Brief (505)
On Monday, June 5, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Commission announced a digital health partnership to establish a global digital certification system. The system aims to enhance international health security.
According to a joint statement from the two parties, this global system will help facilitate mobility and protect citizens around the world against current and future health threats, including pandemics.
The 2nd edition of the African Startups and Digital Economy Summit (SASEN) will be held from June 8 to 9 in Abidjan, on the theme of "The digital economy, a tool to drive job creation for the African youth.”
Over 500 start-ups and decision-makers, institutions, investors, development partners, and delegations from 8 countries, including Benin, Senegal, and France, are expected at the summit.
Zydii, a Kenyan platform that offers digital training in technical and soft skills useful for the development of businesses and their employees, has raised pre-seed funding for an undisclosed amount.
The company, which was co-founded in 2017 by computer scientist Joyce Mbaya, plans to use the funds to support its growth in Kenya and finance expansion in Nigeria and South Africa.
Techstars recently opened applications for its ARM Labs Lagos Techstars Accelerator program. The program is aimed at start-up founders who want to grow their businesses. Successful applicants will receive up to $120,000 in funding, plus access to a global network of investors, hands-on mentoring, and several other benefits. Applications are due by August 9 at https://apply.techstars.com/?source=nav.
British beverage company Diageo Plc recently announced the launch of its new Africa Digital Hub in Nairobi, Kenya.
The hub will serve Diageo's key markets in Africa, including Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, and Ghana, and accelerate the company's digital transformation plans on the continent. It will be headed by Waithera Kabiru, former Head of Media Futures at EABL (East African Breweries Limited), a Kenya-based holding company that also manufactures beverages.
Moroccan home services marketplace PrestaFreedom recently secured MAD11 million ($1.1 million) in financing from the Azur Innovation Fund.
The funds will enable the company not only to improve its logistics and technological infrastructure but also develop its activities and pursue ambitious expansion strategies in several African markets, beginning next year.
Gabon's capital, Libreville, will host the third edition of the audiovisual and digital career fair SAMEAU next June 6-8. The event whose theme is "Ethics and deontology of digital media during election periods in Gabon," will feature a number of journalism, TV and radio animation, digital communication, computer graphics, and photography workshops.
The 2nd edition of the B2B Digital Day, organized to let companies discover the latest digital trends and technologies in Côte d'Ivoire, will be held in Abidjan next June 22.
The event, organized by marketing and business development consultancy agency Yadec Consulting, builds on the objectives of the first edition, which was to encourage actors of the Ivorian markets to adopt digital technologies to transform and grow their businesses.
The theme chosen for the B2B Digital Day 2023 is: "Business Digitalization: Practices and Tools."
Last week, U.S. group META announced the upcoming deployment of the Metaverse in Côte d’Ivoire. At a forum in Abidjan, last Friday, Balkissa Ide Siddo, Meta Public Policy Director for Sub-Saharan Africa, said the metaverse could help medical students practice surgery. It could also make classes engaging and fun.
On Monday, May 15, 2023, Maurice Lévy, former head of French multinational communications company Publicis, inaugurated a new digital art platform called "YourArt" at the modern art museum Palais de Tokyo.
According to the former executive, YourArt wants to become the world's leading art and tech platform, allowing professional and amateur artists to showcase and sell their work.
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In a statement released on Thursday, May 18, California-based OpenAI announced the launch of the iOS app of its artificial intelligence-based conversational agent, ChatGPT.
"The ChatGPT app is free to use and syncs your history across devices. It also integrates Whisper, our open-source speech-recognition system, enabling voice input. ChatGPT Plus subscribers get exclusive access to GPT-4’s capabilities, early access to features, and faster response times, all on iOS," the release reads.
Currently, the app is available for US users only but it will expand to additional countries “in the coming weeks.” The Android version is also coming "soon".
The Arab Administrative Development Organization (ARADO) will hold a forum on governance in the digital age from June 19-21 in Casablanca, Morocco.
The forum aims, among other things, to provide participants with the knowledge and skills needed for effective digital transformation and recent technical developments in this area. It will also help identify what institutions need to do and the challenges they must prepare for when the digital transformation process is completed.
The Moroccan Youth Ministry and UNICEF launched Tuesday (May 16), a digital platform for youth engagement.
The platform, dubbed U-Report Morocco, will allow young people aged 14 to 25 to express themselves and share their views on issues affecting them and their communities as a whole. The goal is to foster citizenship and make their voice count in policy-making processes.
The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) recently opened applications for its virtual mentorship program Women in Cyber (WIC). Applications are open to women residing in Africa, Arab regions, Asia, and the Pacific till May 22.
The program was initiated about three years ago to foster gender inclusion in the cybersecurity industry.