Sunday, December 1African Digital Business Magazine

Tag: Digital technology

Tech

New study reveals how digital technologies are shaping the global recovery

Latest Network Readiness Index ranks world’s most ‘network ready’ markets The latest results and rankings of the Network Readiness Index (NRI) were released today by the Portulans Institute, revealing how countries around the world are leveraging information technologies to emerge from the COVID pandemic and become ‘network ready’. This latest edition – the third compiled by the Portulans Institute since taking over the Index from the World Economic Forum in 2019 – ranks a total of 130 global economies based on their performance across 60 variables. STL, the industry leading integrator of digital networks, is the NRI’s official knowledge partner. The findings are included in a new report published this month, ‘Shaping the Global Recovery: How digital technologies can help make the post-C...
Tech

Mining and Metals Companies Accelerate Focus on Sustainability

Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure™ Platform Combined with AVEVA’s Digital Transformation Solutions Proven to Drive Industrial Sustainability Initiatives Mumbai, India – July 15, 2021 – Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, and AVEVA, a global leader in industrial software, driving digital transformation and sustainability, announced today that their combined technology offerings are supporting the sustainability initiatives of mining companies in four key pillars: energy efficiency, yield improvement, low greenhouse emission technology adoption, and new green processes. Global decarbonization is heavily reliant on the sustainable production of minerals and commodities. A thriving and healthy mining and metals sector is crucial for ...
South Africa News, Startups

Top Tech Ideas for Accelerating Inclusive Economic Growth in the Township Economy Revealed and Rewarded

Over the weekend of the 19th and 20th of June 2021, Silicon Cape and the U.S. Mission to South Africa hosted a virtual hackathon aimed at discovering digital solutions to accelerate inclusive economic growth for local businesses in the township economy. This was the third of four hackathons which form part of an initiative called Hackathons for South Africa: Digital Solutions for Real World Challenges. Finally, after much anticipation, the winning solution was announced on Sunday, the 27th of June. Walking away with the R25,000 grand prize was Team Basket. Outlining their idea, team leader Esihle Vellem said: “We help street vendors and spaza shops buy fresh produce from small-scale farmers and wholesalers by providing them with an online application and an instant delivery service. With t...
Main, Tech

Digital transformation should be about the customer, not the technology

Digital transformation alongside automation enablers like artificial intelligence (AI) and Robotic Process Automation (RPA), coupled with the responsible utilisation of data assets will be determining business success factors over the next five years, according to Grant Phillips, Group CEO at e4. While the landscape will be enormously different in the coming years, Phillips says that the brands who will succeed the most are those that move beyond a fascination with the technology itself but to understand how it can address ever changing customer needs and expectations, remembering that winning will be defined by how the technology capability has delivered a world class user experience. “Looking forward, increasing digital interactions, engagement, digital delivery of services or products w...
Events, Main, Zimbabwe News

Unlocking Sustainable Investment in AFRICA through AIM-AFRICA

AIM AFRICA will be a powerful impetus in strengthening AFRICA’s economic stability, sustainability, and growth. The African continent has immense untapped economic potential that presents innumerable opportunities for investors. The continent is also emerging as one of the preferred destinations for investments. According to data released in 2020 by the United Nations Population Division, 56.2% of the global population now lives in urban areas. This figure is projected to increase to 75 percent by 2050, at a growing rate of 65 million urban dwellers annually. This fact illustrates the degree to which demography will shape the future of Africa. The increase in the population combined with the effects of urbanisation and rising levels of affluence are likely to attract investors into most o...
South Africa News

IITPSA responds to government policies for digital development in SA

The Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) has welcomed the government’s commitment to strengthening its digital capacity and moving the country into the 4th Industrial Revolution, but has questioned the need for the government to create a new SOE, and the implementation model and costs associated with some of its plans. Responding to the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies’ draft national data and cloud policy, which outlines plans to develop a State Digital Infrastructure Company (SDIC) and High-Performance Computing and Data Processing Centre (HPCDPC), members of the IITPSA Board said this was further evidence of the government’s commitment to digital progress. The plans aim to consolidate excess capacity of publicly funded data centres...
Business, Fintech

Staying ahead of cybercrime is a business imperative

It is predicted that there will be 7,5 billion Internet users by 2030 and that more than 111 billion lines of new software code is produced each year. While the growth is exciting, these statistics also outline the number of vulnerabilities open to exploitation. Together with an estimated  96 zettabytes of digital content currently produced, this sheer volume will lead to increased cyber-attacks and security events, all of which will be virtually impossible for humans to contain. Ryan Mer, Managing Director, eftsure Africa, a Know Your Payee™ (KYP) platform provider, says that cyber security is almost always a people problem first: “While the amount of business transactions taking place online is constantly growing and working from home is now commonplace, business controls have not kep...
2021 will demand continued user experience and change management focus according to e4
Fintech, Tech

2021 will demand continued user experience and change management focus according to e4

A dogged commitment to change execution is how businesses will survive in 2021, according to Grant Phillips CEO of fintech specialist, e4. He says the Covid-19 pandemic wreaked industry-wide havoc, the headwinds of which will continue to blow for years to come, leaving businesses in an almost permanent state of evolution and change. “Despite the negative impact of Covid-19 we have seen several unique responses to the extraordinary challenge it created. This has led to many new opportunities and with it, ingenuity and creativity across several sectors. Macro-economic responses like interest rate management, changes in consumer buying behaviour, reduced local and global mobility, and a worldwide shift to low/no touch engagement all have very different, but marked impacts on many industries g...
Business, Tech

How Your Print Buyers’ Needs Are Changing And How To Add Value Amidst Digital Fatigue

By Head of Marketing at Canon South Africa, Jimmy De Waal Despite 46% of marketing budgets being dedicated to digital media, nearly 50% of brands are using print frequently in their campaigns[1]. With digital fatigue amongst consumers continuing to grow in light of recent global events, now is the time for print to step into the spotlight. But while marketers are keen to capitalise on the cut-through value that printed communications bring to the table, they’re looking for more guidance from their print service providers (PSPs). They want creative ideas that they haven’t considered, approaches targeted to their customers’ preferences and advice on how to deliver ROI. A clear opportunity exists for PSPs to build a more consultative relationship with their customers. By listening more closel...
The New Creative Sector Workspace – Adapt, Innovate and Thrive Creative Africa Nexus Virtual Event
Events, Rwanda News, Tech

The New Creative Sector Workspace – Adapt, Innovate and Thrive Creative Africa Nexus Virtual Event

The Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX), a programme put in place by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to support Africa’s creative and cultural industries, announces a series of virtual forums in the lead-up to the Intra-African Trade Fair 2021 (IATF2021). On 25 February at 15:00 CAT, digital innovators and experts from across some of Africa’s key creative sectors including fashion, film, music and XR, will share their experiences and successes from the year of COVID-19, and for a post-COVID world that will be forever changed. This first event will kick-start the conversation in the build-up to the Creative Africa Nexus Programme that will take place at the Intra-African Trade Fair 2021 (IATF2021) from 6 - 12 September in Kigali, Rwanda. Designed specifically for African creatives lo...