Tech (883)
The coronavirus pandemic and the Ebola outbreak fragilized the education system in Guinea. This highlighted the need to set up innovative tools to back the education system.
Last Friday, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Guinean Ministry of Pre-University Education launched the pilot phase of the e-learning platform "Learning Passport," at Gbessia Port 1 elementary school in the commune of Matoto, Conakry. The new digital platform, created to support student learning, will provide continuous access to educational resources for children, youth, and teachers.
According to Dr. Adama Ouedraogo (photo, left), UNICEF's Acting Representative in Guinea, the new platform will help "improve teaching and learning and enhance the skills and knowledge acquired both formally and informally." "To students, it means continuous access to the curriculum and additional learning materials. To teachers, it means steady access to training opportunities and educational support," he added.
Over the four coming months, the platform will be test-run in two schools (Ratoma Centre and Gbessia port 1) in Conakry. The National Institute of Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP), with the support of UNICEF, will assess teachers' and students' ability to access the digital content available on "Learning Passport."
The platform, delivered by UNICEF and powered by Microsoft Community Training, was developed with a unique suite of online and offline features and capabilities. It will first be deployed in places with intermittent or no Internet connectivity - often places where children find themselves unable to access quality digital educational tools and content.
Samira Njoya
African countries are among the most affected by climate change. In that context, initiatives contributing to resilience are important for the continent.
Last Tuesday, VC fund and accelerator Catalyst Fund unveiled a list of 10 African start-ups that will benefit from its new US$30 million VC fund backed by development agency FSD Africa. The ten startups represent the inaugural cohort of that fund.
The selected start-ups are from Egypt, Uganda, Morocco, Kenya, and Nigeria and were chosen for the innovative technologies they have developed to help communities better adapt to climate impacts and increase their resilience.
Each of them will receive "$100K of equity investments as well as $100K of hands-on venture-building support," and "join Catalyst Fund’s existing portfolio of 61 startups across emerging markets and receive capital, bespoke and expert-led venture-building support, and direct connections with investors, corporate innovators and talent networks that can help them scale."
Catalyst Fund's portfolio companies have raised more than US$640 million in follow-up financing to date. They currently serve more than 14 million people and MSMEs worldwide. According to Maelis Carraro, Managing Partner of Catalyst Fund, the aim is to support motivated founders who share the VC fund's "vision of a world where every individual has the tools and opportunities they need to thrive."
Samira Njoya
In Africa, internet access is one of the major challenges that can prevent effective digital transformation. In that context, the Morrocan government wants to ensure that every region has access to that utility, even the most remote areas.
Morocco will connect most of its national territory to the internet by the end of 2023, Digital Minister Ghita Mezzour (photo) recently revealed.
Last Monday, while answering the House of Representatives' oral questions on internet connection in rural areas, the government official explained that 9,225 out of 10,740 zones have been connected to the internet during the first phase of the 2018-2023 national plan for the development of broadband and ultra-broadband connection. The remaining 1515 will be connected by the end of 2023, she added revealing that the Ministry of Digital Transformation was already preparing the second phase of the project. The second phase will connect 1700 new zones, with a particular focus on poorly-covered regions.
In recent years, Morocco has implemented numerous actions to boost internet access. According to Cable.co.uk’s “Worldwide broadband speed league 2022,” the country has the ninth fastest internet connection in Africa with mean download speeds of 13.03 megabits per second (Mbps).
During her oral session on December 26, Minister Ghita Mezzour also informed that the four technoparks operating in the country currently support 450 startups whose cumulative turnover is US$86 million. According to the official, 25% of the supported startups export their digital products.
Samira Njoya
The platform aims to take advantage of the growing e-commerce industry, and the development of new buying habits.
Public postal operator Egypt Post will launch an e-commerce platform in 2023. The platform, called ECOM Africa, aims to boost trade between Egypt and other African countries.
In an interview with the Arabian Business, Sherif Farouk, chairman of Egypt Post, said the new platform will "help and benefit from major international e-commerce and online advertising companies, such as Amazon and Alibaba."
For several years now, Egypt is trying to boost its trade with other African countries by leveraging postal services. In 2020, the Egypt Post signed an agreement with the Universal Postal Union (UPU) to implement the Ecom@Africa initiative, which aims to promote and develop e-commerce between African Posts.
