AfICTA e-Newsletter (September 30, 2019)

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AfICTA e-NEWSLETTER 

30/September/19 Vol 74

AfICTA Signs MoU with ACT USA

AfICTA - Africa ICT Alliance has finalized all the process with signing a memorandum of understanding with ACT (Association for Competitive Technology) - the App Association, an association that represents more than 5,000 app companies and information technology firms across the mobile economy. The process took 2 months as both parties reviewed the benefits that the mutual collaboration tends to bring.

The MoU aims at establishing collaborative efforts towards achieving AfICTA and ACT common objective of advocacy at the public level to the realization of the SDGs by 2030... read more

AfICTA Chairman Speaks @ the AfIGF 2019 - Chad

Engr. Hossam Elgamal, the Chairman of AfICTA - Africa ICT Alliance speaks @ the high-level panel session of the 8th Meeting of the African Internet Governance Forum AfIGF which was hosted by the Chadian government @ N'Djamena from 10-12 September 2019.

This year edition of the forum focused on “Shared Responsibilities of Stakeholders for a Robust Ecosystem of Internet Governance” and was attended by over 300 participants from government, private sector, academia, research institutions, technical community, media and civil society.... read more

AfICTA Welcomes ATCON New Representative to its Board

Africa Information and Communication Technologies Alliance - AfICTA formally welcomed ATCON’s (Association for Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria) newly nominated representative, Engr. Ikechukwu Nnamani to its Board during the 9th edition of its monthly online board meeting that was held on the 5th of September, 2019 and attended by members from South Africa, Namibia, Tanzania, Kenya, Egypt, Nigeria, Sudan, Cote d’Ivoire...

The nomination was made by ATCON’s National Executive Council - NEC and communicated to AfICTA Secretariat. Prior to this nomination, ATCON... read more

Kenya: Social Media Admins Risk Being Jailed in MP’s Proposed Law

A member of the National Assembly is seeking to introduce a law to regulate digital media, most of which does not fall under the current media laws. If enacted, it would see bloggers and social media uses who violate the law face hefty fines or stints in jail. 

The Kenya Information and Communication (Amendment) Bill, 2019, which has been published by Malava MP Moses Injendi, seeks to have administrators of social media groups on platforms such as Facebook and WhatsApp seek licences from the Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK) authorising them to... read more

Telekom Networks Malawi Establishes Mpamba as Independent Firm

Telekom Networks Malawi (TNM) has positioned its mobile money division Mpamba as an independent company and has appointed Chikhulupilito Mpatso to head up the venture as general manager. 

Mpamba board chairman Michiel Buitelaar said the development underscores TNM's long-term ambition to leverage the growth of mobile money and its ambition to become more than just a telecom service provider. 

"The birth of TNM Mpamba Limited will fully exploit the benefits of the big synergies between... read more

Regulator Moves to End Liberia's Telecoms Price War

The Liberia Telecommunications Authority (LTA) has intervened in an ongoing price war involving telecoms operators Orange and LonestarCell MTN. The conflict is understood to have started in 2012 with the former owner of Orange, Cellcom GSM. 

Prior to LTA's intervention, the operators introduced campaigns offering subscribers three-day unlimited calls for US$1. 

The regulator stated: "The predatory price wars have stifled the growth of the sector and has led to a significant drop in revenues collected by the government that could be used to...   read more

Vodafone Zambia up for Sale

Cash-strapped Mobile Broadband Limited, trading as Vodafone Zambia, has formally announced the sale of the company after failure by its shareholders to recapitalise the firm amid stiff competition in Zambia's data market. 

Zambia has 16 ISPs including Liquid Telecom Zambia, Hai, Zamtel and Paratus Telecommunications, a subsidiary of Namibia headquartered Paratus Group Holdings, according to the latest report from the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA). 

Vodafone Zambia struggled to maintain operations a year after it entered the local market in....  read more

Egypt’s new high-tech border security system in place

The Egyptian armed forces announced Sept. 2 the completion of the last phase of a border security system as part of a “new monitoring system” for the Border Guard Forces. According to the armed forces, the system would allow all members of the Border Guard Forces to monitor border security in all strategic directions.

