Tech (950)
Cheikh Tidiane Mbaye is Chairman of the International Jury of the Orange Social Venture Prize in Africa and the Middle East (POESAM). For several years, he has reviewed thousands of high-potential projects. He was interviewed by We Are Tech about the impact of Orange's innovation support ecosystem and his perception of the African digital economy.
We recently attended the 13th edition of POESAM. Looking at the projects you've judged over the years, what's your assessment of the level of tech innovation in Africa?
This is indeed the 13th edition. I've been on the jury for about ten years now, and I've been chairing it for about six if I'm not mistaken. And so, when you look at the number of entries, the interest generated by the prize, the evolution of the media impact, you realize that we're growing fast. To give you a figure, the number of candidates for this year's edition (2023) is around 1,400. And it seems to me that four, even five years ago, we were still around half that number. We've almost doubled in less than five years, and I find that very interesting. Another point to note is that the percentage of women is also increasing. At the moment, we're almost at 30% women, which is very significant. I think it's also important to understand that the projects submitted to POESAM reflect African needs in some way. I find it interesting to observe that these projects reflect not only the ability of young entrepreneurs to create, innovate and develop but also reflect African needs. For example, at the last award, the majority of projects focused on education, health, agriculture, and e-commerce, in order of growth. It's very interesting to see the evolution of innovation in these fields, and the Orange Prize rewards above all social impacts.
Personally, why did you agree to chair the international jury?
As I said, I've been a member of the jury for ten years. I was offered the presidency a few years ago, and I accepted. But what counts for me is the fact that I've been a member of the jury for so many years. I think my choice reflects a passion and a conviction. My passion is development. I'm passionate about development and what it takes to get there. My conviction is that we can do it. We can do it because we have the resources to do it. One of the keys for me is the private sector and the role it plays, particularly the role played by small and medium-sized enterprises. The government also has a role to play. Good governance will accelerate all these, despite the weaknesses. That's what I'm passionate about, and I'm ready to take part in any serious initiative that serves this passion and conviction, highlighting projects that have an impact on everyday life.
How did your love of innovation, which feeds your passion for development, come about?
I worked for Orange as a manager, in particular as Managing Director of Sonatel for 25 years. I was also involved in another field, that of telecoms infrastructure, which I believe is essential to the development of tech entrepreneurship. You need a good base, you need good infrastructure. Everything we've done over the years is based on the infrastructures we've taken several years to install. We've seen what our network innovations bring to communities. The innovative services offered by entrepreneurs are channeled through them. Those innovative services are offered by talented young Africans, particularly those who are promoted, supported, and encouraged by this extremely useful prize [POESAM]. So there's a continuity between what I've done since I started working and what I'm doing today.
What has the experience of chairing the POESAM jury brought you?
I have to say that I'm learning a lot, coming from an infrastructure background. We're talking about innovation and startups here. These young entrepreneurs we're supporting today criticize our activities. They criticize the companies I've worked for. This allows me to correct these companies. It allows me to get to the other side and see how things can be improved. I've intervened several times in several Orange countries to facilitate relations between startups and the Orange operators, which we represent. Operators are big, strong and don't always think of everything. These interactions have given me knowledge and humility too. I think digital inclusion in Africa is happening, and it's already not bad, contrary to popular belief.
What is your assessment of the impact POESAM has had over the years on technological innovation in Africa, and economic and social development in particular?
The prize helps a lot of entrepreneurs and startups. I have some pretty good examples. I have in mind the example of Mr. Johnson from Liberia, who is now developing palm oil-based products to offer renewable energy solutions. Thanks to the POESAM grant he received in 2018, he has doubled his income and created 24 additional jobs. Then there's the Tunisian company Kumulus, which has developed a machine that turns air into water. It managed to raise its first million euros, thanks to us, to increase its visibility. It works with Orange Group companies. There are other examples we can cite. These companies have a concrete impact on their customers. It's not just the POESAM prize-winners that this award has helped, it has stimulated innovation by enabling a large number of young Africans to dare [to innovate] and I think that's something very important. Orange Africa and the Middle East covers 17 countries. Every Orange company in every country has contributed to nurturing this innovation and drive.
