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Media Convergence Gives Viewing Options To Consumers In South Africa

Tech

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 30, 2013

Media Convergence Gives Viewing Options To Consumers In South Africa

With the convergence of the internet, TV and video into one service, consumers can now comfortably choose what they want to view, and the need and demand will begin to shape how these devices will be used.

Lance Berger, head of product marketing TV/AV at Samsung Electronics South Africa, believes that innovation, in the way people can choose to view their favorite programmes, is changing how manufacturers respond to this need.

“In the past, consumers were often dictated to in terms of when and what they watched. However, the launch of new services such as video on demand has changed this notion forever,” he said.

Lance says video on demand services enable consumers to rent or purchase the latest Hollywood blockbuster, at the click of a button: “Consumers can decide how long they wish to keep the content for, either from two days to a month, meaning they are not forced to view the content on the same day.”

Due to this convenience, the popularity of this demand will soon make this the the future of television viewing.”With rental prices starting from as little as R10 and purchase prices from R29, video on demand is becoming both a practical and economical option for many people – and the digital element means space is not taken up around the home with DVD boxes.”

As bandwidth continues to improve especially in South Africa – and consumers gain access to higher speed internet at home – customers are able to download content quickly and effortlessly.Samsung has also launched Video Hub, a video on demand platform, across its mobile devices as well as its range of Smart TVs, to ensure content viewing is available anywhere.

The company has also partnered with Telkom to combine landline rental, ADSL installation for new customers and a WiFi modem, as well as delivery and installation of a Samsung Smart TV.

Media convergence will soon catch up with the rest of Africa because the rate at which governments are embracing ICT is really high. Now that we are all expected to have migrated to digital by 2015, its predictable that it will influence many technological developments.

Mobile Remittance Will Exceed $10 Billion This Year, For The First Time

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 30, 2013

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Mobile Remittance Will Exceed $10 Billion This Year, For The First Time

For the first time this year,the Juniper Research says that, International remittance through mobile phones will exceed $10 billion

However, the Mobile Money Transfer & Remittances: Domestic & International Markets 2013-2018 report found that the cost and complexity of regulating cash transfer had led many service providers to focus exclusively on airtime topups.

This report says that only a few players were seeing significant traction on mobile; arguing that early service providers, many a times, had failed to establish a critical mass of mobile wallets in recipient markets, reducing the opportunity for inbound remittance.

However, the report claimed that regulatory complexity had been the primary obstacle, as the author of the report Dr Windsor Holden observed that: “Service providers must first obtain licences for each remittance corridor; they face due diligence and risk assessment checks, which may in turn oblige them to introduce additional mechanisms to address any issues which emerge. All these processes are time consuming and expensive.”

Even though the international cash remittance growth has been slow, transaction volumes have surged in the airtime topup market, where service providers are not required to obtain money licences. The report found that average annual airtime topups across key remittance corridors were in excess of average individual mobile spend levels in receiving countries, thereby covering recipient telecommunications bills for the year.

The report said nearly 400 million mobile phone users worldwide are expected to use their handsets for mobile money transfer by 2018; and in sub-Saharan Africa, mobile money taxes are threatening the growth of domestic money transfer services.

Zambia’s Econet Drives Growth With Its New Services

Business

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 30, 2013

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Zambia’s Econet Drives Growth With Its New Services

Zimbabwe’s Econet has been a growth vehicle for the country, with new services such as EcoCash, broadband, and EcoFarmer; the company has begun to make their presence felt in revenue harvesting.

Econet Wireless CEO Douglas Mboweni said the company’s focus was to speed up innovations aimed at creating new sources of revenue growth. With almost every adult, and even children, now owning cell phones, Econet has to invest heavily in new sources of revenue if it is to continue growing.

“We have been aware of this for a long time and we are addressing it by investing in and developing new sources of revenue. Whilst this takes time, we are now seeing very encouraging signs that our strategy is beginning to bear fruit,” he said.

The company having added more than 500 000 new customers over the last six months, the CEO noted that growth in the business was no longer about getting new customers, because the revenue they generated was falling all the time.

He said innovations like EcoCash, broadband, EcoFarmer, and many others in the pipeline, would be the future mainstay of the company.

EcoCash processed almost $1.2billion of transactions in the six months to August, and although Mboweni said it was still not profitable due to high investment costs, he however predicted that it will eventually account for at least 10 percent of revenue of the group within 18 months.

Meanwhile, results for the half year to August showed that the company had managed to sustain its strong market position, and its customer base now stands at 8.5 million. Revenue for the period grew by 11 percent, to $376.6 million compared to the same time last year.

The highlight of the period under review was the completion of the renewal of the license by 20 years, for which the company had paid the full amount of $137.5million. “I am pleased to say that we have paid the full amount of $137.5m for the license renewal, and we managed to do so from internal resources.”

Due to the large amount paid out on the license fees, as well as commitments on paying down its debt, which now stands at $232 million, Mboweni said the company had not purchased any shares under the “share buy-back” scheme, and would also not pay a dividend to its shareholders.

UN Initiative Sponsors Girls’ Education in Rural Niger

Tech
Women

Stella Kabura

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October 29, 2013

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UN Initiative Sponsors Girls’ Education in Rural Niger

This year’s UN international Day of the Girl Child held on 11 October 2013 encouraged smart and creative use of technology, policies, partnerships and most essentially, the engagement of young people overcoming barriers to girls’ learning and achievement reports say. Today, young female students in Zinder, Niger have a chance to continue with their education likely to see them venture into tech-related fields as they end teenage marriages and pregnancies.

In this initiative, reports say that some 60 students have now received support by the UNISEF with scholarships to continue their studies. The funds cater for school facilities, tutoring services, basics like soap, as well as expenses of the girl’s host families in rural areas.

Yet, in Niger, a third of girls are married off before age 15 with only 16 per cent attending high school and only half completing school. Supporting the girls past primary school matters because it ensures that they complete education and are protected from early marriages and pregnancies, notes a UNICEF report.

Some directors in schools indicated that there were no girls in schools two years ago, but the number has steadily been increasing thanks to the UNICEF initiative that has seen the number at a school in Yaouri rise from three girls in 2012 to 16 girls to date. Moreover, UNICEF selected some 500 girls from remote regions of Maradi and Zinder for the program, say reports. They were selected based on the distance girls took to reach school and in terms of social insecurity and achievement.

While it is noted that a number of girls would like to venture into nursing and technology related fields, the scholarship program is expected to see the number of students double in schools. However, there are a few requirements to ensure the best learning environment for Nafi Karfi among other schools. School books for instance are photocopied texts while students lack chairs and good sanitation.

In all, the zeal of the girls eager to learn through scholarships in the community ensures that girls have access to education that could save them from early marriages.

Photo: courtesy of UN

Valmet Supplies State Of Art Tissue Line in Algeria

Stella Kabura

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October 29, 2013

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Valmet Supplies State Of Art Tissue Line in Algeria

As a result of thorough planning and market survey done by Algerian company Faderco, Metso’s Pulp, Paper and Power business, the future Valmet company is set to supply a complete tissue line which would be installed on Faderco’s new site at Setif Algeria using state of the art technology.

The Pulp, Paper and Power business, in addition to its supplies, would also include an automation solution for machine, process and quality controls, says a report.

