In recent years, a growing number of young Africans have embarked on the path of entrepreneurship. Most often they either want to create jobs for themselves and others, diversify businesses, or just innovate to address local issues. In Guinea, the incubator Ose Ton Emploi has set itself the mission to support them.
Ose Ton Emploi is an entrepreneurial support institution created in 2018 in Guinea by Danda Diallo, a young Guinean entrepreneur. The incubator stimulates entrepreneurial desire, encourages, mentors, and directs innovation efforts toward growth-generating sectors. It aims to create a new generation of entrepreneurs committed to the growth and development of Guinea Conakry.
The Incubator provides customized support to meet the specific needs and profiles of entrepreneurs. It establishes incubation programs and arranges training, coaching, mentoring, and networking sessions to enhance entrepreneurs' capabilities and streamline their access to funding, markets, and partners. Operating on an inclusive approach, it centers around the entrepreneur, valuing the diversity of sectors, regions, and genders.
In 2022, the incubator introduced a digital platform, specifically designed for youth training, named Sanku Lab. Funded by Orange Guinea, the platform's goal is to train 2,100 individuals in "digital professions, prototyping, and the manufacturing of various objects." According to Danda Diallo, the founder and CEO of the incubator, Sanku Lab occupies a central role in the activities and support programs provided by the incubator.
Sanku Lab provides learners with a 3D printer, laser cutter, vinyl cutter, heat press, electronic tools, digital embroidery machines, and laptops, among others.
One of Ose Ton Emploi’s core programs is the Guinea Startup Challenge launched in 2019. It aims to imprint the entrepreneurial culture into young students through training, awareness-raising, and competition.
Ose Ton Emploi also offers a coworking space for young entrepreneurs. A member of the Afric'Innov community, it is supported by several institutions, including the Guinean Ministry of Youth and Youth Employment, the UNDP, and the University of Kindia in Guinea.
Melchior Koba
On Thursday, November 9, the Somali Ministry of Communications and Technology announced the approval by the Council of Ministers of a draft law on cybersecurity. The aim is to strengthen cybersecurity measures, promote online safety, and protect critical infrastructure.
To facilitate urban and intercity transport in Morocco, a tech entrepreneur has set up a car-sharing startup, building on the car rental concept.
Carmine is a digital solution developed by a Moroccan startup. It enables subscribed users to travel in one of the startup's vehicles. The Casablanca-based startup was founded in 2014 by Mohammed Mrani Alaoui (photo).
"The user starts by applying for membership through our web platform www.carmine.ma. Once his/her application is accepted, the account is activated and a personnel badge is issued to the member. The latter then becomes autonomous and can make a reservation directly on the app whenever the need arises," explains Mohammed Mrani Alaoui.
The said mobile app is available for Android and iOS devices. Thanks to that app, members can unlock the cars available at various locations around the city. It also allows members to view car availability in real-time, the time and kilometers traveled and billed, booking history, and account status.
Let’s note that the startup charges by the hour, day, or kilometer, depending on the type of reservation. Pricing takes into account the time of use, fuel, comprehensive insurance, and initial parking reservation.
Carmine offers various types of subscriptions on its web and mobile platforms. Payment options are just as varied. "We offer three methods of payment, either directly online via our website using a bank card, or in cash via our partner Cash Plus agencies, or directly with our customer service team at our Casablanca offices," explains Mohammed Mrani Alaoui.
The Android version of the application has been downloaded more than 10,000 times. After an extension to Rabat in September 2020, the startup plans to enter other major Moroccan cities.
Adoni Conrad Quenum
In 2020, Chad unveiled a strategic plan for digital and postal development, reflecting the government's determination to catch up with its technological backlog. To implement these projects, the country needs experienced partners.
Egypt and Chad are considering avenues for digital cooperation. The matter was discussed, last November 9, on the sidelines of a working meeting between Mahamat Allahou Taher (photo, center), Chad's Minister of Telecommunications and Digital Economy, and an Egyptian delegation in N'Djamena, Chad.
According to the Chadian Ministry of Digital Economy, the discussions focused, among other things, on the issue of international fiber optic interconnection (Chad-Egypt), the digitization of Chadian public administration, and the training of executives in digital skills.
The meeting is part of the strategic plan for digital and postal development (PSDNP 20-30) launched by the Chadian government in 2020. It takes place in a context marked by the acceleration of digital transformation in the country and the relaunch of work on the trans-Saharan fiber optic backbone in Chad.
For Egypt, the meeting is part of the government's efforts to implement its "Digital Egypt 2030" digital transformation strategy. To achieve this, Cairo is multiplying partnerships with countries with which it has good relations.
