WHO to launch contact tracing app. The World Health Organization (WHO) is planning to launch a contact tracing app this month. This app will help people in under-resourced countries to test and trace people exposed to Corona-virus. According to Reuters, the contact tracing app is Bluetooth-based. Chief Information Officer for WHO, Bernardo Mariano said that the
Gozem collaborates with Etisalat Benin. Gozem, Ride-hailing company collaborates with Etisalat Benin Francophone ride-hailing company, Gozem has collaborated with Etisalat Benin to make it’s “Moov Money” service accessible to its customers.This move by the two companies will allow Gozem customers to use Moov Money to top up their wallets and pay for trips.
Zoom Zoom acquires Keybase to reinforce its encryption. Video Communications Inc. Zoom has acquired Keybase Inc to reinforce its service encryption. This follows several complaints from users about the security of the platform. The company in a statement said the procurement will push Zoom’s goal to become the most popular video conferencing tool with end-to-end encryption. As
Ugandan government imposes strict guidelines for Boda Boda and taxis. Ugandan government through the ministry of Kampala is imposing strict guidelines for all boda-boda as and taxis requiring them to operate under digital companies. This requirement comes after the lift of the coronavirus lockdown in the region. Regarding the guidelines, Lord Mayor of Kampala, Erias Lukwago said, all boda-boda motorcycles
Swvl, an Egyptian transportation startup secures $20m in a new round. Swvl, an Egyptian transportation startup has secured over $20-million in a new round before the COVID-19 invaded the country. Swvl is a premium mass transit system that provides buses. It allows people to share a ride in a van or bus during morning and evening commutes for a fixed fare
Zoom Zoom to introduce new security features. Video conferencing platform, Zoom is planning to introduce new security features to address the criticisms that have plagued the platform recently. This follows the several backlashes on security the App has received from cybersecurity experts and other legal authorities. One condemning report by The Intercept stated that Zoom’s meetings
Andela CEO confirms laying off staff in four African countries. African tech giant, Andela has laid off 135 employees in New York and across four African countries. The four African countries which were affected include; Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, and Egypt. Directors and above are taking cuts ranging from 10% to 30% depending on seniority. Also, Andela is cutting down on
Twitter tests a prompt that tells you to rethink offensive replies. Twitter Inc will test users to reconsider using “offensive or hurtful language” by prompting them before the post replies. This move is an effort by the social media platform to clean up vulgar conversations. When users hit “send” on their reply, Twitter will alert users if the words in their
Econet Zimbabwe offers cheaper bundles to enhance e-learning participation. Econet Zimbabwe is offering cheaper bundles to enhance e-learning participation in the country. This comes after the uproar when Econet increased it’s data prices on May 5, 2020. However, Econet sent a letter to schools, calling on them to apply for the discounted data bundles. Data Bundles applies for
Spotify introduces its Premium Family plan in South Africa. Spotify has introduced its Premium Family plan in South Africa to allow family members to access Spotify Premium through a single shared subscription. The subscription cost R100($5.44) per month and can be purchased from the Spotify website. A statement by the company said, “Spotify Premium Family is now
Apple, Google designs new coronavirus contact tracing technology that does not use location tracking. Apple and Google have designed a new corona-virus contact tracing technology that does not use location tracking. Reuters in a statement said,“ Apple and Google, whose operating systems power 99% of smartphones, said last month they would work together to create a system for notifying people who have been near
Teraco constructs new data Centre in Cape Town, South Africa. Teraco is constructing Teraco Cape Town 2 (CT2), a new 30MW data center facility in South Africa. This project comes after Teraco’s recent 60MW expansion announcement of its Johannesburg data center campus in Isando which makes the Cape Town facility the second-largest on the continent. Speaking on the issue,
MEST Africa selects the first cohort for “Tech By Her accelerator program” MEST Africa, in partnership with Make-IT in Africa, has selected the first cohort for the Tech By Her accelerator program. These ten (10) female founders were selected from different parts of Africa. The 2020 cohort of the Tech By Her Accelerator include: * CodeLn: A company that helps recruiters find their