While Metso is a global supplier of technology and services to customers in the process industries, including mining, construction, pulp and paper, power, and oil and gas set to change its name to Valmet in 2014, its partner Faderco is known for producing cotton derivatives in Algeria. According to Faderco owner Amor Habes, after doing thorough investigations and evaluation, the organisation came to the conclusion that Metso is the right partner for Faderco for such an important project which would establish high quality tissue paper production on 80 per cent of the Algerian market.

Indeed, since 1986, Faderco has been active in the industrial hygiene field, through cotton derived products and hygiene items with absorbent pads while producing baby and adult diapers and paper products since last year especially once it became a joint stock company with Metso in 2009. With both whole sale and direct sales, Faderco’s commercial coverage is 80 percent of the Algerian national territory. The company exports products to other countries in Northwest Africa and sub- Sahara.

Thanks to the joint stock partnership, new developments have taken place. Impressed by this year’s well founded investment and technical analysis of the new project, the detailed preparation done in an early stage would most likely contribute to its success, noted Jan Erikson, Vice President Sales, Pulp, Paper and Power Metso.

In terms of logistics and technology, the tissue production line would have a design capacity of around 30,000 tons a year of high-quality facial, toilet and towel grades as the raw material for the new lines will be virgin fiber. Metso’s scope of delivery would include one complete tissue production line featuring stock preparation systems and an Advantage DCT 100+ tissue machine equipped with an OptiFlo headbox, a Metso Yankee cylinder, an Advantage AirCap, an Advantage WetDust dust system and an Advantage SoftReel A reel.

Moreover, the organisation informs the public that the stock preparation line consists of OptiSlush pulper, OptiFiner conical refiners and deflaker and OptiScreen screens. Also an advanced MC20T rewinder with calendar as well as roll transporting and wrapping equipment is included in the delivery. In addition to the paper making process Metso supplies complete electrical systems and effluent treatment of the waste water coming from the process, concurs the organisation.

The delivery also includes an automation package with Metso DNA machine and process controls and Metso IQ quality controls. Complete installation supervision, training, start-up and commissioning are also part of the delivery. The supply is based on total Mill Engineering by Metso. A smooth and successful start-up of the tissue production line is ensured through a one year on-site support, by Metso.

“We are proud to be part of the growth of the Faderco company,” said Jan Erikson, Vice President Sales, Pulp, Paper and Power, Metso, referring to the new developments that are taking place in the company and country. The start-up of the tissue machine is planned for the second quarter of 2015. However, the value of the order has not yet been disclosed

Nigeria’s Photo Sharing Platform, Hipingg Releases Android Mobile App

Startups

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October 29, 2013

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Nigeria’s Photo Sharing Platform, Hipingg Releases Android Mobile App

Nigeria’s photo sharing platform that allows users to send photos and messages to friends, Hipingg has today launched its Android Mobile app to allow even more users enjoy the service.

The service, with over 100,000 users capturing and sharing their best moments has become a place where people come to connect and be inspired.

The founder, Prudence Okoilu told TechMoran, “Today we’re launching Hipingg on Android, a new mobile service that lets you share multiple photos and send messages to friends. Hipingg is all about capturing moments that makes up your life. Android users can share beautiful photos and send messages to their friends easily.”

“We have been testing it for a while now, just to perfect things. Android is first and iOS will come early next year We’ve been looking forward to this day, and we’re excited to get the app into your hands.”

Hipingg for Android allows users to upload photos from their phones gallery; Explore, and Find Friends around their location, find and invite people they know to join. The app also has new features like Tagging; to allow users tag their friends along with their photos and a ‘News’ icon where users can read latest updates on Entertainment, Sport and Technology news from across Africa and beyond.

Over the coming weeks, Hipping says they will launch new features for Android–– including front-facing camera, search, and the ability to share to other platforms.

The app can be found on the MTN APP STORE.

Ecobank goes live in Ethiopia | Launches Ecobank OMNI For Cross-Border & Multi-Currency Cash Management

Tech

Sam Wakoba

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October 29, 2013

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Ecobank has launched its operations Ethiopia with a new branch in Yerer Ber district in Addis Ababa, in a pan-African move that will see it cover 35 countries on the continent.

Apart from its Ethiopia launch, Ecobank has also deployed Global CASHplus, an integrated, real-time cross-border payment and cash management system for use in 30 African countries, the project began as a pilot in 2011.

According to Albert Essien, Deputy Group CEO for Corporate & Investment Banking at Ecobank the bank set out to develop a cash management system flexible for varying local business practices but powerful to support a high volume of transactions across the bank’s entire network.

Essien said, “We moved quickly to implement a robust solution that will facilitate cross-border and multi-currency business for our customers, removing many of the traditional bottlenecks in the cash management process.”

The new platform, Ecobank OMNI, enables Ecobank’s corporate customers to link their enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems for integrated origination and reconciliation of transactions. The bank believes the platform will help it accommodate varying business practices across its network across the countries it operates.

OMNI is an implementation of Fundtech’s Global CASHplus®.

Ecobank believes that by 2015, Ethiopia will be the world’s third-fastest-growing economy.

Aggreko To Provide 20 MW Of HFO Power To Chad

Business

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 29, 2013

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Aggreko To Provide 20 MW Of HFO Power To Chad

The world leader in provision of temporary power and temperature control services, Aggreko, has signed contracts with Société Nationale d’Electricité (SNE) to deliver a 20 MW temporary power package, fueled using locally sourced HFO, to help curb power shortages which are currently affecting the country.

The Aggreko installation will bring much needed additional capacity to the local grid and will ensure a more robust and reliable power supply is delivered to the capital N’Djamena in order to help keep business and industry up and running and keep the lights on in the city.

“We are happy to be assisting SNE, the national utility of Chad in this important project,” commented Christophe Jacquin, Managing Director, Aggreko North and West Africa. “By delivering this large-scale, fast-track HFO power solution, we are helping to provide a more consistent and reliable power supply to the people of Chad.”

“The Aggreko power plant will give us the opportunity and time we need to address the power supply issues affecting N’Djamena,” commented Djerassem Le Bemadjiel, Minister of Energy, Republic of Chad. “Their unique ability to utilise locally sourced HFO and their strong track-record across Africa gives us the confidence that Aggreko are the right partner for this vital project.”

Aggreko provides power and temperature control solutions to customers who need them either very quickly, or for a short or indeterminate length of time. Theyhave 194 service centres which service the different customers. They call these centres the Local business, or globally through our Power Projects business.

In the Power Projects business, which also accounts for about half of our revenues, Aggreko operates as a power producer. They install and operate power plants and charge our customers both for providing the generating capacity, and for the electricity produced.

Oracle To Showcase Employment For The Modern Kenyan Enterprise

Tech

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 29, 2013

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Oracle To Showcase Employment For The Modern Kenyan Enterprise

The second largest software maker,Oracle- Kenya, plans to have its Oracle day at Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi on November 8th. This day will be geared towards demonstrating the Power of Hardware and Software normally engineered to work together.

In its 3^rd year, the event will enlighten participants on how the power of simplicity can change IT to a force that drives business innovation.

Apart from Nairobi, the software company will be having Oracle day events in more that 30 cities across Europe , Middle East and Africa, as part of a global event series under the theme: ‘Converge. Connect. Empower the Modern Enterprise’

Dr Gilbert Saggia, Country Manager Oracle Kenya said: “Bringing the major Open World announcements to countries beyond the US gives Oracle an opportunity to expose the power of hardware and software engineered to work together at Oracle Days.”