The agreement aims to enable Egypt to overcome the obstacles to e-commerce and make the country an e-commerce hub on the continent, given its strategic location. It is in line with the country’s plan to increase its exports to other African countries from US$5 billion currently to US$10 billion by 2025.
Thanks to the announced platform, the country's companies will be able to sell their products easily in other countries of the continent. "The Egypt Post fleet will be instrumental in delivering these goods to clients in other African countries," added Minister Farouk.
Samira Njoya
With the acceleration of digital transformation across Africa, cybersecurity has become a major concern, with increasingly targeted attacks. The issue pushes governments to streamline their digital defense strategies.
Last December 14, the Chadian Ministry of Telecommunications and the National Agency for Computer Security and eCertification (ANSICE) launched a workshop for the development of a national cybersecurity strategy.
The cybersecurity strategy to be developed during the workshop -organized in partnership with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)- aims to find ways to better fight cyber threats. "It is important to assess the cybersecurity challenges to define and prioritize the responses to implement in a strategy capable of enhancing the cybersecurity of every institution,” said Digital Minister Mahamat Allahou Taher.
In recent days, Chad has accelerated its efforts to strengthen its cybersecurity. On December 5, two bills were passed to strengthen the country's cybersecurity framework. The first bill ratifies Ordinance No. 007/PCMT/2022 of August 31, 2022, on cybercrime and cyber defense, while the second ratified Ordinance No. 008/PCMT/2022 of August 31, 2022, on cybersecurity.
To strengthen its legal framework, the government decided to quicken the elaboration of the cybersecurity strategy, which was not really advancing. In 2019, during a meeting with participants from 32 national and regional institutions, it was already decided that the elaboration of the national cybersecurity strategy would be accelerated. In February, the country also hosted cybersecurity experts from various countries and the sub-region to discuss issues related to assessment methodology, strategic cybersecurity policy, online commerce, banking, legal and regulatory framework, and technology standards.
Samira Njoya
The program aims to finance the development of African tech ecosystems.
Last Tuesday, Digital Africa announced its first 15 “Connectors" (leaders who will collaborate with Digital Africa for the development of local and regional tech and entrepreneurial ecosystems).
In a release accessed by We Are Tech Africa, Digital Africa explains that the 15 leaders will help find customized solutions to community challenges and generate effective opportunities. “Africa needs African-designed solutions to the continent's structural and infrastructural problems, be it in health, sports, energy, agriculture and we believe that it is in the made-in-Africa tech that can do it,” explains Aphrodice Mutangana, director of partnerships at Digital Africa.
A few months ago, Digital Africa launched a call for applications for its "Connectors Digital Africa" program. At the end of the selections, fifteen high-level African personalities were chosen, with three connectors per region: North Africa, South Africa, West Africa, East Africa, and Central Africa. They were selected based on their professional experience, and their strong sense of leadership, but especially for their commitment to having a positive impact on the African tech ecosystem.
Their missions will include acting as ambassadors representing Digital Africa in the region and providing a link between their community and Digital Africa, organizing activities and events on behalf of Digital Africa, identifying and mobilizing resources, and helping to map the ecosystem and suggest solutions.
"Connectors" is one of several initiatives launched by Digital Africa since its inception in 2018. In October, the pan-African initiative launched "Fuzé", a program that aims to provide a solution to the financing problems faced by African startups.
Samira Njoya
In recent years, Morocco has built a number of partnerships to develop its digital sector. Last October, the government announced international partnerships that would help create more than 14,000 direct digital jobs in the country.
On December 6-9, 2022, Morocco hosted a mission of Portuguese tech entrepreneurs in partnership with several digital actors, namely the Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade of Portugal (AICEP Portugal Global), the National Association of Young Entrepreneurs (ANJE), the Confederation of Enterprises of Portugal (CIP) and the Association of Companies for a Network of Innovation of Aveiro (INOVA-RIA).
The mission aimed to present the current potential of the Portuguese technology ecosystem, identify business opportunities and establish partnerships with Moroccan tech companies.
During the 4-day visit, participants took part in B2B meetings in Casablanca. In Rabat, they also participated in a forum with the Moroccan public administration and local entities that have digital projects. Through that visit, the Portuguese tech entrepreneurs wanted to present themselves as privileged partners in the Moroccan ICGT industry and consolidate the relationship between the two countries’ digital actors.
