Many viewpoints appear on our radar as we sift through news stories from across the continent. All are useful, but some are especially intriguing. This year, we aim to routinely jot down snippets of our thoughts on what is happening in the realm of African Internet progress. We hope the discussion of these themes can ever-so-slightly contribute to a continent where every citizen has the means to not only access, but also to understand the power of the Internet.

On our mind this January 17th, 2012 are a range of themes – from Google’s up-and-down week to cross-border telecom partnerships to 3G arriving in Algeria:

  • Tanzania’s plan to spend $189m on a nationwide fibre cable certainly will open more doors for computer users. However, the means to utilize the network must be behind those doors. The good news is the government claims to be committed to e-learning. More questionable is how China expects to recoup its $170 million investment.
  • The Google/Mocality controversy earlier in the week serves as a wake-up call for everyone involved in online business. Small companies (like Mocality) need to remain diligent, but not overly paranoid. Tech should understand the nuances of IP addresses and user-agent information. On the other hand, large companies (Google) need to continue to promote ethical business practices.
  • Despite the negative press from the Mocality incident in Kenya, Google Ghana launched a program to get Ghanaian businesses online within two years in Ghana. The program helps SMEs create a website, list themselves on Google maps, and set up a Google+ page. Very useful.
  • Telecom execs in South Africa are wise to warn consumers not to expect drastic broadband price cuts when WACS goes live later in 2012. The reason: in South Africa, local factors are more limiting than raw international capacity.
  • We agree with TechZim that “basic phones will still rule” this year and that Asian imitations will be harder to sell. Pragmatism at its best.
  • Network redundancy and number of telecom operators in a country are inversely proportional.
  • Free and open source software is a must for cash-strapped entrepreneurs, educators, and developers. Users of such software should be wary of security concerns, however!
  • We’re glad to see that the “Silicon Valleys of the World” infographic created by Gist touts the robust entrepreneurial culture of Africa. Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana all have Entrepreneurial Indices greater than the global average.
  • Telecoms news out of Chad is rare, yet it is always positive. Kudos to Cameroon for working with their neighbor to enhance bandwidth capabilities in Chad. More nations need to realize the mutual benefits of cross border partnerships. In this case, Chad (via SITCOM) will link to the SAT3 undersea cable. In turn, Cameroon (via CAMTEL) will share a maintenance platform with Chad. Of course, Camtel will most likely turn a tidy profit…
  • We often focus on serious issues of how the Internet enhances learning, improves government transparency, and prevents disease. But it’s used for fun too! Youth in Algeria eagerly anticipate the arrival of 3G later this year. What stands out is the sentiment of a student/blogger who says he can’t wait to prove his friends wrong (by quickly finding the answer online) when they get into a petty argument.
  • The island of St. Helena is hardly African, but its geographic proximity and economic relationship with South Africa warrants coverage. Please support the nation’s endeavor to secure greater broadband capacity.

Finally, like the Vice President of Kenya says, consider highlighting positive news out of Africa rather than dwelling on negative issues. That doesn’t mean ignore the bad, but rather emphasize the good.

Nigerians using smartphone

Photo Credit: Leah Ekbladh

Using smartphones to collect tuberculosis (TB) data within the health sector of Nigeria has eliminated the use of printed forms; minimized human error in data entry; reduced the lag time of availability of data for policymakers and managers; and helped pinpoint ways to improve delivery of TB care, reported Leah Ekbladh.

Ekbladh, who is a Senior Associate at Abt Associates was giving a talk hosted by the Global Health Council on the topic “Quality TB Care: Using Smartphone Technology for Data-driven Improvements in Nigeria” as part of the Health Systems 20/20 presentation series on Tuesday January 10. Her talk focused on TB quality improvement activity in Nigeria, the Abt Associates’ approach to quality improvement (QI), the before and after picture of supportive supervision (SS) system, next steps, and lessons learned.

TB Situation in Nigeria and the Health System

According to Leah, with Nigeria ranking 10th among the 22 high TB burden countries in the world, the country’s TB situation could be improved. Before the HS2020 and the National TB Program’s joint intervention, the TB supervision system was largely paper-based. Results of data collected from health facilities were not available immediately for feedback and quality improvement; each state had its own paper-based system with different design of the forms and different items; data were compiled quarterly at State levels; and data entry and analysis was time consuming and prone to a lot of human error.