Egyptian Startup Instabug Raises $5 million series A round from Accel, Cloudera & Mopub. Debugging Software startup, Instabug has acquired $5 million Series A round led by Accel with participation from angel investors such as Amr Awadallah, co-founder of Cloudera, and Jim Payne, founder and CEO of MoPub. Speaking on its investment in Instabug, General Partner at Accel, Rich Wong said, “I just love
UberEats to discontinue in seven markets including Egypt. UberEats will discontinue its high demand food offer in 7 markets. These 7 markets include; the Czech Republic, Egypt, Honduras, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay, and Ukraine. The discontinuity of UberEats in the aforementioned markets will take effect from June 4, 2020. UberEats is a food delivery platform where individuals can
Vodacom introduces Africa's first 5G mobile network in South Africa. Mobile operator Vodacom Group has introduced Africa’s first 5G mobile network in three cities in South Africa. The three cities include Johannesburg, Pretoria, and Cape Town. According to Vodacom, the 5G network would support both mobile and fixed wireless services. In response to Covid_19, South Africa’s Telecom
Eversend plans to hold crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs. African Neobank, Eversend has announced Its plans to hold a crowdfunding campaign on Europe’s largest equity platform, Seedrs. Eversend is a multi-currency e-wallet that allows people to exchange, spend, and send money at the best possible rates. Insurance, virtual debit cards, and bill payments. The Service lets users send
Facebook acquires over 3- Billion monthly users. Facebook has acquired over 3-billion monthly users across all its applications. The CEO and founder of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg revealed this to analysts after Facebook’s release for the first quarter of 2020. Zuckerberg said, “For the first time ever, there are now more than 3-billion people actively using Facebook,
Visa and Safaricom partners on M-Pesa for payment and tech. Global financial services company, Visa, and Kenya’s Safaricom have partnered on M-Pesa for payments and tech. The arrangement opens to M-Pesa’s own extensive financial services network in East Africa Visa’s global merchant and card network across 200 countries. According to a release by Safaricom, the two companies
Helium Health secures investment from Global Ventures, Tencent. Helium Health, a health tech startup, has secured $10 million Series A investment from Dubai-based Global Ventures co-led by AAIC Japan. Helium Health which is based in Nigeria is the largest health electronic media records platform in West Africa. Incorporated in 2016 as OneMedical, and later rebranded as Helium in
Egyptian Startup, Pravica Raises $500,00 in a pre-seed round. Cairo-based Pravica has raised US$500,00 in a pre-seed round, led by 500 Startups, with the participation of Modus Capital and DYRES Venture. Pravica is an innovative platform based on blockchain technology which offers a decentralized email service. The investment will help Pravica to build its customer base, widen
Nigerian Mobile payments company, Paga partners with fintech company, Remita. Mobile payments company Paga has entered a partnership with Nigeria’s financial technology brand, Remita to allow payments across both companies and to make Federal Government bill payments available to all customers. The first phase of the collaboration would allow Paga customers to easily make payments to all Remita billers
TikTok Hits 2 billion downloads. The popular video-sharing app TikTok has been ranked the highest app with 2 billion downloads on Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store. TikTok is the first app after Facebook’s app, WhatsApp, Instagram Messenger to break past the 2 billion downloads figure since January 1, 2014. At the
Openserve, South Africa's Largest Teleco to improve Broadband access. As a result of the pandemic, there has been a demand for cheaper broadband access. Because of the lockdown, users have enough time to access the internet hence the demand for low priced broadband connectivity. Openserve made known its intentions to put its copper broadband network connection products across. The
Nigerian Fintech Startup Flutterwave Launches An E-Commerce Platform For SMEs. Flutterwave, a fintech startup company based in Lagos, Nigeria is launching an e-commerce platform for small business entrepreneurs in Africa. The company has made efforts to bring ease to those who wish to sell and buy at the comforts of their homes. In doing so, Flutterwave was established to help