Portugal is among the most business-friendly, stable, and open countries in the European Union in terms of innovation, digitization, and technical expertise. It is currently the 7th most advanced country in Europe according to the "Digitization in Europe 2020-2021" report. According to the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report 2020, it is the 6th best-prepared country in the world for the energy and digital transition, enabling a greener and more inclusive economy.
Thanks to the envisaged partnerships, Morocco will be able to take advantage of Portugal’s skills and experience to effectively implement the numerous projects planned in its digital strategy. In the Maghreb, Morocco is one of the pioneers of digital transformation. In 2005, the country started implementing digital strategies, including the "e-Morocco 2010" strategy, followed by the "Digital Morocco 2013" plan, "Digital Morocco 2020" and "Horizon 2025". In 2020, it was ranked fourth in the MENA "Digital Risers" (ranking of countries in terms of digital competitiveness).
Samira Njoya
Changing processes, management procedures, and interfaces called for by the ongoing digital transformation require investments, which most small businesses can not afford. The partnership aims to help in that regard and support small businesses through various means.
Pan-African fintech MFS Africa and the International Trade Centre (ITC) recently signed a partnership agreement to accelerate the digitalization of African markets.
According to a release issued by the ITC last Friday, the two “entities will support businesses in more than 10 African markets (Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali, Rwanda, Senegal, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia) through product integration, capacity building in fintech and digital payments, exposure to investment and business-to-business meetings.”
“With this partnership, ITC will strengthen its commitment to support small businesses in accessing financing and in digitalization and jointly tackle SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth). This partnership is the next step into ITC’s ambition to collaborate with the private sector to scale solutions supporting small business,” said Robert Skidmore, Chief of Sector and Enterprise Competitiveness at the International Trade Centre.
According to the LSEG Africa Advisory Group's 2018 report, "The challenges and opportunities of SME financing in Africa," SMEs are crucial for job creation and economic growth in Africa. In Africa, they account for about 90 percent of established businesses, create between 60 percent and 80 percent of jobs, and contribute 40 percent of GDP. In comparison, SMEs in the United States and Europe represent 53% and 65% of established businesses respectively.
Through this partnership, ITC and MFS Africa will help put small businesses at the heart of financial inclusion and digitalization. The partnership marks an important step in contributing to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It will "build a new era where small business is at the heart of economic growth for the benefit of millions of African citizens," according to Ali Ouedraogo, head of expansion at MFS Africa.
Samira Njoya
Humanitarian institutions are usually faced with many challenges, including logistics problems, when working in unstable and insecure regions. Some parties are testing solutions to facilitate remote project management.
Last Thursday, the African Development Bank (AfDB) announced the roll-out of the RASME (Remote Appraisal, Supervision, Monitoring, and Evaluation) project in Angola, after a 3-day training.
RASME is a suite of tools and processes to collect data in real time. It was developed to enable AfDB, its clients, and development partners to better prepare projects, and progress reports, and assess impact openly and transparently.
According to the AfDB Group country manager for Angola, “this project can significantly enhance the data collection which we use to assess the effectiveness of our development work here in Angola.”
“It is significant that we are launching RASME in partnership with the Government of the Republic of Angola,” he added.
The data-gathering tool is the result of a partnership between the African Development Bank's Information Technology Department (CHIS), the World Bank's Geo-Enabling Monitoring and Supervision Initiative, and the KoBoToolbox Foundation, a non-governmental organization affiliated with the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative.
With RASME, AfDB staff, including project and sector managers, country and regional program managers, and government officials will now be able to compile project-related information directly from the field, using a smartphone, tablet or laptop, drones, and satellites. Data can be collected in a variety of formats: text, video, graphics, and even survey responses.
To date, RASME has been deployed in fourteen African countries, including Gabon, Cameroon, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, and Mozambique. According to Dra Rossana Silva, Head of the International Economic Cooperation Department at the Angolan Ministry of Finance, "ensuring open and transparent reporting of our development initiatives is central to our mission. RASME is an important enhancement of our capacity to do this.”
Samira Njoya
The partnership aims to boost the development of the food and beverage sector in Egypt’s digital economy, in line with the country's Vision 2030.