He also added that the new technologies bring unmatched benefits to businesses everywhere Mr. Kaggia reiterated that Oracle Day 2013 promises to be the best yet, with industry experts and customers delivering a content-rich agenda.

Sony Launches The Xperia L

Mobile

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 29, 2013

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Sony Mobile Communications has today announced the availability of the new Xperia smartphone model the Xperia L, which will join its 2013 line up within the Vodacom channel.

“The Xperia L is ideally suited for those seeking stylish smartphones that don’t compromise on features”, said Mark Fenzel, Sony Mobile Sales Director for Middle East and Africa. “This new model benefits from Sony’s proven innovation and engineering expertise and enables a new band of consumers to capture every moment in perfect detail, and at an attractive price point.”

This smartphone offers the best of Sony with stunning premium designs and a range of technologies including a high quality screen; the latest camera features; NFC connectivity for One-touch function; Battery STAMINA mode for extended battery life; and Sony’s signature media apps.

The Xperia L features an 8 megapixel camera with Sony’s unique “ExmorTM RS for mobile” sensor technology for vivid colours and stunning clarity. High Dynamic Range (HDR) ensures that photos and videos are clearly captured, even at night or against a strong backlight.

And with the dedicated camera key that goes from sleep to snap in just over a second even from a locked screen, this fast-capture camera phone is designed to ensure that the user never misses a shot.

The device also features a high quality 4.3”FWVGA screen, ideally suited to showcase all content and is available in black.

Glo launches Vigicom to help Nigeria Vigilante Groups call for free in distress times

Tech

Sam Wakoba

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October 29, 2013

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Glo launches Vigicom to help Nigeria Vigilante Groups call for free in distress times

Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN), body overseeing groups in charge of local policing in the country, has received a communication package from Globacom that will see its members freely communicate with each other while on duty across the country.

Dubbed Vigicom, the package will also allow the group members to communicate with their families freely especially in distress.

According to Alhaji Ali Sokoto, Commander General of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN), the Vigicom will help them effectively police remote areas in the country and make intelligence gathering efficient.

Vigicom sends and receive alerts and users can call even without airtime and will be used by the members to ensure effective communication for the country’s security. However, the vigilante members will be required to pay N1,000 as monthly rental fee. Then them and their families will receive special lines for free.

According to a report by NewsDiaryOnline,”Security was a driving issue in the last Presidential campaign following bomb blast by Niger Delta militants and attacks of police by members of the extremist Islamic group, Boko Haram in the northern part of the country.”

The report adds that President Jonathan campaigned very hard to convince Nigerians that his government was meeting those security challenges. However, riots followed immediately after his election in the North. Everyday, the Boko Haram group kills several civilians and soldiers.

The AFP is reporting that thirty-five bodies in military uniform have been brought to a morgue in Nigeria’s restive northeast after a coordinated assault by Boko Haram targeting the security forces late Thursday in the Yobe state capital of Damaturu.

Vigicom will therefore help the community police groups to work with other security stakeholders curb crime.

Motorola Displays Its Modular Smartphone Concept

Mobile

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 29, 2013

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Motorola Displays Its Modular Smartphone Concept

Motorola is not sleeping on its job as it has shown off a project that could see the company develop so-called modular smartphones in the future where users bolt together components to customize their handsets. How cool is this?

This innovation came from a series of public events where people were able to experiment with 3D-printers to come up with their own smartphone concepts.

Led by Motorola’s Advanced Technology and Projects group, what is being called “Project Ara” is now developing a free, open hardware platform for creating modular smartphones.

The design for Project Ara consists of what they call an endoskeleton (endo) and modules. The endo is the structural frame that holds all the modules in place. A module can be anything, from a new application processor to a new display or keyboard, an extra battery, a pulse oximeter.

The company said that it would invite developers to start creating modules for the Ara platform in the coming months and expect that between December and March next year there will be an alpher release of the Module Developer’s Kit (MDK).

This is out of the ordinary, a phone that you assemble pieces of your phone by your self very interesting. What if one looses one part of the phone? will it mean that the user will but another one or can they get a replacement?

Daawat Rice Art Competition Giving Away Free Nokia Lumia 520

Tech

Sam Wakoba

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October 29, 2013

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Daawat Rice Art Competition Giving Away Free Nokia Lumia 520

Daawat rice is running a 2 month campaign expected to get people to think differently about rice.

According to the firm, “Though rice is food, it is also an art. #DaawatRiceArt. For the next two months, every 10 days we will be sharing a some rice art, which we will do by ourselves, and ask the fans to replicate. ”

For next two months, Dawaat will be sharing rice art on their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/daawatrice then ask ask their fans to replicate the rice art. The person who manages to replicate the rice art in the best way possible will take home the Nokia Lumia 520.

For great rice art, one has to dye the rice where needed. Put it in separate bowls to cover for the different dyes. Follow this link to learn how to dye rice. It will take approximately 30 minutes for the rice to dry. Food dyes are readily available in supermarkets and food stores.

Users ought to make a outline of what they want to create. Once the rice has dried, then can then fill it up.

“Once you are happy with your work, take a picture of it and then post it on the Dawaat Facebook page.

Below is the current Daawat Rice art challenge. Do you think you can replicate it? Follow Dawaat Rice of Facebook for updates on the competition.

Below are the prizes the winner and runners-up will get.
Winner1. Nokia Lumia 520
2. Daawat rice hamper

Runner-up

1. Nokia Asha 501
2. Daawat rice hamper.

Week 1 winner and runners-up

Charles Ndung’u – Winner

Victoria Njue – Runners up

Week 2 winner and runners-up are:

1. Lois Ngar – Winner

2. Kashyap Kash Gohel – Runners up

Angola Is The First African Country To Make An LTE Video Roaming

Tech
Telcos

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 29, 2013

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Angola Is The First African Country To Make An LTE Video Roaming

Angola’s Unitel Unitel mobile network has hosted the first LTE video roaming call in Africa, well, this is according to BIC, a global provider of wholesale carrier service.

BICS says that the call was made in the presence of HRH Princess Astrid, Princess of Belgium, on an official state visit by the Belgian Economic Trade Mission to Angola.

The video call took place during the official signature of the trade mission and was between the Belgian deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs Didier Reynders in Luanda and BICS’ senior vice president for operations and customer services, Johan Wouters, in Belgium.The call was made using BICS’ LTE signalling platform.

Angola was one of the first countries in Africa to launch an LTE network in 2012 when Movicel unveiled the offering in Luanda.However, Angolan mobile operator Unitel also launched an LTE service in the country in 2012.

And subsequently Unitel has set up a roaming LTE network agreement in collaboration with partner countries already signed-up to the BICS IPX network.

“This agreement with BICS will allow us to offer our customers an entirely new range of quality services when abroad,” says Amilcar Safeca, deputy chief executive officer and chief technical officer at Unitel. “It will also allow visitors in Angola to roam onto Unitel’s network with a very high speed. With its extremely fast data transmission, the technology opens a new dimension with a multitude of communication possibilities.”

Clémentine Fournier, regional vice president Africa at BICS, said: “We have a long-standing partnership with Unitel for voice and 2G/3G roaming services. While extending this partnership to our 4G LTE roaming solution is a natural step, we are very excited to see Unitel become the first mobile operator in Africa to realise a 4G roaming session.”