Given all the innovations you've seen over the last 13 editions, how do you see Africa's prospects in the global digital economy?
I believe that Africa will play a decisive role in the digital economy. I met an entrepreneur who has worked in some of the world's biggest tech companies and has now returned to Africa. He gave up an attractive position in a big company to create his startup in the health sector. Like me, he too - along with several international firms, the World Bank, the IFC, and specialized organizations - believes that the future of Africa's digital economy will be formidable. I think that this entrepreneurial dynamism is well understood by those of us who have an insightful reading.
From June 14 to 17, the 2023 edition of the digital trade fair VivaTech was held in Paris. On the sidelines of the event, the second edition of the AfricaTech Awards was launched.
Waspito, Kubik, and Curacel are the winners of the second edition of the AfricaTech Awards. They were the healthtech, climate tech, and fintech awardees, respectively.
Waspito, the winner in the healthtech category, is a Cameroonian start-up that connects patients and doctors for instant video consultations via its Android and iOS apps. It was founded in 2020 by Jean Lobé Lobé and has attracted investors such as Orange Ventures and Launch Africa Ventures.
Curacel, the winner of the fintech category, is a Nigerian solution that enables companies to distribute insurance policies and process claims faster. Founded in 2019 by Henry Mascot and John Dada, it also has a mobile app accessible on iOS and Android.
Kubik is the winner of the climate tech category. It is a Kenyan startup founded in 2021 by Ndeye Penda Marre. It transforms hard-to-recycle plastic waste into low-carbon building materials.
The AfricaTech Awards was organized in Paris on Thursday, June 15, during the digital trade fair VivaTech, in partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC). It was initiated last year to give African startups more visibility among global investors. At its first edition in 2022, Kenya's Weee Centre (climate tech), Egypt's Chefaa (healthtech), and South Africa's Click2sure (fintech) were the crown winners.
Adoni Conrad Quenum
Launched in 2020 to train young people in several countries, the "Digital School" initiative seeks to ensure continuous innovation and promote digital learning through gamified modules and AI-driven adaptive learning.
Digital School, one of the global initiatives launched by UAE Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, recently inaugurated 66 new digital learning centers in Mauritania, the Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported.
The new centers, created in collaboration with the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC), aim to spread digital skills and edtech solutions across the Arab region.
"Our partnership with the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives in The Digital School project in Mauritania and other countries aims to facilitate students' access to advanced digital educational content, encourage learning and knowledge acquisition, overcome challenges, combat school dropout rates, enrich electronic content, and support education that promotes development, stability, progress, and prosperity in communities," said Hamoud Al Junaibi, ERC Deputy Secretary General.
The digital learning centers were inaugurated as part of the second phase of a project born from an agreement signed, in 2021, by the Islamic Republic of Mauritania and the Digital School initiative to establish digital schools in Mauritania.
In its pilot phase, six digital centers were opened in four middle and two elementary schools to benefit 635 pupils. Twelve teachers and three team members were trained in the digital education sector. After the training, certificates were handed out by the University of Arizona and 400 electronic tablets were distributed as well.
The second phase of the project aims to extend this experience to 60 new schools, benefiting 20,000 pupils in primary and preparatory schools. It also includes the training of 146 teachers and an increase in the number of project team members. The ultimate goal is to reach 100,000 pupils and 1,000 teachers over the next three years.
Samira Njoya
In the digital age, tech entrepreneurs have a growing potential to create wealth and jobs in Africa. However, they face several challenges that require urgent measures to encourage local talent and promote access to financing.
