Twenty-three start-ups in Africa and the German state of Baden-Württenberg have been awarded grants, including funds totalling 100,000 euros, by Baden-Württemberg Development Corporation Foundation (SEZ). Nineteen of the beneficiaries will receive funding, training and mentoring while the rest will benefit from training and mentoring. SEZ is the international development agency of Baden-Württemberg, one of Germany’s 16 federal states. The grants …
Read More »Why African central banks must work together to roll out digital currencies – Mauritius
Bank of Mauritius Governor, Harvesh Seegolam, has called on African Central Banks to collaborate on digital currencies. He made the call at a meeting of the Ministers of Finance and Governors of central banks of all 54 African countries, held in Burundi and virtually on Thursday. This year’s edition of the annual gathering focused on ‘Digitalization for Inclusive Recovery and …
Read More »What African enterprises need to know about the next ten years — CEO, SAP Africa
By Cathy Smith, Managing Director at SAP Africa Are African enterprises at risk of extinction, just as millions of natural species face extinction due to the impact of climate change? Businesses and countries across the continent are attempting to rebuild following the devastating economic impact of the pandemic. It is perhaps an opportune time to take stock of whether we …
Read More »Malabo hosts Africa’s biggest tech meeting
Technology at the service of African youth and the continent: TEG Campus, the biggest tech meeting in Africa, returns for a 4th edition with the theme “The Tech Response” ——– Equatorial Guinea, 16 July 2021 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- From 22 to 27 July, the annual TEG Campus event will bring together for the 4th year in a row African players …
Read More »Why cybercrime poses existential threat to West Africa’s economy — Expert
By Titilayo Adewumi, Regional Sales Director: West Africa at SAP LAGOS, Nigeria, 6 July 2021 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- While organisations across West Africa work to recover from the economic impact of the pandemic, the global cybercrime industry is going into overdrive. An increasingly sophisticated cybercrime industry is launching a range of attacks aimed at organisations and critical infrastructure. Such attacks …
Read More »German funding for Nigerian Startups! Call for Application!
Do you have an idea, business or initiative worth spreading or an upscale? Here is a platform… StartUp Afrika is a program designed to support innovative startups through intercontinental exchange and network plus funding. Why StartUp Afrika? We believe that startups can play a key role to create a social andecologically transformed economy in Africa and Baden-Württemberg. 100,000 euros for …
Read More »SAP Young Professionals Program extends digital skills build to Lusophone Africa
LUANDA, Angola, 17 June 2021 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/- SAP’s flagship digital skills build initiative the Young Professionals Program is celebrating its first-ever graduates from Lusophone Africa. At a virtual graduation ceremony attended by Constantin Zelenty, Deputy Head of Mission, German Embassy Angola; Cathy Smith, Managing Director, SAP Africa; Pedro Guerreiro, Managing Director, SAP Central Africa; as well as SAP customer …
Read More »SA, Nigeria and Kenya driving e-commerce in Sub-Saharan Africa
The top market contributors to e-commerce in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) over the last three years were South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya. This is according to a recent white paper released by Visa titled ‘eCommerce developments across Sub Saharan Africa (SSA)‘. According to Visa, SSA may be one of the smallest regions of e-commerce globally, but it shows steady growth potential. …
Read More »Ethiopia signs pact with Internet Society to advance digital economy
The global non-profit organization Internet Society is committed to supporting Ethiopia in its vision to create an inclusive digital economy through the Digital Ethiopia 2025 Strategy ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, June 10, 2021/ — The Ministry of Innovation and Technology (MINT) of Ethiopia and the Internet Society (www.InternetSociety.org) announced a new collaboration agreement today that will help advance the digital economy …
Read More »Google launches programmes to support small businesses in Africa
Google has kicked off a series of programmes that will support the growth and recovery of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Africa’s post-Covid economy. The programmes will be rolled out throughout the month of June. On the continent, SMEs account for around 90% of all businesses forming the backbone of the economy. While these businesses account for 80% of …