Daniel Kurgan, chief executive officer of BICS said: “This landmark partnership marks the next stage of the evolution of the telecom market in Africa and the further realisation of LTE roaming across the globe, brought about by the increasing usage of Internet-enabled mobile or tablet handsets and the high workforce mobility on the continent.”

UK Firm In Talks With Zinox Group to Launch Africa’s Largest Online Mall in Nigeria

Tech

Sam Wakoba

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October 29, 2013

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UK Firm In Talks With Zinox Group to Launch Africa’s Largest Online Mall in Nigeria

A UK firm is said to be in talks with Zinox Group to build Africa’s largest online mall,according to new reports by Nigeria Communications Week.

The project was earlier announced by Zinox Group’s Leo Stan Ekeh in May at the Subsidy Reinvestment Programme (SURE-P) event.

Speaking as the guest of honor at the event that time, Ekeh talked about a brick and mortar ICT mall expected to be Nigeria’s one-stop shop for both ICT software and hardware. The move to have an online version for the the country’s major wholesalers and retailers will help reach many more in the country with over 45 million internet users.

At the SURE-P programme, Ekeh said the ICT mall will create new jobs and encourage local creation. According to reports the UK firm, will work with Zinox’s Task Systems as it has been at the forefront of the country’s digital development and has the industry track record to do so.The online mall will also have physical pick up points in 36 states around Nigeria.

Leo Stan Ekeh is known for incisive entrepreneurship and as Chairman of the Zinox Group, he has been at the forefront of computerizing Nigeria.

Nigeria To Embrace Electronic Pipeline Surveillance To Help Track Oil Theft

Tech

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 29, 2013

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Nigeria To Embrace Electronic Pipeline Surveillance To Help Track Oil Theft

The Nigerian government has looked into technology and has seen the possibility of protecting its oil from theft, with the possibility of using an electronic pipeline surveillance.

The country’s president Goodluck Jonathan indicated that this development will help curb what he described as the menace of oil theft.

“Relevant regulatory agencies are working round the clock to combat the challenge, considering the strategic position of oil and gas in the economy. My administration has embarked on a number of far-reaching measures to combat these unwholesome activities. Government is exploring the possibility of using electronic pipeline surveillance to track down oil theft,” he said.

He added that all relevant industries should ensure that all oil and gas related cargo should be discharged only at the designated terminals, and also that the agencies concerned should ensure strict enforcement on the ban on the illegal discharge of cargo and receiving of vessels at private jetties.

The president said that the choice of the Onne oil and gas free trade zone was strategic, as it will showcase the investors’ confidence in the Nigerian economy.

Jonathan highlighted that the revenue in oil has increased from $5.4 billion to $7.1 billion in 2013 and the FDI from $4 billion to $4.2 billion in the same year.

Among the increment came the companies operating in the free zone which have increased from 150 in 2011 to 170 in 2013 as well as employment regeneration which has increased from 30,000 in 2011 to 34,000 in 2013.

Another area of increment includes support to family livelihood which has grown from 180,000 in 2011 to 200,000 in 2013.

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Olusegun Aganga, said the Oil and Gas Free Zone (OGFTZ) would continue to be a catalyst for the diversification of the economy as well as an investor magnet.

This piece of technology if applied and strickly followed will help the country know the areas that this crime os more prevalent and will help save up millions of shillings as well as attract investors.

Seed Engine Injecting Over $240,000 Into Its Second Accelerator Class

Startups

Sam Wakoba

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October 29, 2013

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Seed Engine Injecting Over $240,000 Into Its Second Accelerator Class

South Africa’s first start-up business accelerator, Seed Engine is set to inject over $240,000 into its second accelerator class in a move to help tech entreprenuers build companies and create jobs in Africa’s most developed economy.

The second programme has selected six ventures which will receive around $40,000 (R100 000 start up capital plus over R300 000 in additional benefits) each so ideas can be converted into investable and commercial realities.

Marc Elias, CEO of Seed Engine said the accelerator takes a 20% stake in each business at the start when they are worth R500 000 (around $50,000) but after acceleration when they pitch to potential investors at Demo Day they are worth at an average of R3 million (around $300,000) – a substantial increase in a very short time.

“There’s a desperate need for jobs in South Africa. Companies create these,” Elias said. “Seed Engine and its partners are supporting people with distinctive and disruptive business concepts and turning them into investable businesses. We take people with strong ideas and we turn them into leaders.”

The teams of entrepreneurs are currently undergoing a 12 week business boot camp where they are being coached, mentored and supported to grow their concept into a business. At Demo Day, which takes place on 27 November 2013 at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), ventures pitch potential investors including angels, venture capitalists, private equity firms, corporates and government so that they can attract further funding.

The ventures selected include;

Stockshop.co.za, an online portal that bridges the gap between stock market product and service providers and those that want to invest. Users can access an extensive range of educational and research tools for the South African stock market, in an easy-to-use format. Founded by Annabel Dallamore, mechanical engineer.

Puntr aims to change the way that live sport is watched on TV. Puntr has embraced the phenomenon of second screening and has produced a real time, social, sports prediction game, in the form of an app for mobile devices that sports fans can play against their mates, while they watch live sport on TV.

It was founded by Grant I’Ons and Gerhard Taljaard.

1heart.co.za streamlines communication in emergency situations and allows people to help save the lives of others and was founded by Lawrence Joffe, electrical engineer and Justin Price, chartered accountant.

Autodek.co.za is a web based online marketing and management system serving the auto retail sector. It offers an array of turnkey solutions to extensively streamline data management and reporting as well as providing innovative marketing solutions for vastly increased efficiency and sales performance. Autodesk was founded by Gregory Dix, marketing agency owner.

Colormeclever.co creates educational apps for kids and was founded by Daniella Orkin, lecturer and artist.

Fifty2.com is an academic organising platform for students and lecturers founded by Sean Pleaner and Karl Buys.

Those that want to apply for Seed Engine’s next accelerator starting in February 2014 go to www.seedengine.co.za.

Seed Engine’s first six ventures included Zehoo.me, Cirqls.com and ChowHub made it into the top 40 Start-ups in Africa at the Angel Fair.

Success partners

The accelerator is supported by Absa which is contributing seed capital. Grovest, the first Section 12J fund in South Africa, and U-Start, which is an international organisation that seeks investments via Seed Engine. The South African Venture Capital Association (SAVCA) has also endorsed Seed Engine as one of the more prominent feeders of deal flow to the strong venture capital community in the country while the Sable Accelerator, based in Silicon Valley has built a strong relationship with Seed Engine in profiling its underlying ventures with its international network of venture capitalists, angel investors and distribution partners.

Amazon Web Services has committed $3000 worth of data driven products for each Seed Engine start up while Tiber, one of the largest private property owners and construction companies in South Africa, has provided Seed Engine with free rent for the first activation as well as assistance with the construction of the work space.

Redwood Capital Partners has and provided Seed Engine with capital to develop the innovative work space and will also be mentoring the entrepreneurs through the activation process.

Other partners include Urban Everest, a coaching and leadership facilitation company have joined Seed Engine to develop the accelerator programme and coach the entrepreneurs. PKF, one of the largest accounting and auditing companies in the world, have come on board in the shared vision of Seed Engine to assist the underlying ventures with financial planning, first year audits and general guidance, Microsoft and ITEC.