Last Wednesday, telecom operator Orange Africa and Middle East (OMEA) and pan-African digital initiative Digital Africa signed a strategic partnership agreement to foster the growth of African startups. The agreement was signed by Jérôme Hénique, CEO of Orange Africa and Middle East (OMEA), and Isadora Bigourdan, CEO of Digital Africa, on the sidelines of the 2023 edition of tech conference VivaTech, ongoing in Paris, France.
Under the agreement, the two entities will identify and select promising technology start-ups across the African continent. Those selected will be able to access a range of resources, including mentoring programs, technical assistance, funding mobilization, and networking opportunities through the Orange Digital Center and the Digital Africa community.
According to Isadora Bigourdan, digital talent is the key to transforming the African continent. "...This partnership with the Orange Digital Centers is fully in line with our deployment strategy, which aims to identify promising entrepreneurs at the onset, and facilitate their access to support, financing, and advocacy tools through an international network of allies," she said.
"...This collaboration with Digital Africa [...] adds an essential component to our current network of Orange Digital Centers, by simplifying access to flexible financing solutions, specially designed to meet the needs of entrepreneurs in their seed phase. This collaboration represents real added value and will help stimulate the growth of the African startup ecosystem," added Jérôme Hénique.
Orange Digital Center (ODC) is an ecosystem deployed in 17 Middle East and African countries and 8 European countries. It supports, trains, and mentors young people and the bearers of innovative ideas, to enhance their employability and prepare them for the jobs of the future (AI, cybersecurity, ...) or to encourage them to become digital entrepreneurs. Each ODC hosts a range of free programs open to all, from digital training for young people to start-up acceleration, as well as support and investment in project leaders.
The cooperation with Digital Africa is in line with some of the recommendations made, in 2022, by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change to enable African start-ups to raise more than $90 billion by 2030 and make Africa a superpower in the technology sector.
The recommendations included developing innovative financing vehicles, unlocking capital from institutional investors and corporates, building the capacity of start-ups and support organizations, and launching a "pan-African start-up network".
Muriel Edjo
Despite the steady rise in the volume of funds raised by African start-ups over the past few years, gender inequalities are still very much in evidence. In the 16 months ending on April 30, 2023, start-ups led by women have raised just $119 million, representing 2.9% of the overall funding raised by African startups during the period.
African women-led startups raised a cumulative $119.05 million between January 1, 2022, and April 30, 2023, according to a report published, on June 7, 2023, by tech news portal Disrupt Africa and pre-seed investment program Madica.
Entitled "Diversity Dividend: Exploring Gender Equality in the African Tech Ecosystem", the report explains that women-led startups raised just 2.9% of the $4.05 billion raised by African startups during the period under review.
Of the 711 start-ups that raised funds, 83 were headed by women (11.7%), while 149 had at least one woman in their founding team (21%). The latter category raised $369.10 million. Nigeria tops the list of countries of origin of start-ups with at least one woman in their founding team, ahead of Kenya, South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, Ghana, and Tunisia.
The report also highlights the fact that Africa's tech landscape is largely dominated by men. Out of a total of 2,395 startups tracked by Disrupt Africa, only 350 (14.6%) were founded or co-founded by women, while only 230 (9.6%) were headed by women.
Although figures vary from one country to the other, the African start-up landscape is still a long way from being gender inclusive. No country has more than 23% of women founders. The countries with the most women founders or co-founders are, in order, Rwanda, Tunisia, Senegal, Ethiopia, and Uganda. The four most developed ecosystems on the continent (Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, and Egypt) are not gender diversified.
The legal-tech sector tops the list of those with the most women founders and co-founders (26.9%). This is followed by healthtech (22.1%), recruitment and human resources management (22%), ed-tech (17.8%), and e-commerce (17.3%).
The report also shows that 80.8% of women think they have experienced professional prejudice because of their gender. Meanwhile, 50% of them believe they lost professional opportunities directly because of their gender, and 69.2% of the female founders also indicated that they felt negatively impacted by the fact of being women when speaking to a potential investor.