Collaboration between the two countries should enable Chad to take full advantage of Egypt, which is already well advanced in its digital transformation, particularly in e-governance and the provision of high-speed connectivity. The country plans to issue 5G network licenses to telecom operators by December. As for the provision of online services, since 2019 the country has launched the dematerialization of most of its public services. This initiative propelled the country to the 6th position among 16 African nations leading the way in e-government in 2022, as reported by the United Nations.
Samira Njoya
In Africa, managing payroll and human resources poses significant challenges for companies. In Benin, Mario Zannou established Uptimise to streamline and automate these processes.
Mario Zannou (photo) is a Beninese entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of Uptimise, a startup offering an online solution to simplify human resources and payroll management.
The entrepreneur holds a master's degree in computer engineering from Debrecen University's Faculty of Engineering, obtained in 2014. He also holds an engineering degree in telecoms networks obtained in 2015 from Sup Galilée and two Master's in Business Administration, obtained in 2023, from IFG Executive Education and IAE Paris respectively.
Mario Zannou founded Uptimise in May 2023. The company centralizes employee data and ensures efficient management of HR-related processes. Its platform facilitates the management of salaries, leave and absences, bonuses and benefits, salary advances, expense reports, and pay slips. It also enables better management of employee-related data and documents, including employment contracts and payslips.
In addition, the company provides real-time reporting and performance-tracking tools to assist companies in monitoring key indicators and making informed decisions.
Since 2020, Mario Zannou has been head of the cybersecurity department at cybersecurity and digital transformation consultancy Erugis. His professional career began in February 2015 at Prosodie, a subsidiary of the Capgemini Group that designs and hosts front-office services for major accounts, where he was a software engineer.
In October 2015, he joined the rail company VIIA as an IT project manager. In 2019, he joined business consultancy Willing as a cybersecurity consultant. At the same time, he works for civil engineering company Egis as head of the IT security department.
Melchior Koba
For more than a decade, Wiki Start Up has been dedicated to equipping startups with the essential resources, mentorship, and networking opportunities they need to transform their ideas into successful businesses.
Wiki Start Up is the first private incubator in Tunisia. Founded in 2011, it is a center that combines business incubation, coaching, and seed financing with certified investment professional Mohamed Salah Frad as its managing director.
The incubator specializes in support, consulting, research, and training, offering several programs to Tunisian startups. One of its programs is Startup Nest, an incubation program financed by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs with technical support from the NGO SPARK, dedicated to assisting and supporting innovative project leaders.
In 2015, Wiki Start Up initiated Start’Act in collaboration with the Carthage Business Angels Association. The said program supports innovative startups by helping them materialize and develop their projects. It features a rich incubation program with a wide range of shared training courses, in addition to personalized expertise-building training established in collaboration with project leaders. In addition, the program has a 50 million dinars (around $16 million) seed fund (Capital’Act) dedicated to startups that go through the Start’Act program.
In addition to helping startups raise funds, the center also co-launched CapitaLease Seed Fund, the first pre-seed fund in Tunisia. The pre-seed fund provides financial support to startups during their conception and prototyping phases.
Wiki Start Up has a significant impact in Africa. It has reached over 750 startups and supported more than 90 entrepreneurs. Its network comprises over 100 experts, mentors, and business angels, and more than 50 private companies, public bodies, and international organizations.
Melchior Koba
Africa is the continent with the most significant and pressing health challenges. With digital technologies, the continent can advance its healthcare system and address some of the issues in the sector.
Seychelles wants to accelerate the digitization of its healthcare services. The country has decided to assess the maturity of its digital healthcare system using a tool developed in partnership with the Commonwealth Secretariat, the Commonwealth Centre for Digital Health (CWCDH), and the World Health Organization (WHO).
The information was revealed at a recent four-day workshop held in Mahe and attended by the country's health officials, Commonwealth representatives, and international partners.
During the workshop, Seychelles' Minister of Health, Peggy Vidot, noted that the tool would help measure progress in the digital transformation of the country’s health sector. "In this era marked by rapid technological progress, the integration of digital health solutions emerges as a critical imperative. Seychelles embarks on a transformative journey, leveraging the power of digital innovation to fortify our healthcare system," he said.
The preliminary findings of the assessment indicate that the Seychelles government has made substantial progress in its efforts to enhance digital health systems, particularly through investments in an electronic health information system.
The findings also underscored that there is still significant work to be done. This includes establishing systems for incorporating user and patient feedback into digital solutions, adopting standards for network infrastructure and training, integrating monitoring and evaluation into project implementation, mapping existing digital solutions, policies, and guidelines into a cohesive digital health strategy, and enacting legislation for data storage and security.
Samira Njoya
During the US-Africa summit in December 2022, Cisco Systems declared a $200 million in-kind contribution to Africa. One year later, the positive impacts of this commitment are already evident.