Wind Energy: A Future Big Source Of Power In Kenya and Worldwide

Tech

Stella Kabura

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October 28, 2013

0

Wind Energy: A Future Big Source Of Power In Kenya and Worldwide

Some two thirds of Kenya’s power sources comes from hydro-electric power. But that is likely to change soon. A new study shows that Wind Power is expected to cater for the country’s needs in the next 20 years together just like many countries in the west.

According to a Stanford University report, a standford climate model has been developed by its school of Engineering and the Universit of Delaware which was publiehsed in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The report claimed that it might be possible to generate seven fold energy excess, accessible blowing the wind even with a decrease in wind speeds when turbines rob energy from each other.

Yet, in the past, it has been assumed that only coal nuclear, oil, gas and water generation would generate large amounts of waste energy as heat, where as in the model, heat production from generating electricity has been taken into account. Nevertheless, the findings come at a time when Kenya recently commissioned two wind power stations mid this year, such as that of the Lake Turkana Widn Power and Ngong Hills plants with Marsabit under a feasibility study. Thus, wind power is expected to reduce challenges in electricity rationing as well as create jobs.

In the study, the power needed for half of our needs in the year 2030, has been calculated by Mark Jakobsen and Cristina Archer. They both found the reality of the situation was that 5.75 terawatts are available from 4 million wind turbines at 100m high. Yet, without having any negative effect on climate, up to 7.5 terawatts more, would be possible. Leaving only 50 percent of our valuable land surface to erect the terrestrial turbines, half would be constructed over the water, says the report.

Based on the American study Global temperature effects as well as changes in moisture, clouds, climate and several related aspects is one extra available from the studies. Lower wind speeds affects temperature, and evaporation. This model minimized such factors as downdraft and drag from turbine blade rotation turbines.

It continues to say that there is ultimately a point where no further turbines could be usefully erected considering these hundreds of terawatts. And with 250 terawatts being used up, no more energy could ideally be extracted at this saturation wind power potential (SWPP).

Yet another possibility in future is that though the 80 terawatts provided would still be seven times the estimated energy requirement of the human species. This could be achievhed by using only land and coastal turbines. Up to 380 terawatts could be extracted if we harnessed the powerful jet-streams that power planes at high altitudes.

Thanks to the wind farms, Scotland is already self-sufficient in energy. While here in Kenya, wind power generates a small yet serves a proportion of the country’s electricity needs. The Ngong.Hills Wind Farm located in Ngong, Kajiado County produces about 5.1 MW of electricity.

According to KenGen, wind power as a source of power comes with many benefits. According to the Kenyan electricity production company, wind power would be the largest single private investment in Kenya that would see the country save up to Ksh15.6 billion on fuel imports. Moreover, the project would contribute Ksh 3 billion per capita of tax and Sh58.6 billion over the entirety of the project. And once construction is coried out, some 2,500 jobs would be created in addition to another 200 full time jobs, says the company.

In all, we can only hope other countries like Kenya can now see the light or even the electricity to power it.

Spinlet Launches Music Download Site | Updates Its Mobile Apps UI

Startups

Sam Wakoba

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October 28, 2013

0

Spinlet Launches Music Download Site | Updates Its Mobile Apps UI

Spinlet has launched its Music Download Site accessible on all Macs, PCs, tablets and smartphones i a move to make music fully mobile, affordable and heard.

The Spinlet Music Download Site, responsively designed to automatically adjust to any screen size and optimise user experience, will allow consumers to buy tracks and albums online for its over 700,000 registered users.

The digital entertainment company has also updated the user interface for its existing mobile apps – Android, Blackberry, iOS, Windows Phone and JavaME – with better content discovery and a smoother payment flow.

To celebrate this amazing development, Popular Nigerian musician Ice Prince is today his sophomore album Exclusively on the Spinlet platform, Entitled “Fire of Zamani.” Ice Prince follows up a successful debut album in 2011 with another stellar production. True to his roots, he fuses a variety of African sounds under his trademark Hip Hop beat.

Spinlet was founded in Finland in 2006, and was acquired by Verod Capital. It’s now based in San Francisco and has a marketing and distribution office in Lagos, Nigeria where it has been welcomed warmly by enthusiastic fans and musicians alike. It’s short time in Africa has it become a serious player in a highly competitive market.

“As smartphone and broadband penetration increases and data costs reduce across Africa, we have noted that the appetite for the type of entertainment services which Spinlet can provide has significantly increased” says Neil Schwatrzman, Group CEO of Spinlet. “This has endorsed our decision to target emerging markets in Africa where we can help build local music artists not only for their home-grown audiences but also reaching out to the Diaspora across the world. We look forward to seeing similar levels of enthusiasm from every market we enter”.

According to the IFPI, the organisation that represents the music industry worldwide, one third of global industry revenue was derived from digital music in 2012, and this is set to increase year on year. With this in mind, Spinlet has chosen the perfect time to enter the market in Africa as the desire for African grown music continues to expand.

Focused not only on providing music, Spinlet also shares revenue with performers and has now signed close to 700,000 registrations to date – holding the single largest catalogue of African music and local music artists, complementing its international library. The entire Spinlet catalogue is now available on both the download site and mobile app (available in their respective app stores).

To round out the package and to ensure secure payment, helping to overcome any hesitancy to transacting online, Spinlet has partnered with reputable third party payment gateways and does not hold clients details. Because the service is extremely versatile and affordable and is promoting and growing local music industries wherever it operates, it is also helping to combat rampant music piracy.

Sign This Online Campaign To Ensure Justice Is Done For This Innocent Girl

Women

Sam Wakoba

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October 28, 2013

0

Sign This Online Campaign To Ensure Justice Is Done For This Innocent Girl

1,250,000 signatures are required by Avaaz, as a petition against the government demanding for justice to be done against men who allegedly gang-raped a 16-year old girl and went scot-free.

Reports indicate that the 16-year old, who now uses a wheelchair was gang-raped by six men and dumped in a pit latrine near their home in Busia after attending a grandfathers burial.

The online petition is calling on the director of public prosecutions and police chief David Kimaiyo to investigate the matter and punish the administration police officers who barely investigated the case and let go of the rapists who are since on the run.

“Nobody has been brought to justice — not the rapists, and not the police, said the campaign. “Today, we change that. Let’s stand with Liz right now, before her attackers and the police escape. Sign now to get justice for Liz and help make sure no girl anywhere suffers this violence.”

More than a million people have signed online petition demanding justice after three men accused of brutally gang-raping a girl in Kenya were ordered to cut grass as punishment.