South Africa remains the best African start-up ecosystem, ahead of Mauritius, Kenya, Nigeria, and Egypt. Lagos is the only African city in the Top 100 of "start-up friendly" cities worldwide.
Fifteen African countries feature in the top 100 ecosystems conducive to the emergence and development of ecosystems worldwide, according to a report published by startup ecosystem map last May 30. To establish this ranking, the research firm focused on more than 30 indicators divided into three main categories.
The first category is quantity, which uses indicators like the number of start-ups, coworking spaces, accelerators, start-up-related meetings, etc. The second is quality, using indicators like total investment in start-ups, number, and size of unicorns, presence of R&D centers set up by major international technology companies, the presence of subsidiaries of multinationals, etc. The last category is the business environment, which is measured using indicators like Internet speed, R&D spending, tax rates applied to start-ups, availability of various technological services such as electronic payment and cryptocurrencies, level of corruption, etc.
The report, entitled "Global Startup Ecosystem Index 2023", reveals that South Africa (53rd in the world) has the best startup ecosystem in Africa, despite falling four places in the global ranking compared with 2022. The Republic of Mauritius (61st worldwide) occupies second place in Africa, ahead of Kenya (62nd worldwide), Nigeria (64th worldwide), and Egypt (67th worldwide).
They are followed by Ghana, Cape Verde, Senegal, Namibia, and Tunisia, closing the African top 10. The report also points out that five African countries have improved their overall ranking. Mauritius and Senegal made the strongest progress compared with the 2022 edition, gaining 10 places each. The two countries entered the Top 100 best start-up ecosystems in 2021 and 2022 respectively.
The biggest declines were recorded by Morocco, which dropped 14 places compared with 2022 to 93rd position worldwide this year, and Rwanda (-11 places). Uganda is the only African country to re-enter the index in 2023 after it dropped out of it in 2022.
The report also ranked 1,000 startup cities worldwide. Lagos (82nd worldwide) is the only African city in the Top 100. The Nigerian economic hub owes its ranking to its highly dynamic ecosystem, with over 400 start-ups, including unicorns Jumia and Flutterwave, and 35 active incubators.
The best-represented countries in the ranking of the 1,000 cities with the best start-up ecosystems in the world are Nigeria (5 cities), South Africa (4 cities), and Kenya (2 cities). Victoria (Seychelles) made the greatest progress, moving up 592 places to the 232nd position. It was followed by Port-Louis (+269), Dakar (+155), Tunis (+57), Cairo (+36), and Accra (+28).
Cassava is one of the most widely consumed foods in sub-Saharan Africa. It is easy to cultivate and can be processed into many things. It nevertheless faces threats that can be overcome with technology.
On Tuesday, June 6, smart farm management software provider FarmERP announced the deployment of its FarmGyan platform based on AI, machine learning (ML), and computer vision in Nigeria.
According to the provider’s release, the platform aims to boost cassava cultivation in the country to improve productivity, profitability, and predictability.
"FarmERP [...] brings a specialized focus on helping Cassava farmers by extending the crop life [...] in Cassava plantations up by 40% through its tech-enabled platform," the release said.
Nigeria's cassava industry is the largest in Africa. For several years, the country has been the world's leading producer of cassava, accounting for 21% of global output. However, cassava plantations face several challenges, including the proliferation of pests, the presence of diseases, and extreme weather conditions.
To solve these problems, the FarmGyan platform will digitize the growth path. It will also monitor plants and quickly identify weed infestation by using drone images and AI models.
The platform will also be able to detect crop and soil moisture, crop water requirements and irrigation, and manage diseases through satellite-based crop health monitoring tools. Overall, FarmGyan will contribute to effective and efficient crop management.