Spokesman for the armed forces Col. Tamer al-Rifai wrote in a Sept. 2 Facebook post that the security system was developed as per the most advanced international standards, and that such a step is part of “the constant update of the equipment and devices the commandments and administrations use . .. read more

Vodacom Tanzania Launches Supa Network Campaign

Vodacom Tanzania has launched a campaign, Supa Network, to raise awareness of the capacity of its network.

The network operator claims to have the strongest network in Tanzania "with an unrivalled 4G download speed of up to 27Mbps, which is almost twice as fast as the next competitor."

It adds that it has achieved 90% population coverage over the years reaching urban and rural centres with its voice, data and mobile money services. Supa Network has been initiated to advertise the company's ongoing investment in infrastructure. .. read more

Nigeria Dabbles in Spectrum for 5G

Nigeria's telecommunications regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has approved the provision of spectrum frequency for operators to test 5G services in the country. 

From Abuja, NCC executive vice chairman Umar Danbatta said telecom operators can now evaluate their network's capacity to offer high speed 5G broadband services. 

"By making available the telecom resource for this test, Nigeria joins the very small number of African countries that are already preparing for the next global technological revolution, expected by 2020," said Danbatta....  read more

CCIO is the catalyst for Digital Dexterity

The CIO must be the culture change agent to enhance digital dexterity as a competency that applies to individuals, teams and the organisation as a whole. 

This is according to Gartner executives who have presented at the company's IT Symposium and Xpo underway in Cape Town, South Africa this week. 

Gartner explains that as society and business increasingly consume and produce digital goods and services, a digitally dexterous workforce is essential to foster agility, collaboration and the adoption of new digital technologies ...  read more

Nigeria has Opportunity to Emerge as a Digital Powerhouse

If Nigeria can capitalise on the size of its population (expected to be larger than that of the US by 2050), its Vision 2020 economic strategy and intelligent enterprise capabilities, it can emerge as a powerhouse in Africa.

According to SAP, Nigeria Vision 2020 outlines a plan for the country to be one of the 20 largest economies in the world, able to consolidate its leadership role in Africa and establish itself as a significant player in the global economic and political arena.

The company adds that Sub-Saharan Africa alone is expected to reach a GDP of US$29-trillion by 2050 whilety right and. ..   read more

Google Partners Digicloud Africa to Launch Cloud Brokerage Service

South African cloud services distribution firm Digicloud Africa has entered Google Cloud's ecosystem as a value added distributor for Google Cloud Platform and G Suite in Africa.

Digicloud Africa will operate as a two-tier distributor supporting resellers across Africa, which in turn will work with Google's cloud customers in different vertical market segments.

"We're excited to work with Digicloud Africa to empower customers and partners in South Africa," said Avinesh Pillay, Head of Cloud Partners for Sub-Saharan Africa at Google Cloud. "Our collaboration with Digicloud includes providing web application...  read more

Zimbabwe's Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said the 2% tax on mobile money and electronic transactions will remain in place despite a High Court ruling this week against the legal instrument behind the levy.

The intermediate levy on all electronic transactions is part of austerity measures implemented by Ncube to generate more revenue for the state.

The Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) announced that High Court judge, Justice Zhou had set aside Statutory Instrument 205 of 2018 which had introduced the mobile money and electronic transactions tax.... read more

Businesses must emerge from change as more digital enterprises or face detrimental disruption.

Techquilibrium – or the ideal balance of technology and people, digital and analogue – enables businesses to be both a traditional company and a technology company, and the best way to handle change or what Gartner describes as 'turns/ sudden shifts in direction' .

At the company's 2019 Symposium and Xpo hosted in Cape Town this week, executives said in the digital society there will be no distinguishing between traditional and tech companies.. ..  read more

Burundi's government has blamed the high cost of connectivity for the East African country's low internet penetration rate ( under 10%).

According to Internet World Stats (IWS), there were 617,116 internet users in Burundi as at December 2018, with an internet penetration rate of 5.3% and just 3.9% of the country's 11.6 million people are on Facebook.