Technology multinational Cisco recently inaugurated a sixth incubation center for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in South Africa, in partnership with Mafikeng Digital Innovation Hub (MDIHub), an innovative techno coworking center based in Mahikeng.
The new hub, baptized the EDGE Centre for Experience, Design, GTM (Go to Market), and Earn, aims to support the development of SMEs in the digital age, helping them access cutting-edge connectivity and networking technologies.
"Bringing the Cisco Edge experience to regions including the North West is essential to provide South Africans with a chance to participate in the global digital economy. At Cisco, we believe that technology plays a critical role in powering an inclusive future for all. By connecting people and businesses via the Cisco ecosystem and platforms, we create real impact and help prepare the country for a digital future," explained Clayton Naidoo, Senior Director for Country Digital Acceleration at Cisco Africa.
The new center launched by Cisco is part of its program called Country Digital Acceleration (CDA), introduced in South Africa in 2019. The global program aims to establish EDGE centers to contribute to the secure digital transformation of governments and enterprises.
The center will serve as a business knowledge-sharing space to drive business innovation. It will also offer digital skills training through the Cisco Networking Academy, an IT and cybersecurity training program that partners with educational institutions worldwide.
In South Africa, Cisco has trained almost 260,000 learners through this program, with a high female participation rate of 50%.
Samira Njoya
Following years of political instability, Somalia is gaining attention for the concerted efforts undertaken by authorities to foster the country's development. These efforts are notably evident in the technology sector.
On Tuesday, November 7, the Somali Ministry of Communications and Technology announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the International Telecommunication Union at the 2023 edition of the ITU Regional Development Forum for Arab States in Manama, Bahrain. The aim is to advance digital development, ICT policies, cybersecurity, capacity building, digital infrastructure strengthening, and connectivity in the country.
"The Government of Somalia is strengthening cooperation with the ITU. This agreement will be used to promote the Modernization and Transformation Process in Somalia, which aims to build and foster change that leads to sustainable development. Technology and Digital are the basis," said Jama Hassan Khalif, Somali Minister of Communications and Technology.
Despite a challenging political and security context, Somalia is doing everything necessary to get on board the digital revolution underway on the continent. The country intensified its efforts in recent years, in line with its 2019-2024 ICT Policy and Strategy, and various technical and financial partners are stepping in to support local authorities.
In October 2022, the European Union, Expertise France (EF), the German Agency for International Development Cooperation (GIZ), and the International and Ibero-American Foundation for Administration and Public Policies (FIIAPP) launched the €11 million "Digital for Development - D4D" program to support the digital transformation of several countries in the Horn of Africa, including Somalia. Last September, it launched a consultation for the future deployment of fifth-generation Internet in the country and also launched its national identification system.
With less than 2 million Internet users and a penetration rate of 9.8%, this new agreement should help, among other things, to reduce the digital divide and promote technological progress in the country. The country is still one of the continent's poor performers in terms of e-government, according to the 2022 edition of the report "E-Government Survey 2022 The Future of Digital Government" by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA).
Adoni Conrad Quenum
The sixth session of the India-Ethiopia Joint Trade Committee was held earlier this week in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. During the summit, several decisions were taken.
To solve all the problems hindering bilateral trade with Ethiopia and facilitate commercial exchanges with the country, India “invited” Ethiopia’s collaboration for the creation of a payment interface between the two countries. The request was made at the India-Ethiopia Joint Trade Committee (JTC) held on Monday, November 6, and Tuesday, November 7 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
"The Indian side invited the Ethiopian side to collaborate on the Unified Payment Interface (UPI) of India with Ethswitch– a share company owned by all banks in Ethiopia– of Ethiopia. Further, the Indian side also urged Ethiopia to explore the possibility of settlement of trade transactions in local currency which will help boost bilateral trade and conserve foreign exchange," reads a statement published by the Indian Ministry of Commerce.
The two countries signed a trade agreement in 1997 to strengthen their economic and commercial cooperation. Trade between the two countries in 2022-2023 is estimated to be worth more than $642.5 million. Also, to date, Indian companies have invested more than $5 billion in Ethiopia.
Last August, Addis Ababa was one of six countries to join the BRICS, a group of developing nations advocating a new economic world order. India is one of the founding members of this alliance, along with Brazil, Russia, China, and South Africa.
Let’s note that the new gateway is expected to boost Indian investment in Ethiopia.
Adoni Conrad Quenum
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A software engineer by training, he creates AI and robotics solutions to automate farm management. His innovations have won him several awards.
Akhlad Alabhar (photo) is the founder and CEO of Egrobots, a startup developing smart agricultural solutions. The Egyptian-born tech entrepreneur studied at Alexandria University's Faculty of Engineering, graduating in 2010 with a Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering.