After Nigeria, the company will extend its services to other African countries, notably Angola and Ghana. The aim is to help as many stakeholders as possible to practice Agriculture 4.0 to achieve profitable and sustainable agribusiness.
Samira Njoya
The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the digital summit GITEX Africa, which gave several companies the opportunity to bag agreements.
On Wednesday, May 31, Hicham El Habti, President of Université Mohammed VI Polytechnique (UM6P), and Safia Faraj, CEO of French company Atos signed a collaboration agreement on the sidelines of digital summit Gitex Africa in Marrakech. The agreement aims to strengthen collaboration in the fields of research, innovation, and education, and to support the development of digital talents in Morocco and Africa.
"The two institutions will collaborate on research and development projects, as well as on the organization of scientific conferences or seminars, or the sharing of material and human resources [...] Atos will organize events, open houses, and training courses for UM6P students. It will also connect them with Internship and recruitment opportunities. Similarly, Atos employees will be welcomed at UM6P for engineering and management training courses," reads the press release issued on June 1.
The Moroccan university is multiplying its partnerships to establish itself as a reference in fields relating to digital transformation. With its Stargate incubator, the institution facilitates the emergence of start-ups in the country. In that context, thanks to this new partnership with Atos, it can help the Moroccan tech sector address the tech skills and talent gap.
Let’s note that during GITEX Africa, Atos, a leading digital transformation player in Africa, also signed agreements with Togo to implement a national electronic identification system.
Adoni Conrad Quenum
To grow and compete with their counterparts around the world, African businesses need stable, low-latency connectivity and digital tools to optimize their activities. Projects are being implemented to enable access to what they need.
Liquid Dataport, a subsidiary of connectivity company Liquid Intelligent Technologies, announced on Wednesday, May 31 the launch of its new fiber optic route linking Mombasa, Kenya, to Muanda in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) via Uganda and Rwanda.
According to the release announcing the launch, this is the shortest route between East and West Africa and will reduce data transmission latency by 20 milliseconds.
“We have a significant number of wholesale, enterprise, and hyperscale customers along this route, and we fully support them in operating their global networks. The availability of our latest and shortest East to West route brings many proven economic and social benefits – from providing access to online educational resources to creating more jobs and driving the adoption of new technologies,” said David Eurin, CEO of Liquid Dataport.
This latest fiber optic route complements Liquid's previous achievement, completed in 2019, linking Dar es Salaam to Muanda on the west coast of the DRC via Zambia. It will bring more reliable and affordable broadband connectivity to over 40 million people who live and work in all the major cities along the route.
The partnership is part of Liquid Intelligent Technologies' "One Broadband Africa" initiative. The company is pursuing its strategy of conquering the African and global markets for broadband connectivity and digital services. In recent months, it has strengthened its presence in Africa by expanding into Nigeria, Egypt, and Algeria. On Thursday, May 25, the company signed an agreement with satellite telecom services provider Viasat to provide high-speed Internet connectivity services in West Africa.
According to Hardy Pemhiwa, CEO of Liquid Intelligent Technologies, this east-west axis will promote digital inclusion by bringing global traffic to the continent, but also by reducing the cost of broadband Internet access across the continent.
Samira Njoya
Nigeria, with its 218 million population, needs 363,000 doctors to reach the WHO’s recommended one doctor for every 600 residents. With the ratio becoming less attainable, authorities have decided to leverage the power of tech tools.
Last week, the Nigerian Federal government inaugurated NigComHealth, an e-health solution. The solution was developed in partnership with NigComSat, a Nigerian ICT and telecommunications company, Sawtrax, a Nigerian software company, and Ethnomet, a Canadian health technology start-up. The aim is to provide people, especially those in rural and remote areas, with better access to health care.
“The doctor-patient ratio in the country is getting worse, with a physician attending to more than 5,000 patients. This represents a stark contrast with WHO’s recommendation of one doctor to 600 patients. With 218 million people to cater to, Nigeria requires at least 363,000 additional doctors to meet this target,” which NigComHealth is expected to achieve, according to Professor Salahu Junaidu, the Chief of Staff to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy.