Read More »African start-ups chosen for €100,000 German investment prize
Ten start-ups from across Africa have been chosen for the Afro German Pitch Night at which the winner will walk away with €100,000 equity investment. The nominees were selected from the Deutsch Connect and Idea Seed Africa networks of start-ups.The final list of start-ups include five from Nigeria – namely, Agriple, Asusu, Chekkit, M.E Solutions and Rural Farmers Hub, and …
Read More »Germany: Mentoring scheme for aspiring African entrepreneurs takes off
It has been observed that Africans are less likely to start their own businesses compared to other diaspora communities, such as Asians. A new initiative wants to change the situation by mentoring aspiring African entrepreneurs in Germany, providing them not only knowledge and skills training but also networking opportunities Deutsch Connect, a German-based Afrocentric startup that links African businesses to …
Read More »Zimbabwean named UK’s first Black billionaire
THE London-based Zimbabwe-born businessman Strive Masiyiwa has been named the United Kingdom’s first Black billionaire. He has been reported to be worth £1.087 billion. Masiyiwa is the first billionaire of African origin to be included on the Sunday Times Rich List – a ranking of the wealthiest people or families resident in the United Kingdom. The list is updated annuallyand …
Read More »Deutsch Connect and Idea Seed Africa secure 100k euro investment fund
German-based Afrocentric startup Deutsch Connect has secured a €100,000 investment fund in partnership with Idea Seed Africa. The “Deutsch – Africa Pitch” challenge is exclusively for Startups within the Deutsch Connect – Idea Seed Africa network in Agritech, Healthtech, Fintech, Digitalisation and Logistics offering up to €100,000 in equity investment to build and scale successful businesses that add value to …
Read More »New incentives for ICT start-ups in Cameroon
Achare Takor*, a lawyer, takes a look at Section 124b of the General Tax Code of the Republic of Cameroon and how it sets to promote innovative ICT start-ups in the country by offering them incentives ————- DOUALA, Cameroon, May 13, 2021/ — By Achare Takor Over the last decade, information technologies (IT) have revolutionized the way people and businesses …
Read More »Bank offers loans to Nigerians living abroad to build homes in Nigeria
Nigerians in the diaspora have an opportunity to own houses in the country and also participate actively in money and capital markets, thanks to several investment packages rolled out by Ecobank. Mrs. Olukorede Demola-Adeniyi, Head of Ecobank’s Consumer Banking, has said that the bank is offering mortgage loans to Nigerians living abroad to finance property ownership in the country. She …
Read More »African Messaging App Celebrates 2nd Birthday with 5.5m Users
Ayoba is enjoying a busy 2021, with many upgrades and additions planned to its extensive list of features. The African Messaging App celebrates second birthday with 5.5m users and launches voice and video calling as well as web access CAPE TOWN, South Africa, May 4, 2021/ — Ayoba (www.ayoba.me), the African messaging app, has announced the launch of a new …
Read More »Nairobi ranked top city in Africa for innovation – report
The recently released Knight Frank Africa Horizons Report 2021/22, ranked Nairobi as the top city in Africa for innovation, followed by Cape Town in second, Kampala third, with Cairo and Johannesburg at fourth and fifth place respectively. The report notes that the ability of African cities to emerge resilient from the pandemic will depend on their ability to innovate, providing long-term social …
Read More »Airtel Africa appoints Nigerian as its new Chief Executive
Airtel Africa has appointed Segun Ogunsanya as its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The development follows the retirement of Raghunath Mandava as the company’s MD and CEO. “Segun has more than 25 years business management experience in banking, consumer goods, and telecoms,” the telecom firm noted in a statement on Thursday. An electronics engineer, and a chartered account, Ogunsanya will …
Read More »Mobile phone users in Kenya and Nigeria increasingly targeted by malware apps – Report
NAIROBI, Kenya, April 29, 2021/ — With Kaspersky (africa.Kaspersky.com) research showing that stalkerware affected one out of every 100 mobile users in Kenya and Nigeria in 2020 and malware every four out of 100 in South Africa, consumers must remain vigilant when it comes to their online activities if they are to keep themselves safe from the growing threat of …
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THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.