Speaking at a recent workshop on the drafting of a law to regulate ICT in the country, Acting Director General of the country's Telecommunications Regulatory Authority and Control (ARTC) Hermalas Nahimana said the country is "stalling on the...   read more

Despite raising US$100-million in funding. Africa-based coding accelerator company Andelais laying off 420 junior engineers across three African countries, in spite of raising US$100-million in funding as recently as January.

Launched in Nigeria but also active in Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda, Andela was formed to solve the global technical talent shortage by building distributed engineering teams with African software developers. 

The company is one of the continent's most capitalised, taking its total raised funding to US$180-m ...   read more

The government of Zambia is understood to have deported the chief executive officer of digital pay television station TopStar, Yi Jian.

Details are sketchy, but the action follows a deportation order by the country's Minister of Home Affairs Stephen Kampyongo.

According to a statement from the Immigration Department, via its public relations officer Namati Nshinka, Jian was deported for "allegedly conducting himself in a manner that warranted deportation under the Zambian laws."...   read more

During ITU Telecom World 2019, Huawei unveiled the DigiTruck project, in partnership with Belgium non-profit organisation Close the Gap, to provide digital skills training to rural and remote communities in Kenya.

The DigiTruck, a mobile digital classroom, is Huawei's latest effort driving their digital inclusion initiative Tech4ALL. 

A statement issued by Huawei refers to the World Bank's latest report which points out that Southern Africa's demand for digital skills in 2030 is as high as 230 million people, which is in stark contrast to the current prevailing lack of digital skills in... read more

Malawi's minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development Joseph Mwanamvekha is under fire for introducing a 1% withholding tax on all mobile money transactions.

In his 2019/2020 national budget, presented recently to parliament, Mwanamvekha said the tax will ensure that more people are motivated to contribute towards national building and government has a scope to improve service delivery. 

However critics have voiced concern that the tax will threaten financial inclusion because mobile money operators will raise the cost of...   read more

UABA successfully initiates Zambia’s first Blockchain Association September 23, 2019 • East Africa, Finance, General 0 0 0 The United Africa Blockchain Association (UABA) has officially formed Zambia’s first Blockchain Association. While this took place during a meeting held in Zambia’s capital, Lusaka on Tuesday, 17 September 2019, the official news was only announced a few days later.

“We agreed to come up with an association to be headed by a Chairperson and Directors who will choose to operate where their strength lies,” says Dominic Kapalu, the newly appointed Chairperson. Kapalu will be leading a team made up of Executive Directors, Non-Directors, and a board of Advisors...   read more

How do you attract the attention of a prince? Aside from being Meghan Markle, of course. One answer came recently in the form of Prince Harry’s backing of a new initiative designed to make offsetting the carbon from your airline flights a properly mainstream idea.

For Harry, the initiative had a double whammy. It might finally make carbon offsetting cool, especially if the royals and the celebs are doing it. And it had the added bonus of taking the heat off royals for jetting around the world (sorry!)...   read more

A recent research collaboration between the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth and The Fletcher School at Tufts University highlights the strengths and opportunities of six major countries in Africa for harnessing the true potential of technology to drive inclusive growth.

With financial support from the Mastercard Impact Fund, the African Leapfrog Index (ALI) – which was launched during the World Economic Forum on Africa – uses Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, and South Africa as examples to provide insights on key drivers that could accelerate digital...   read more

Multinational software company, SAP announced on Tuesday, 27 August 2019, that there are five social enterprises that will benefit from its 2019 Social Sabbatical to be held in Ethiopia between September and October. According to SAP, the Social Sabbatical programme takes highly-skilled SAP employees from around the world and connects them with resource-constrained social enterprises and non-profit organisations.

This year’s programme hopes to see a diverse group of employees provide different skills and business expertise, to help the organisations solve concrete business problems and support businesses growth...  read more

Social media companies led by Facebook said Monday they were ramping up an industry body that aims to weed out extremist content, seeking to put procedures in place globally on how to handle crises.

Facebook announced additional efforts at the United Nations during a meeting with New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who has taken up the cause of fighting online extremism after a March massacre by a white supremacist at two mosques in Christchurch. 

"We are trying to create a civil defense-style mechanism...   read more