New system taps into the Madagascar’s solar power potential

Stella Kabura

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October 28, 2013

0

New system taps into the Madagascar’s solar power potential

Ambondro, a remote Madagascan village will soon be reaping solar power benefits as the Fondation Energies Pour Le Monde (Energy for the world foundation) has rolled out a concentrator photovoltaic system that also combines existing wind turbines in the village, in the drive to enhance rural electrification in the country. The project is said to be in partnership with Sunidarity an initiative that offers support to sustainability projects, claiming it the first decentralized rural electrification operation of its own in the south of Madagascar as one of the countries in Africa known to be able to soak up to 3,000 kilo watts of sunlight power in a day. Founded by semiconductor specialists Soitec of which two years ago launched a “Plug & Sun”, a system which is a modular, mobile easy to install CPV system designed to bring electricity in remote areas with no access to electricity the system works through photovoltaic cells that magnify sunlight before it reaches the cells that convert it into electricity. The new technology uses Fresnel lenses that concentrate sunlight 500 times, notes the company, adding that it claims its electricity efficiency lies at 30 per cent which is about twice as that of standard silicon photovoltaic modules. More so, the new system is said to consist of two trackers with the ability to generate a combined 12 kilo Watt Power per day. Each tracker is made up of 12 CPV modules with a total surfaces of 4.2 square meters and an integrated battery system that allows the electricity produced during the day to be restored for future consumption. According to Soitec, the Plug&Sun’s design ensures that sunlight is harvested daily with continuous energy generation as the system’s simplicity can be adapted in remote areas like southern Madagascar as it is also compatible with diverse electrical standards. To add extra reliability, Fondation Énergies pour le Monde has combined the Plug&Sun trackers with two wind turbines that were installed back in 2010 making it a hybrid wind-solar system. When the CPV technology was installed, a Soitec technician provided assistance in assembling the CPV systems on site and connecting them to the existing power system, while also training local technical personnel in maintenance and servicing of the technology. However, the down side of this project among others that it may lead to deforestation. Researchers say that an estimate 80 percent of the species are new to the island, and the country has suffered severe biodiversity loss during last few years due to human activity deforestation. Nevertheless, the new system is expected to not only improve the lives of people in remote areas by giving them access to electricity but to act as a substitute on reliance of fossil fuels in the next one year before the company receives sufficient feedback on the system’s operation. If it proves a success according to the Director of Fondation Energies Pour Le Monde Yves Maigne, the new system would be installed in eight other Malagasy villages identified. For details about the project, visit Sunidarity/Soitec.

Airtel Africa partners with Nazara Technologies to launch mobile games subscription service

Mobile

Sam Wakoba

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October 28, 2013

0

Airtel Africa partners with Nazara Technologies to launch mobile games subscription service

Airtel has today partnered with Nazara Technologies to launch Airtel Games Club, a flat-fee mobile gaming subscription service offering unlimited premium mobile games for its users at affordable prices.

The deal will see Airtel’s customers download premium mobile games such as FIFA 14, Need For Speed, Bejeweled and more from the world’s leading mobile gaming publishers.

The Airtel Games Club will be available in Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda and Zambia and will be spread across the continent by year end.

According to Andre Beyers, Chief Marketing Officer, Airtel Africa,“With over 50% of its population below the age of 25, Africa is the world’s youngest continent. This partnership with Nazara Technologies fits seamlessly with our ambition of making Airtel the most preferred brand by the youth in Africa. The Airtel games Club initiative ensures that all the gaming needs of our young customers will be met.”

“We design our services and optimize content specifically for mobile games, offering users a broad portfolio of quality games that are easy to download and pay for,” said Savio Saldanha, CEO of Nazara Technologies in the Middle East & Africa region. “We’re proud to partner with Airtel for the launch of our latest games club and we’re confident that this partnership will expand the reach of Nazara’s gaming portfolio in Africa”.

Rocket Internet’s Carmido Rebrands to Carmudi | Launches Globally

Startups

Sam Wakoba

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October 28, 2013

0

Rocket Internet’s Carmido Rebrands to Carmudi | Launches Globally

Rocket Internet’s Marc Samwer has announced the launch of online vehicle marketplace Carmudi globally. Carmidu was previously known launched in Nigeria as Carmido earlier this year.

The free classifieds portal was also operational in Mexico, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar under different names and was targeting almost 700 million people in all countries. It has now been unveiled for the global market with expected country launches in the few months to come.

Marc announced the news at TechCrunch Disrupt in Berlin showing Rocket’s focus on the emerging market classifieds space and taking on the global vehicle classified’s market.

Carmudi enables customers to easily find or sell their car, motorcycle or commercial vehicle online. At the same time, vehicle dealers and agents get a trusted online presence through a personalized webpage. Carmudi promises professional photos, updated listings, detailed descriptions, reports and rankings for 100% of its vehicles in each market.Carmidu was known as Ubiauto in Latin America and Motors in Asia.

Wabona Partners up with Cinemo

Startups

Sam Wakoba

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October 28, 2013

0

Afrikan Dust Media Group’s Wabona, an online video streaming service for African TV shows, films, documentaries for audiences in Africa and the Diaspora has partnered with Cinemo, a mobile video content distributor in a move that will see Wabona’s large library of African TV shows, films and documentaries reach over 420, 000 Cinemo users.

The exclusive deal was concluded after Wabona agreed to buy an equity stake in Cinemo with a view to becoming a majority shareholder in the next two years. The deal makes Wabona, Cinemo’s largest content partner to date.The deal was announced at RLabs’ Innovia13 event on 24 October 2013, its annual Demo Day for its start-ups.

Cinemo distributes video content via applications on MXit and Google Android respectively and is based at RLabs and was co-founded eight months ago by Shane Vermooten, a filmmaker in a move to solve the problem of distributing video content to the people without smartphones and fixed line internet while providing another revenue stream and new audiences to filmmakers.

With the help of Marlon Parker and RLabs, who invested in Cinemo, Shane managed to build a successful video distribution service delivering films, Public Service Announcements (PSAs), music videos and documentaries to Feature phones. Cinemo is unique in that it makes video content more accessible and data friendly by providing the video content in 4 minute clips and between 550kbs and 4MB in file size.

Wabona CEO, Simbarashe Mabasha is a strong believer in Cinemo stating “Cinemo’s visionary and innovative thinking led to an exciting mobile video content distributing service. This was one of the main reasons we partnered up with them” Mabasha went on to say “Wabona sees great value in Cinemo, Cinemo with Wabona content can reach markets and audiences not many VOD services can today. People don’t necessarily need smartphones or fixed line internet to enjoy Wabona, they can watch it via Cinemo anywhere in Africa”.

“We are very excited about the opportunity to reach a larger audience across Africa” Cinemo Co-Founder, Shane Vermooten said. “The partnership with Wabona allows us to offer our users quality Pan-African content, and we are looking forward to developing a strong presence across the continent.”

Wabona is excited to open it library to African audiences that may not have fixed line internet or smartphones.

EXCLUSIVE: EatOut & Hellofood Partner to Offer Online Food Ordering to More Nairobians

Startups

Sam Wakoba

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October 26, 2013

0

EXCLUSIVE: EatOut & Hellofood Partner to Offer Online Food Ordering to More Nairobians

Kenya’s largest online restaurant guide and reservations engine, EatOut has partnered with online food ordering platform, Hellofood to offer online food ordering to EatOut users for the first time.

The deal will see EatOut users order food from their favourite restaurants online via Hellofood.com – dramatically increasing convenience and choice when it comes to placing delivery orders.

According to Mikul Shah, CEO for EatOut Africa, “We’re extremely excited about this partnership, which we hope will dramatically improve convenience and variety for foodies in Nairobi and beyond. Online food delivery is expected to grow quickly over the next 12 months and Hellofood are perfectly positioned to make a big impact in the market.”

EatOut’s restaurant pages will have new buttons and banners that link seamlessly to Hellofood.co.ke, where users can then place delivery orders from the restaurant they were originally browsing. Through a sophisticated customer care system, users will get a great food ordering experience with huge choice and fast delivery – whether they’re stuck at the office for lunch, looking to place orders for their family at home, or even contemplating the organization of office parties and catering.

