – Africa…

Cleverly combining the words ‘cancer’ and ‘survive’ in their name, Cancervive is a unique, cancer awareness project that is proudly backed by SPAR this Breast Cancer Awareness month. Using the stories of survivors to inspire and educate, the project aims to encourage people to empower themselves with the message that ‘early detection saves lives!’ says Bhavna Sanker, SPAR BRAND Promotions and Advertising Manager. “As a business that holds people at the heart of who we are, we are proud to play a part in this mission and share a personal story of hope from one of our own survivors, Rene…

The use of spreadsheets in accounting and finance departments has vastly improved data analysis and enabled fast and accurate reporting, computing and information storage. Life without them is almost unthinkable. However, danger lurks within and although the use of macros in Excel to automate processes can enhance efficiency, macro malware can put your entire business at risk says Ryan Mer, Managing Director of eftsure Africa, a Know Your Payee™ (KYP) platform provider. Macro malware was fairly common several years ago because macros ran automatically whenever a document was opened. Microsoft has disabled macros by default in recent versions of Microsoft…

Entrepreneurs attending Huawei’s Women in Tech digital skills training programme, say they are now open to embracing Cloud technology, following a three-day course showcasing the value of Cloud for SMMEs. The session opened with a survey amongst the women delegates of their knowledge of the uses and application of cloud computing. On a scale of 1 to 4, there was a resounding 0 or 1 response, but by the end of the 3rd session, this had soared to 3s and 4s, with commitments by many to join further Huawei training and accreditation opportunities. Said Vanashree Govender, Huawei’s Media Relations and…

Liquid Dataport, a business of Cassava Technologies,  is bringing much-needed access to affordable internet in South Africa. Liquid Dataport has acquired a pair of fibre cables on Equiano, the new West coast submarine cable, capable of delivering up to 12 Terabytes of new internet capacity, providing the South African economy with the boost it needs to ensure the successful digital transformation of businesses and individuals. The additional capacity augments Liquid Dataport’s existing pan-African fibre network, global satellite connectivity and subsea cable backbone that ensures businesses on the continent have access to affordable and reliable high-speed connectivity – a vital element…

Vodacom South Africa’s Midrand campus is being kitted out with solar photovoltaic (PV) panels as part of the telco’s sustainable strategy around energy management. This solution will allow Vodacom’s headquarters to generate around 10.8 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of its own clean power every year, which is roughly 21% of the HQ’s power consumption, reducing its reliance on coal-generated electricity from the national grid. “Everything we do is driven by our purpose to shape a digital society that is not only inclusive but sustainable, too,” says Sitho Mdlalose, Managing Director of Vodacom South Africa. “Reducing our environmental impact is woven into this…

Safaricom Ethiopia has today switched on its mobile telecommunications network and services in Addis Ababa, the country’s capital city. Safaricom Ethiopia is also holding a ceremony today to mark its national launch. The Ethiopian government launched Digital Ethiopia 2025 to help the country realise its digital potential and leverage technology to build a more prosperous society. As part of that process, Safaricom Ethiopia was granted a nationwide full-service Unified Telecommunications Service Licence and is the first company in the country to launch a competitive mobile service to Ethio Telecom, which is state-owned. Through its 34.9% stake in Safaricom and its…

Discovery Bank today announced the launch of share trading through its app in partnership with EasyEquities. Clients can now open a new EasyEquities account, or link an existing one, seamlessly through the Discovery Bank app, making investing in their favourite local and global brands and other asset classes simple and accessible. “The platform is transparent, easy-to-use and makes equity trading cost-effective and intuitive for all kinds of investors, from first-timers all the way through to seasoned traders. In collaboration with EasyEquities we’ve been able to make the journey to investing in equities simple and frictionless. This is all part of…

Good fibre is a cornerstone of the digital economy and governments, the private sector and industry bodies all have a role to play in ensuring that citizens have access to connectivity that has the potential to change lives. That was the overriding sentiment at a workshop held by Huawei at the Digital Council Conext Digital Infrastructure Summit, in Cape Town. In developed countries, the digital economy accounts for 51.3% of GDP-compared with 20% in developing countries so it is critical that all partners in the industry work together to find innovative new ways to improve broadband quality and fibre connectivity,…

Sun Exchange, the global solar leasing platform, today announced that leading South African automotive platform, Cars.co.za, has bought into a project that provides off-grid solar power plus battery storage to Karoo Fresh, a commercial farm in South Africa’s Karoo district. By using the Sun Exchange platform to buy more than 16,000 solar cells, valued at over R2.5 million, Cars.co.za is leveraging its balance sheet to drive sustainable energy, while creating an alternative income stream for its business over the 20-year lifespan of the solar project. The 332.1 kW solar plus 640 kWh storage project, which is now generating electricity, is…

Vodacom has achieved 2.4 Gbps throughput on a live site – a first for South Africa. The trial made use of a commercial smartphone and was conducted through the commercial base stations which serve Vodacom’s Midrand campus. The record throughput speed is approximately 100 times faster than the average fibre-to-the-home connection. Beverly Ngwenya, Vodacom South Africa Technology Director says “This achievement demonstrates Vodacom’s continued innovation as a 5G technology leader and a Network of Firsts, showcasing how fifth-generation mobile technology can unlock incredible fibre-like experiences for users on the go, or where fibre installations aren’t feasible.  Most notably, this is…