Last Tuesday, restaurant management solution developer Foodics and fintech startup Paymob signed a partnership agreement to empower the food and beverage sector in Egypt.
The partnership aims to combine Foodics' restaurant management system (RMS) with Paymob's point-of-sale (POS) devices, creating a seamless end-to-end solution for restaurateurs and their customers.
"Tech enablement and the digital economy are critical factors for the acceleration of the F&B industry’s growth. By bringing Foodics and Paymob together, two regional technology powerhouses, this will serve to modernize the F&B sector in Egypt and advance the shift to cashless payments, fueling both growth and digital transformation,"said Belal Zahran (photo, left), Foodics country manager in Egypt.
In Egypt, the food and beverage industry is a key facet of the economy. The country’s 104 million population represents a huge domestic market but, it is also the largest market in the MENA region. According to the "Food & Beverage Market Size, Share, Growth Prospects and Opportunities 2020-2026" study, competition will likely intensify in the Egyptian food and beverage sector with emerging applications and an expanded product portfolio.
Through the partnership, the two regional tech powerhouses want to build the first wireless backend API integration for the Egyptian F&B sector. The collaboration will enable Foodics restaurants to accept all types of card payments using Paymob's point-of-sale devices. This will solve two major issues for restaurants, namely automating the reconciliation and payment processes to provide faster order processing and error-free, frictionless payment experiences.
Samira Njoya
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The Republic of Congo is gradually making its way toward the complete digitization of its public services. To accelerate the process and reach its goals by 2025, the government is multiplying partnerships with international companies specializing in digital issues.
Canadian company Casimir Network signed Tuesday (Nov.22) a memorandum of understanding to support Congo in its digital transformation.
The MoU was signed by the Congolese Minister of Posts, Telecommunications, and Digital Economy, Léon Juste Ibombo (photo, left), and Jean Michel Casimir (photo, right), CEO of Casimir Network. It provides, among other things, the training of local talent on innovative technologies, the construction and operation of a data center that will host servers for blockchain services, the transfer of knowledge concerning the operation of the data center, and the development of cybersecurity and personal data protection programs. It also plans for support and research, and the development of the African Center for Research in Artificial Intelligence (Caria).
The memorandum aims to “help our partners create and operate the data center here in our country. Indeed, the country of a data center will allow our partners to support and assist us in the operationalization of Caria,” Minister Leon Juste Ibombo said.
Earlier this year, Congo launched an African Center for Research in Artificial Intelligence (Caria) which serves as a framework for in-depth research for students and other researchers on the continent. It is the result of cooperation between the Congolese government and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). Caria supports other major digital projects underway in the framework of Congo’s digital development plan, "Congo Digital 2025.”
The agreement between Congo and Casimir Network is expected to take effect in early 2023. This week, a site visit will be organized to verify the location of the future data center. "We hope everything will be finalized and we will launch operations by September 2023," said Jean Michel Casimir.
He added that the data center will be based on blockchain technologies since they are going for an ecological solution. “Congo offers green energy generated by a hydroelectric dam. We were looking for stability and we found it here,” he indicated.
Samira Njoya
The coronavirus pandemic revealed the need to develop strategies to ensure education continuity in times of crisis. In that regard, countries, and development partners are now implementing projects to bridge the digital divide and transform the education system.
Earlier today, November 15, during an event organized on the sidelines of COP27, UNESCO and HUAWEI presented their joint Technology-enabled Open Schools for All (Huawei TECH4ALL) program.
The program was presented by Stefania Giannini, Assistant Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). During her presentation, she explained that it has become necessary to leverage technologies to change education models.
“Aiming to leave no one behind in the digital world, enabling equity and quality in education is one of four focused domains in the Huawei TECH4ALL digital inclusion initiative,” said Catherine Du, head of the Huawei TECH4ALL program.
The program, which entered its implementation phase in Ghana, Egypt, and Ethiopia last year, aims to encourage the development of resilient education systems in times of profound global changes like the Covid-19 pandemic. Apart from equipping schools, the program also includes digital training for teachers and learners as well as the development of online platforms -to enable hybrid learning- and digital courses.