With support through Health Systems 20/20, the USAID flagship project for strengthening health systems worldwide, the need to strengthen the Supportive Supervision (SS) system to improve performance and treatment outcomes with Nigeria’s health sector was identified. The activity by Abt Associates aimed to shift away from the long paper-based checklists that do not support timely QI at the health facilities, towards supervision that concentrates on performance of clinical tasks, resolution of problems experienced by the health workers, and increased feedback from supervisors.

Nigerians using smartphone

Photo Credit: Leah Ekbladh

The Activity: The Role of Information and Communication Tools

The project believes that when the new information and communication technologies (ICTs) are smartly and strategically integrated into existing development processes, they can help streamline, transform and improve services. And with the strong in-country leadership support from Nigeria to explore new and innovative ways of improving quality through SS system, the activity took off smoothly with a pilot in 4 local government areas (LGA) in 4 states.

Tools Used: Beginning with what was available at the time, and also based on the usability of the features, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) were used in combination with Pendragon software to help in creating forms, connecting the forms to the users, distributing the forms, and uploading the forms to a database. After a year of piloting, it was realized that the market for the PALM PDAs was declining with the increasing use of smartphones in Nigeria. Also, EpiSurveyor software from Datadyne was recommended due to its ease of use and its ability to calculate and populate the forms for data collection.

Outputs

Rapid Results Indicators (RRI): RRI form was created with the most critical items that sum up the key elements that are needed for quality data collection, analysis, use and QI for supervision. This was done through repeated iteration resulting in a consolidated checklist that streamlines and integrates the numerous checklist that exists on the paper-based system. The checklist (RRI) loaded into the smartphones, are programmed to do automatic calculations of critical indicators by reducing human error.

Training and Capacity Building: Thirty (30) out of 50 supervisors have been trained on the use of the smartphone technologies and data managers are also trained on the use and improvement of the database. (It should be noted that these people are the existing public servants of the ministry of health in Nigeria). Six rounds of data collection have been done with one using smartphones and five with PDAs.

Database: Through the system, a web-based database to house the data collected and to more easily aggregate and report information to the national level has been developed and launched. The database provides online data aggregation for analysis and dissemination, and quality control system of the data including online government approval data being published and used.

When data is uploaded, supervisors gets notified or alerted for review either on their phone through SMS or email. Updates are communicated back to the officer for review and publication.

Impact of the Activity

With the pilot activity, supervisors have reported the ease of use of the tool in data collection as well as for review and editing of submitted data. Some reported a reduction of working hours from 3 hours with paper-based system to 30-45minutes with the smartphone technology. Supervisors have indicated that the system is enabling them to monitor and assess performance of the TB health delivery system, identify problems and opportunities, and many cases take immediate action for improvement. For example, the rate of drug stock-outs has significantly decreased, and external quality control is easily obtained for quality service with far less delay.

Nigerians using smarphone

Photo Credit: Leah Ekbadh

Lessons Learned and Steps Forward

It was discovered that careful selection of technologies (information communication technologies) for international development activities is key for success; suitable technologies in combination with human resources (socio-technical) is critical; and steps must be taken to roll-out projects incrementally and then plan for scale-up.

In terms of scaling, a total coverage of Lagos and Abia is expected soon with the training of additional 50 supervisors and full integration of the database on schedule. The project also expects to leverage other funding sources to expand further and also involve the private sector in Nigeria.

Visit Abt Associates international health programs for more information on their activities and the Health Systems 20/20 presentation series site for information on the upcoming events and also access the audio recording of the talk.

Photo Credit: USAID Impact blog

A new finding by Dalberg Global Development Advisors reveals that mobile money (MM) channel has emerged as the preferred alternative out of four major ICT solutions used in Haiti within the past two years after the 2010 earthquake.

The report “Plugging into Mobile Money Platforms: Early Experiences of NGOs in the Field” indicates that four electronic cash distribution solutions have emerged globally as alternative channels to physical delivery of cash to humanitarian victims. These are mobile money, electronic vouchers, prepaid cards, and smart cards.