Just a few quick clicks of the mouse will have meals heading straight to wherever they are, or alternatively they can call EatOut or Hellofood directly to place their order with a customer care representative.

The news comes just a few months after EatOut announced a US$200,000 investment which saw Netherlands based Africa Media Ventures Fund acquire an additional 7.9% equity in the company.

The deal is also an important step for Hellofood.

CEO for Hellofood.com Africa. Joe Falter said: “Today marks an important step for us in our mission of making food ordering fast, easy and fun. Hellofood.com and EatOutare a perfect match, each having built technologies that brought radical convenience and choice to users via the internet, for the first time. As soon as we entered the Kenyan market we started talking to EatOut as our services are perfectly complementary. EatOut’s history of rapid growth and disruptive innovation match Hellofood’s DNA 100%”

Hellofood.com,with its affiliated brand Foodpanda has online food ordering platforms in 30 countries across 4 continents. Clients of EatOut’s 700 plus restaurants will now order food via Hellofood.co.ke and have it delivered within 45 minutes.

Nokia Lumia 520 Review | Beautiful But…

Mobile

Sam Wakoba

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October 26, 2013

0

For those who prefer affordable smartphones and not Android OS models, Nokia Lumia 520 is that smartphones for them. The Nokia Lumia 520 is Nokia’s fifth Windows Phone 8 handset.

The Nokia Lumia 520 has a fairly generous 4-inch, 480 x 800 display and is powered by a 1 GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor and 512MB of RAM

Like all the Lumia range, 520’s beautiful windows Phone 8 tiles greet you on the 4 inch WVGA screen. The smooth cover has buttons on the side for powering up, volume and camera. At the top the phone has a 3.5mm audio jack and a micro USB port can be seen at the bottom of the device.

On the back is 5MP camera near the top, the materials great and nice to touch. The phone has no flashlight or front facing camera and no FM radio.

The phone’s camera can capture video in up to 720p though the lens is not of the Carl Zeiss as compared to higher end Lumia devices.

The phone has a Super Sensitive Touch technology just like Lumia 920 and 820 handsets and users in cold weather you can use your gloves on the touch screen.

The camera is good for daylight use both indoors and outdoors but as it get darker it becomes harder to take clearer photos as the phone has no flash.

OS

Running on Windows Phone 8, the pre-arranged touch sensitive live tiles show the homescreen, swiping takes one to the app menu. During the period I used the phone, it never hang on me. I only hated having to have a Microsoft account to dig deeper into the apps and though its a small thing, many users find it manipulative.

Away with the OS, Nokia’s HERE Maps family is great and more accurate than some of the present mapping services in the industry. Having a team on ground doing the mapping pays. HERE Drive and HERE city lens are great for having the whole city in at your fingertips and your car trip turns out to be fun letting them do the ‘thinking’.

Performance

Windows Phone 8 is a well optimized mobile operating systems and also light but the phones 512MB of RAM limits its performance especially for games. However, you can most games with it, depending on the remaining storage you have.

Battery Life

On call time the 1430 mAh battery could run for ten hours maximum use, that’s a whole day of work. On 3G, the battery lasts slightly over 6.5. For best results, users need to carry an extra battery just in case it goes off at 4 or 5PM just before you leave office and want to meet friends for an evening chat.

Connectivity & Call Quality

The phones vibration is not so great, to avoid missing your calls you need to put both ringer tunes and vibration on, actually the 520 sucks on sound and call quality. I missed a number of calls and had to call back with excuses. Its speakers didn’t work so well for me. I hate straining to hear someone from the other end, so at times I preferred text, whenever sound was low-this happens when you are in a busy and loud area, like on the road on a busy street.

It’s signal strength was fine. It connects to WiFi so well and also allows Bluetooth file sharing.

The Lumia 520 is affordable at around. It is a clutter free smartphone with an ecosystem with less apps, only essential ones.

Pros

• Decent camera for a phone

• Fairly fast when sane

• Its durable

• Affordable

• Large, wide screen

Cons

• No front-facing camera

• Average battery life

• 512MB RAM

• No NFC

• Beats the Huawei Ascend W1, the Huawei Ascend G330 and the Orange San Diego.

That means a decent saving for those who don’t mind committing to a network. It’s a little cheaper than the Huawei Ascend W1 too.

at a fairly sleek 9.9mm and 124g. At 119.9 x 64mm it is longer

The front of the Nokia Lumia 520 is mostly screen as you’d expect and at 4-inches it’s a decent size for a low-price handset. The pixel density of 233 pixels per inch also isn’t bad at all for the money you’re paying – sure it’s dwarfed by the likes of the 469 ppi HTC One, but it’s also many times cheaper.

Unlike some handsets, the screen here isn’t edge-to-edge: there’s a black border running the entire way around it. At the sides this border is fairly narrow, but it becomes quite wide at the top to make room for the earpiece and a Nokia logo. It’s even wider at the bottom, because that’s where you’ll find the start, back and search softkeys.

The back of the handset is almost featureless, with just a small Nokia logo in the centre, the 5-megapixel camera lens near the top and a tiny loudspeaker near the bottom. The left edge is devoid of any features, ports or buttons at all.

The top is home only to a 3.5mm headphone port on the left hand side. The bottom edge has a micro USB port in the centre, which is used for charging or connecting the Nokia Lumia 520 to a computer.

The back cover is easy to remove – you simply use your nails to peel it away at each corner. The cover itself feels reasonably sturdy, so we don’t see it snapping even if you take it on and off a lot.

Once that has been removed, you’ll have access to the 1430 mAh battery (which interestingly is bigger than the 1300 mAh battery found in the Nokia Lumia 620).

Underneath the battery there are two slots – one for a micro SIM card and one for a microSD card. The Nokia Lumia 520 supports up to 64GB cards, which comes in very handy for bulking up the storage from the fairly limiting 8GB of onboard memory.

Key Features

Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon™ S4, Dual-core 1 GHz

RAM: 512 MB

Mass memory: 8 GB Expandable MicroSD up to 64 GB and free cloud storage of 7 GB

Camera: 5 MP but not Carl Zeiss Tessar lens and has no flash
Screen size: 4”
Dimensions: 119.9 mm by 64 mm by 2: 9.9 mm
Weight: 124 g
Display resolution: WVGA (800 x 480)
SIM card type: Micro SIM
NFC: No NFC

Kenya’s Kytabu & Eneza Education Emerge Winners At The GIST Initiative 2013

Startups

Sam Wakoba

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October 25, 2013

0

Kenya’s Kytabu & Eneza Education Emerge Winners At The GIST Initiative 2013

Kenya’s Kytabu and Eneza Education have emerged winners at the Global Innovation through Science and Technology (GIST) initiative 2013 at first place and second place respectively.

Kytabu, founded by Tonee Ndungu, is a subscription application allowing Kenyan students to access curriculum textbooks via mobile payment gateway while Eneza, developed by Toni Maraviglia, provides mobile access to quality educational materials aligned with local content.

The two Kenyan startup were followed by Lebanon’s, Votek, co-founded by CEO Dr. Lojain Jibawi. Votek is an intelligent Arabic voice-enabled virtual assistant platform, the software recognizes, analyzes and understands standard and dialectical Arabic speech with 95 percent accuracy. The three were winners in the GIST initiative startup stage category.

The GIST Initiative finalists of the third annual Tech-I Competition were announced at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on October 12.