In 2021, he founded Egrobots to help farmers grow crops more efficiently with minimum resources. His company enables farmers to cover more hectares by making strategic use of products, improving not only plant health and yield but also management and sustainability.
Egrobots uses cutting-edge imaging and artificial intelligence, robotics, and machine learning technologies to give suppliers and planters information to enable them to make informed decisions.
Through Egrobots, Akhlad Alabhar offers several products. Among them, Roboscoot uses AI to gather information about farmers' fields. Shagarah detects crop diseases, analyzes vegetation, humidity, and weather conditions, and makes recommendations to farmers.
The company recently took second place on the international stage in the Orange Social Venture Prize in Africa and the Middle East (POESAM) 2023. It also won first prize of 30,000 euros in the INTECMED ENI CBC Med transformation project.
Before becoming an entrepreneur, Akhlad Alabhar worked at Alinma Bank in Saudi Arabia. Hired in 2013 as an IT consultant, he successively held the positions of data analysis consultant and AI team leader before leaving in June 2023. He was also a project manager at Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Finance from 2018 to 2019.
Melchior Koba
Nigerian fintech startup Chipper Cash announced on Thursday, November 2 a new partnership with the American company Visa. The new agreement will enable the two entities to continue collaborating on card issuance, and the Nigerian unicorn will be able to leverage Visa's licenses and capabilities.
“Today’s announcement means we can deliver on our priorities at a faster pace than we could do alone; harnessing Visa’s global reach to enable us to continue to bring the very best products and services to customers,” said Brett Magrath, Chief Product Officer at Chipper Cash.
Over the past few years, numerous African countries have embarked on a digital transformation journey, making strategic decisions and introducing digital tools to facilitate this transition.
Bola Tinubu (photo), President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, launched the electronic civil registration and vital statistics system (e-CRVS) in Abuja on Monday, November 6. The system is the result of a collaboration between the National Population Commission (NPC), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and Barnksforte Technologies Limited, a company specializing in the provision of technological solutions in Africa and worldwide.
This new technological tool should contribute to achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 16.9.2 on legal identity for all. In addition to e-CRVS, the national geospatial data repository and the national coordination committee of CRVS were also launched at the same event.
"Digitizing civil registration in Nigeria transcends technology; it's a pledge to future generations. Now, every child's existence will be acknowledged, marking a new era where every significant life event informs our nation's development," said Cristian Munduate, UNICEF Representative in Nigeria.
In October 2022, African ministers responsible for civil registration met in Addis Ababa to reflect on progress and accelerate efforts towards 2030 through reformed systems. The conference aimed to provide a dynamic platform for education, awareness-raising, knowledge, and experience sharing on CRVS, legal identity processes, and products. Nigerian authorities took the lead by setting up their e-CRVS, which will enable, among other things, the collection of information such as birth registration, stillbirth registration, birth certificate, adoption, marriage notification, divorce notification, migration, or death certificates.
"The aim [...] is to accelerate the improved civil registration and vital statistics systems in Nigeria over ten years, from 2023 to 2030 in a bid to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG):16.9.2 - legal identity for all, including birth registration," explains Nasir Isa Kwarra, Chairman of the National Population Commission.
Adoni Conrad Quenum
A HEC Paris graduate and advocate of the Process Communication Model, he offers software and web services for Big Data applications through Ryax Technologies, his company.
Andry Razafinjatovo (photo) is a Malagasy entrepreneur, CEO, and co-founder of Ryax Technologies, a startup specializing in data engineering. He holds a master's degree in business administration and management from HEC Paris and a Process Communication Model trainer certificate from Kahler Communication France in 2022.
Ryax Technologies, which he launched in 2017 with David Glesser, and Yiannis Georgiou, offers software and web services leveraging hybrid distributed infrastructures for big data applications. The vision of Ryax Technologies is to offer an open-source platform for swift and efficient backend development.
The Ryax software developed by the company offers customizable encrypted communication and data confidentiality management. It facilitates secure supervision of data transfer, ensuring complete security. Moreover, it enables real-time flow processing thereby streamlining the application development process.
"Data engineering is key to getting value from your data science projects. We cannot wait until the end of the development phase to be sure of their ROI. We aim to allow our customers to reduce their time to market dealing with up to 100% of data engineering tasks from the execution to the maintenance of their data workflows," said Andry Razafinjatovo, explaining the importance of the Ryax platform.
A Process Communication Model trainer at Matana Conseil, the Malagasy spent a decade, from 2004 to 2014, working for Bull, a technology hub affiliated with the digital transformation enterprise Atos. Within this span, he undertook roles ranging from research and development engineer to high-performance computing (HPC) architecture engineer. Subsequently, from 2015 to 2017, he assumed the role of head of the performance and scalability department in the research and development division at Atos.
Melchior Koba