The finding attests to the fact that the success of any of these four mechanisms of money transfer will often depend on the supporting environment. For example money transfers through pre-paid and smart cards work better when there exist a strong banking infrastructure and credit card networks. In the absence of this infrastructure such as the case in Haiti after the quake, the only two remaining options are physical cash delivery and mobile-based solutions.

The report continues that in Haiti, MM has emerged as the preferred alternative to physical delivery because of the rapid development of mobile telephony and the successful launch of MM. Haiti has completed more MM cash transfer programs than any other country, and to date, just under US $6 million in transfers has been disbursed to more than 24,000 beneficiaries via the MM channels of six NGO programs, the report said.

It will be recalled that Haiti was hit by a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with the epicenter near the town of Léogâne, approximately 25 km (16 miles) west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital on Tuesday January 12 2010. The aftermath of this earthquake led to a massive relief and recovery efforts by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with global support from individuals, governments, foundations, international organizations and the United Nations.

In June 2010, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the USAID-funded project in Haiti, Integrated Finance for Value Chains and Enterprises (HIFIVE) announced the launch of the Haiti Mobile Money Initiative (HMMI) to stimulate the development of mobile money services in Haiti.

For the detailed report, visit here.

Photo Credit: Esoko

A Partner Director at Esoko, Laura Drewett says one of the challenges being faced by Esoko as a technology company in developing and deploying mobile services to rural communities, is partnering with Mobile Network Operators (MNOs). Drewett was speaking at the January 06 2012 GBI TechTalk this time co-hosted by the USAID’s  Fostering Agriculture Competitiveness Employing Information Communication Technologies (FACET) project.

She argued that negotiations with MNOs for partnership to provide services to rural communities could take years. Laura who manages Esoko’s international operations, partner deployments, and franchises mentioned other challenges as low literacy among users, and Ghana’s “theory-based” educational system which calls for further investment in training local developers from the country’s higher education institutions.

Background of Esoko

Giving the background to the company, the partner director stated that Esoko started out as Tradenet with merely 2 staff members in a tiny room by collecting price information on mobiles and disseminating but currently occupies 4 levels in one of the expensive buildings in Accra with over 65 software developers who are mostly Ghanaian. The company is now in 16 countries (will be 20 this year), deployed under a franchise arrangement in all but Ghana.

Photo Credit: Esoko

Why Esoko?

Laura says farmers lack prices, traders need transport and new contacts, projects and governments need a better way to reach out to people, businesses lack real-time updates on their stock and the value of their harvests. Esoko is a communication platform using web and SMS that helps link all of these actors and allows them to exchange information affordably and quickly. Esoko provides a range of applications that both push updates out to the field, and, more importantly, pull data in from the field. Being better informed helps everyone along the value chain and can play a vital role to improve how markets operate. The market information system by Esoko is country driven.

Services

As a mobile service managed through the web with no required special hardware or software for the client, Esoko provides SMS messaging, SMS price alerts, SMS bids and offers, SMS polls, SME websites, Maps, Upload via SMS/web and inventory reporting. The company offers training supports for the use of technologies, and business model and franchising.

Esoko has a subscription model covering four key target groups. Bronze subscription for individual farmers, researchers and traders;  silver for small businesses and exporters; gold for farmer groups, medium size businesses and small NGOs; and platinum for large businesses, NGO, governments, etc. and provides business strategy and financial models that will help you design your business and reach profitability.

These subscriptions are mostly paid for by the partners on behalf of their users (farmers) even though some individual farmers and traders are also paying for the services.

Does it Work?

Photo Credit: Esoko

Sharing some of the success stories of the users of the platform, Drewett stated that even though they don’t have “statistical” evidence based results the impact of their service on farmers, studies carried by the company and another independent study show that farmers are benefiting from the use of the service. One social impact of the service reported by a farmer in Ghana is that as a result of the Esoko service, there is peace in their marriage. This is because the husband is able to monitor the price at the market and estimate the revenue of their produce even before the wife goes to the market.


Questions and concerns from the participants included the extension of their MIS service to provision of production information for farmers; the extent to which such detailed information can be transmitted through text; issues of privacy of data for farmers; the company’s view on the role of commodity exchange platforms such Ethiopian Commodity Exchange for MIS, among others.

The next GBI TECHTalk will be Jan 25 at noon, and will focus on working with MNOs. Visit GBITechTalks.eventbrite.com to find out more and register!