The second category Idea Stage, was won by Algeria’s GuideMe, founded by CEO Badreddine Zebbiche.

GuideMe is designed to provide audio guidance to visually-impaired individuals and is integrated within shoes to signal the user via smart phone app. The second place in the Idea Stage category was was NANO-TECH, founded by Anum Imtiaz and Faisal Afridi from Pakistan. NANO-TECH specializes in design and manufacturing of high-quality water filtration and treatment products that provide pure and safe drinking water while the third place was taken by Jordan’s Presto Wireless which enables wireless data users to experience faster speeds, higher coverage, and better reliability by combining separate internet signals.

All category winners took home $15,000 while the second place winners received $10,000 and both third place companies received $5,000.

Jordan’s Handasiyat took home the award for Best Female Entrepreneur and $4,000.

The winners were chosen from 30 semi-finalists, following rigorous judging by global business leaders. They join a global GIST community of more than 180,000 innovators.

Honorable Mentions are TaxiBUL, Turkey; Farmspace Africa, Kenya; and AdvanTag, UAE. Each received $2,000.

CEO Weekends: Kenya’s Equity Bank And PayPal Bring Global eCommerce To Kenya

Tech

Caroline Vutagwa

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October 25, 2013

1

CEO Weekends: Kenya’s Equity Bank And PayPal Bring Global eCommerce To Kenya

Equity Bank and online shopping service,PayPal, have announced that merchants in Kenya will now be able to sell to PayPal’s global customer base of more than 137 million active accounts in 193 markets around the world and move the proceeds to their Equity Bank accounts. This new service allows PayPal users to withdraw funds to their qualifying Equity Bank accounts from their PayPal accounts.

“PayPal is trusted throughout the world to enable millions of consumers to shop safely and conveniently online and through their mobile phone each day. We are pleased to make this announcement as Kenyans will be able now to join the global eCommerce marketplace. Our agreement with PayPal also enables international businesses and individuals to transact with Kenyan service providers via a secure and convenient payment service. This initiative with PayPal is part of our commitment to harness technology and strategic partnerships in ensuring that our customers continue to enjoy the freedom of modern banking,” said Dr. James Mwangi, Equity Bank Chief Executive Officer.

He added that the service will allow Kenyans to make payments and receive money internationally without sharing their financial or personal information.

If you want to use this service one will be required to simply open a PayPal account and link it to their Equity Bank account and receive PayPal payments in 26 different currencies. Equity Bank will convert the currency to Kenyan Shilling when the money is transferred into their accounts.

Commenting on the partnership, Efi Dahan, PayPal’s Regional Director for Africa and Israel, said “Equity Bank is the leading bank in Kenya and we are truly excited by signing our second bank partnership in Africa with the Bank. Equity and PayPal have a similar focus on innovation, and this strategic partnership is a major milestone on our exciting journey in Sub-Saharan Africa to enable e-commerce across the region and integrate it into the global marketplace.”

“With Kenya’s continued economic growth at over 5% annually and its focus on building online businesses, we’re optimistic about the future of eCommerce in this market and look forward to working with Equity Bank on the opportunities ahead,” concluded Dahan.

“The launch of PayPal sees Equity Bank take another step forward as Kenya’s most innovative financial institution. It responds directly to our ‘Your Listening, Caring Partner’ brand promise,” said Dr. Mwangi.

The PayPal service will be offered in partnership with Equity Bank and has received approval from the Central Bank of Kenya.

CEO Weekends: CCK Has Kenyan Analogue TV Owners Panicking As They Publicize The ‘Switch Off’

Tech

Caroline Vutagwa

-

October 25, 2013

0

CEO Weekends: CCK Has Kenyan Analogue TV Owners Panicking As They Publicize The ‘Switch Off’

The Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) has launched a consumer awareness campaign to sensitize the public on the planned switch off of the analogue TV broadcasting in Nairobi and the surrounding areas on December 13.

The first phase is set to take place in the Central Business District through its suburbs and outlaying satellite areas of Kiambu, Ngong, Ongata Rongai, Kitengela, Isinya, Kajiado, Athi River, parts of Machakos, Thika and Githunguri.

So, Kenyans who have not well ‘armed’ their analogue TV sets with compliant set top boxes or have purchased a smart TV will have thire TV’s blank on December 13.

This does not mean that the rest of the country will not have a taste of the migrations as Mombasa, Malindi, Nyeri, Meru, Kisumu, Webuye, Kisii, Nakuru and Eldoret will have their share of the migration on March 30 next year. The rest of the country will be switched off on 30th June 2014 thus completing the transition from analogue to digital TV broadcasting.

The media campaign will be rolled out on the print, digital, electronic and outdoor media and is aimed at educating consumers on what they need to do to migrate to digital TV broadcasting.

Lined up, too, are radio activations, talk shows and interviews, billboards and demonstration clinics to be held in select urban centres within metropolitan Nairobi.

The transition to digital TV broadcasting is aimed at ensuring that Kenya complies with international agreements on the digital migration arrived at during the Regional Radiocommunications Conference in 2006.

Dr Fred Matiang’i described Nairobi analogue switch off date of 13th December 2013 as ‘the test bed for migration’ saying that the lessons learnt here will be applied in the analogue. He appealed to the close to 700,000 households who require to be connected to DVB-T2 set top boxes in the area to purchase the gadgets ahead of the switch-off deadline.

Saying there are almost 300,000 set top boxes in stock, the Cabinet Secretary urged investors to ensure they offer affordable gadget in the market.

Forget Nyumba Kumi, Ramp.co.ke Helps You Know Your Neighbors

Startups

Sam Wakoba

-

October 25, 2013

1

Forget Nyumba Kumi, Ramp.co.ke Helps You Know Your Neighbors

RAMP, a startup presenting today at DEMO might be the needed solution the Kenyan government has been looking for.

Instead of introducing Manyumba Kumi, a Know Your Neighbor socialist style in Kenya, RAMP suggests the government take it on to solve the problem of insecurity by using its web app which registers residents and neighborhood associations in both Kenya and Nigeria.

Speaking to TechMoran at DEMO, Babatunde Mo’ Aguda, lead Developer & Founder of WebRelated Consulting firm behind RAMP said, ” We wanted to fill an existing vaccum we observed in this niche. our aim is to help resident associations automate their members and basic processes instead of using manual records.”

RAMP, meaning Residents Association Management Portal, aims to simplify the management of neigbourhoods using technology in a move to improve security and accountability among community members among themselves.

Though RAMP was developed in Nigeria, the two country’s suffer the same urban problems. Lagos has over 20 million residents while Nairobi has over 4 million. Both the cities have issues with insecurity and police will never be enough to man every small movement. Resident associations therefore come in to help residents know each other and manage their own activities.

The Kenyan government recently suggested it will adopt Manyumba Kumi, in a move to help people know each other, for security purposes. Manyumba Kumi may even integrated with the countries credit reference bureau to know people’s details, keep laa and order in the country.

RAMP may monetize by asking for the associations to subscribe or simply pay user licenses. They can also sell the data to property dealers and the government.

According to Babatunde, RAMP works simply, one requires an Internet connected PC or Mobile device, then they can send Bulk SMS Alerts, Email Newsletters, search for members in the members database, check records of levies and dues among other things. Users can also easily communicate with all members of a residents association via both SMS Alerts & Email Newsletters.

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