For several years now, the country has been the hotspot for the tech revolution in Africa. In the health sector, the number of healthtech solutions is multiplying and increasingly becoming a viable alternative to people with low or no access to health services. The solutions contribute to the achievement of the third sustainable development goal, which aims to ensure health and well-being for all by guaranteeing, among other things, universal access to medical coverage and health services.
However, despite the efforts, e-health solutions are not yet accessible to most rural populations. According to the GSMA, Sub-Saharan Africa had a 28% internet penetration rate in 2020. In addition, Nigeria particularly has the highest internet exclusion index in the world, according to a study published by World Data Lab in 2022. According to the same source, about 103 million people (out of a population of about 218 million) are "Internet poor," meaning they cannot afford the minimin Internet bundle.
In that context, if no additional measures are taken, NigComHealth, seen by politicians as the tool to resolve the desperate health access issue, may be just another healthtech solution in the Nigerian tech landscape.
Adoni Conrad Quenum
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In the digital era, data generated by internet users are raw materials for various multinationals. Restricting its misuse is a security issue, particularly in Africa where regulations are somewhat lax.
The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) announced on Monday (May 22), a €1.2 billion fine against Meta Platforms Ireland Limited. The fine was imposed over the violation of Article 46 (1) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in relation to the unlawful processing and storage of European Facebook users’ data in the U.S.
Meta Platforms Ireland Limited is allowed five months to "suspend any future transfer of personal data to the United States," six months to stop "the unlawful processing, including storage, in the United States" of the transferred EU personal data. The Irish CPO's decision comes in the week marking the fifth anniversary of the GDPR, which became effective on May 25, 2018.
The decision issued Monday by the Irish regulator is the umpteenth in a series of fines that stems from a multitude of complaints filed, since 2011, by privacy activist Max Schrems.
It calls on African authorities to regulate the management of African users’ private data by multinationals such as Facebook, Amazon, and Google ... whose services are used by hundreds of millions of people on the continent.
The African Union Convention on Cybersecurity and the Protection of Personal Data adopted on June 27, 2014, which aims to protect personal data is yet to become effective. As of April 11, 2023, it was ratified by 14 countries. The last country to ratify it was Côte d'Ivoire, on March 8, 2023. As per Article 36, one more ratification is needed for the text to officially become effective.
Muriel Edjo
The digital economy is already disrupting the labor market in Africa, where a significant lack of basic, intermediate, and advanced digital skills still exists. To address this skills gap, educational institutions are exploring the educational segment. Additionally, some other companies are also getting involved, albeit for different purposes.
Since its inauguration in October 2021, Orange Digital Center (ODC) has trained 1,900 individuals, including 60% women, in digital skills in Madagascar, according to Frédéric Debord (photo), CEO of telecom operator Orange Madagascar. More than 600 of the learners from this digital skills acquisition center were professionally inserted, we learn. According to Frédéric Debord, the Malagasy-based ODC is the only one in the 15 similar centers across Africa to have achieved such performance.
The executive made those comments at the 12th edition of the Conference on Digital Transformation in Africa (ATDA), held on May 19-20, 2023 under the theme "Human Capital: Catalyst for a successful African digital ecosystem.” During this international meeting, Frédéric Debord called on African digital actors to invest in training nearly 650 million individuals in digital skills on the continent by 2030.
According to the International Finance Corporation (IFC), more than 230 million jobs will require digital skills by 2030 in sub-Saharan Africa, which will translate into nearly 650 million training opportunities. The institution points out that digital skills will be among the seven most important skills in the future. Yet the current workforce does not have an adequate supply of these skills, and the gap between supply and demand, which is larger in sub-Saharan Africa than in other regions, is likely to grow.