Nigeria’s Central Bank announced it would issue more mobile money licenses in an effort to streamline the process and deliver more options to Nigerians.

Stacks of Nigerian paper moneyNigeria’s Central Bank announced it would issue more mobile money license (image: BBC)

The Deputy Director of Domestic Payment Division of the Central Bank of Nigeria Emmanual Obaigbona, said that the move is to assist banks in their ability to move the program forward, which officially began on 1 January.

Obaigbona added in a statement that the aim is to broaden the overall participation in mobile money system, in general, and the cash-less policy in particular.

He added that “the apex bank has already licensed 11 mobile operators who successfully passed the pilot studies conducted for them last year.

“The 11 licensed operators are not the end of the list. The CBN intends to license more operators to meet the set standards for operating mobile money services in the country,” Obaigbona said.

He continued to say that the apex bank’s decision to issue the mobile money license “was to reduce the unbanked population to the barest minimum and subsequently develop the economy.”

Still the move has many analysts worried that it could create too many restrictions in the country, especially after the central bank barred telecom operators from promoting any specific mobile money product.

“I am a bit concerned that this will open the market up too wide and destroy companies and peoples’ ability to understand what they are participating in right now,” said Asamoa Hiran, a telecom and banking specialist in Lagos.

He told IT News Africa that there is “too much confusion right now to really understand what is going on, so we are all waiting to see what the future will hold.”

The launch of mobile money banking hopes to move Nigeria, which has the largest population not using banks, into the financial system.

David Eto

Photo Credit: Intuit Fasal

Over 500 000 rural farmers in India can now access free daily market information and weather services on their cell phones with the help of Intuit Fasal platform, an SMS based mobile service.

Fasal begun as an experiment after it was recognized that rural farmers in Karnataka, India lack price information in relevant multiple markets; have issues with price transparency in markets; and also lack knowledge of potential buyers of their farm produce.

After a period of interaction between some company executives and the farmers in their rural setting, it was identified that the above challenges lead to information gaps that have a huge impact on the livelihood of the farmers and their families who often look at existing means of livelihood as one that does not provide sufficient returns.

The opportunity to provide a service where actionable information on price, potential buyer, weather, etc. would be invaluable to farming communities while also helping bridge the gap for large organizations to reach out with relevant offerings and advisory services in India was irresistible and therein was born Fasal.

Fasal has a single objective of helping farmers make more money or save more money! And this is being achieved through a business model that ensures that Fasal is a free for the farmer while companies providing household items to these rural communities, consumer durables, automotive equipments, agriculture implement and inputs, financial service, consumer goods, and other advertisers are rather charged for the service.

How it Works

Step One: A farmer calls toll free number in their respective local languages to register for Fasal. The farmer is then profiled by the staffs of Fasal based on information such as the commodity s/he grows, current crop season, land size under cultivation, etc. The farmer’s profile is then mapped to the markets that s/he visits to sell his or her produce.

Step Two: Based on this highly personalized information of each farmer, regular market and weather information are sent in their preferred local language at a time that it is most actionable. Additional relevant messaging is also sent on the basis of farmers’ profile such as use of irrigation facilities or ownership of farm equipments, etc.

Step Three: Using a complex and patented matching algorithms, Fasal service connects farmers to potential buyers/agents/institutions who would like to connect directly with farmers and make a purchase – creating an engaged and busy marketplace. The service using complex matching algorithms ensures that the multiple service messages reach the farmer every day, providing him/her data so that s/he can make informed decisions.

Impact

Even though the service is still at its infancy, its social and economic impact on the rural communities is being closely monitored, including the use of independent third-party research. According to Fasal, the vast majority of Fasal customers in Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat found the service useful and it is helping them earn an average of 20% more with the service.

For more information, visit Fasal site and also read this interesting article about the innovation.

Photo Credit: Hongkiat.com

Over 3000 participants from around the world are expected to gather at the CICG Convention Center, Geneva between January 23 – February 17, 2012 for the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC). The outcome of this international treaty-making conference will have worldwide ramifications in the field of communications.

Key issues on the agenda include:

1. Reviewing and revising the international regulatory framework for radiocommunications (RC) to reflect the increasing convergence in radio services arising from the rapid evolution of ICTs.