In Egypt, the joint UNESCO-Huawei program aims to empower 950,000 teachers, principals, and supervisors to more effectively integrate ICT into their daily practice. Ultimately, in the country, 23 million basic education students are expected to benefit from an improved and more equitable digital learning experience.
TECH4ALL, which aligns with UNESCO’s flagship program Priority Africa, will ensure that Sub-Saharan African countries can leverage technology as an accelerator to achieve MDG 4 and as an equalizer for digital development opportunities. It will contribute to the achievement of the goals of "Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want," including sustained investments in universal early childhood development and basic education, and the elimination of gender disparities at all levels of education.
Samira Njoya
The funding comes almost one year after the U.S.-based international organization awarded initial capital to the three associations working for digital inclusion in Africa.
Last Tuesday, the Internet Society Foundation, the global organization that promotes internet access, granted the third round of grants to promote digital inclusion in Bangladesh, Colombia, and Senegal. The grants provided under the SCILLS (Strengthening Communities, Improving Lives and Livelihoods) program aim to support five innovative projects in the three countries.
"The SCILLS program reflects our commitment to promoting equitable digital transformation through Internet skills development. We are thrilled to renew our support to these five projects that are promoting digital inclusion for communities in Bangladesh, Colombia, and Senegal," said Sarah Armstrong, Executive Director of the Internet Society Foundation.
In Senegal, the foundation will fund two major projects to the tune of about US$400,000. The first, CTIC (Croissance TIC) Dakar, is a growth accelerator that will receive US$249,493 to train 30 early-stage entrepreneurs with high growth potential in entrepreneurial and digital skills and facilitate their access to financing.
The foundation will also fund SENUM (Synergy for Digital and Media Education), an association whose mission is to train and sensitize young people, their parents, and teachers on the educational use of digital technology. The US$149,421 granted to SENUM will be used to train teachers in the use of the Internet to improve the quality of education and help students acquire ICT skills through "tech clubs" and inter-school hackathons.
The SCILLS program, which is currently established in only one African country, will be expanded to Ghana in 2023. This is the second financing provided by the Internet Society Foundation in Senegal under the SCILLS program. In 2021, the foundation funded Association Jeunesse Espoir, the Simplon Foundation, and SENUM to help residents of beneficiary cities acquire digital skills that are essential for academic and economic improvement.
Samira Njoya
Technical and financial support is key for startup development. Such support is usually provided by accelerators, making their jobs crucial in Africa, where the number of startups created is ever-rising in recent years.
Venture capital firm 500 Global and GIZ (German agency for international cooperation) will launch a program to train accelerators to help them meet expectations in their respective digital ecosystems. The inaugural edition of that program, dubbed Bootcamp for Accelerator Managers (BAM), will launch next Monday. Fifteen accelerators have been selected to participate in that first edition. They are notably Orange Startup Studio, Westerwelle Startup Haus Kigali, Mountain Hub, Ennovate Ventures, WomHub, Africarise, Stanbic, Wennovation Hub, CTIC Dakar, Kosmos, Plug n Play, Norrsken Health Tech Africa, Venture Park, MEST Africa, and Growth Africa.
"500 Global is thrilled to be working alongside GIZ to ensure that African accelerators have the tools they need to support startups. 500 has been investing in companies in Africa for a decade and continues to be excited about the growth of the African tech ecosystem. We believe that the next phase of this evolution will be led by homegrown accelerators, like the ones joining BAM," said Mareme Dieng, the African lead for 500 Global.
The program will draw on a real-world project and scenario-based instruction, inspired by the work of 500 Global, which runs more than 80 accelerator programs worldwide, and GIZ's experience with innovation in Africa. It will start with a 5-day face-to-face training in Kenya. Then the participants will take part in a one-year virtual program.
In recent years, Africa’s digital economy has risen significantly. By leveraging digital and tech tools, entrepreneurs are developing innovative solutions for local problems. It is therefore urgent for the institutions supporting them technically and financially to up their technical and operational skills to offer effective support.
Let’s note that the accelerators selected for this first edition of the BAM were chosen based on their experience, seniority, market leadership, and track record. For Matthias Rehfeld, Head of GIZ's Make-IT in Africa program, "this program represents another cornerstone in Make-IT in Africa´s efforts to support African innovation on a local, pan-African and global scale.”
Samira Njoya