For now, African education systems are not being reformed fast enough to take those realities into account. However, private training organizations are already moving to meet the needs with fee-based training. Sometimes, the trainings are free, thanks to investments made by companies as part of their social commitment.
For instance, under its corporate responsibility, Orange has deployed 42 women digital centers, in addition to its ODCs. The centers have helped train more than 10,000 unqualified and unemployed women in digital skills. The group has also deployed 240 Digital Schools in Madagascar, and more than 400,000 students and teachers are benefiting from the program, which aims to improve the quality of education, promote equal access to digital education and encourage the use of digital tools in schools.
Over the past five years, Kenya has made significant progress in the ICT field. The country is now a digital hub attracting several multinationals. It still wants to consolidate that position.
On Wednesday, May 10, Kenya signed a partnership agreement with Venom Foundation, a foundation specializing in crypto development and licensed by Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), an international financial center and free zone located on Al Maryah Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Under the agreement, a state-of-the-art hub dedicated to the creation of new blockchain and Web3 applications in Africa will be established in Nairobi.
"The Kenya Blockchain Hub will provide essential tools and resources to support African nations in building a robust foundation for digital transformation. By implementing blockchain-based solutions, we aim to promote transparency, efficiency, and trust throughout the continent. [...] The benefits of this partnership will extend both nationally and globally, improving lives and unlocking potential," the Venom Foundation tweeted.
Blockchain is a storage technology that keeps track of a set of transactions in a decentralized, secure, and transparent manner. It offers high standards of transparency and security, as it operates without a central control body. It can be used in various sectors, including finance. This partnership demonstrates the growing interest that blockchain and related technologies are gaining in Kenya. Global cryptocurrency exchange Binance reports that about 8.5% of Kenya's population (4.25 million people) own digital currencies. This growing craze is currently driving the government's desire to introduce a 3% tax on digital assets in the next fiscal year.
Although there is no national strategy on blockchain and related services yet, the market is growing and changing. The Kenyan government, aware that it cannot curb people's adoption of new technologies because it still lacks the right regulatory framework, has taken security measures by developing a Sandbox through which new technologies, software, and other services can be tested in a safe environment before being made available for consumption.
Before the public initiative with Venom Foundation, an almost similar private initiative had already taken shape in October 2022. That month, the Swiss-based nonprofit NEAR Foundation announced the launch of the Regional Blockchain Hub in Kenya in partnership with Sankore, a NEAR Foundation guild based in Kenya. The Kenya Regional Hub's mission is to accelerate blockchain innovation, education, and talent development across Africa.
Samira Njoya
Competition is intensifying in Africa's rapidly growing data center market. Both local and foreign companies are increasing their investments in infrastructure to meet the rising demand for cloud services across the continent.
An agreement was signed on Monday, May 8, to secure land for the construction of a large-scale data center in Egypt. Khazna Data Centers, a company specializing in data center construction and operations based in Abu Dhabi, has partnered with the Egyptian ICT company, Benya Group, to carry out the project. The agreement was signed by Ahmed Mekky, CEO of Benya Group, Hassan Al Naqbi, CEO of Khazna Data Centers, and Amr Aboualam, chairman of Maadi Technology Park.
Under the agreement, Khazna Data Centers and Benya Group will build a $250 million data center at Maadi Technology Park in Cairo. The center will have a capacity of 25 megawatts (MW) that is expected to double to 50 MW as expansion plans are implemented. The goal is to meet the region's underserved data markets. Construction works are expected to begin later this year and be completed within three years.
The new agreement marks Khazna’s entrance into the Egyptian market. The company plans to expand into three other MENA markets, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Morocco.
According to Ahmed Mekky, Khazna's expansion in Egypt "will contribute to attracting more investments for business sectors involving intensive operations, supporting cloud computing and content system operators” and “encourage major commercial companies to join these giant digital clusters that rely on the latest cloud computing applications, digital technology, and big data."
Samira Njoya