2. Management of scarce radio-frequency spectrum to provide new opportunities for RC services.

3. Management of satellite orbital slots and associated spectrum resources.

4. The introduction of mobile broadband and other advanced technologies.

At this conference, participants representing nations across the globe will be deciding on issues relating to the sharing of frequency spectrum to allow the deployment or continuous use of all types of radiocommunication services – wireless, broadcasting, satellite, aeronautical etc. Just as any other international conference or world summit, preparations begin several years in advance through regional pre-conferences, presentations of position papers, and the declarations are made at the conference.

Photo Credit: CTIA

Implications for Mobile Technologies and International Development

The interest in spectrum management could receive high attention looking at the potentials that the mobile and wireless industry has for the global economy. In the United States, the President announced a “National Wireless Initiative” in his 2011 State of the Union that will foster the conditions for the next generations of wireless technology, nearly doubling the amount of wireless spectrum available for mobile broadband.

But unfortunately spectrum is a limited and scarce resource that requires careful global, regional and national planning and regulation. To be able to meet the increasing demand of users, the mobile communication industry requires continued availability of radio spectrum in sufficient quantity within suitable bands and arranged in a consistent and harmonized manner.

Even though the sovereignty of individual nations to make domestic allocation and use decisions of spectrum must be respected, it is imperative that the spectrum as a global resource be managed well. Most especially, because of the on-going phenomenon of globalization, harmonization – both national and international could be on top of the agenda. This will ensure that discrete frequency bands are available for a specific use, such as 3G, 4G or wi-fi. Innovative plans such as auctions that would allow the current owners of the spectrum to share in the proceeds could be attractive both nationally and internationally.

The World Radiocommunication Conference, held every three to four years, is mandated to review and revise the Radio Regulations, the international treaty governing the use of radio-frequency spectrum and satellite orbits. WRC-12 will facilitate the management of scarce orbit/spectrum resources in the interest of end-users, with global implications for both policy-makers and the industry.

Photo Credit: National University of Singapore

A new working paper released by the Global Economy and Development at Brookings concludes that if smartly and strategically deployed, modern information and communications technology (ICT) holds great promise in helping bring quality learning to some of the world’s poorest and hardest-to reach communities.

As part of the Brooke Shearer Working Paper Series, the paper entitled “A New Face of Education Bringing Technology into the Classroom in the Developing World” focused on the potentials of using information and communication technologies to improve teaching and learning in the developing nations.

Using two examples of ICTs application in education from Peru and Pakistan – “failed” and “successful”, the paper stated that experience shows that while there are numerous examples of how technology is used to the great benefit of teachers and learners alike, there are also many cases in which it does little to impact educational processes and outcomes.

The example from Peru, South America recalls a number of colorful laptops sitting in a corner of a classroom covered with dust. It argues that the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) program which was arranged by the Ministry of Education, had the good intention of improving students’ information communication technology (ICT) skills, as well as their content-related skills through the laptops. But because there was no proper support for teacher training in how the laptops are to be used; no follow-up or repair and maintenance contingencies; and with outdated and bug-infested software, the laptops are seen as unusable and serve little purpose.

On the other hand, the successful example recalled a young girl in the small village of Hafizibad in Pakistan using her mobile phone to send an SMS message in Urdu to her teacher. After sending, she receives messages from her teacher in response, which she diligently copies by hand in her notebook to practice her writing skills. She does this from the safety of her home, and with her parents’ permission. The girl is part of a Mobilink-UNESCO program to increase literacy skills among girls in Pakistan which has shown some positive improvements so far.

Based on the above examples, the authors identified some barriers to quality education in the developing world.

Barriers to Learning for All – Primary, Secondary & Higher Education

  • Distance and Cost – limited availability of schools in remote, inaccessible, or particularly impoverished regions of developing countries with direct and indirect costs barriers.
  • Quality of Faculty/Teachers – poor quality of teacher training programs, lack of in-service training for those on the field, and lack of graduate level faculty members affect how much time teachers spend and how they teach.
  • Resources, Materials and Language –  limited budget for tertiary education leads to poor quality teaching and learning materials, in appropriate format and language are barriers especially to the early learners.
  • Management – poor education system management including unwieldy teacher payment systems, limited information collection and management capabilities, and poor learning assessment processes.
  • Students Academically Unprepared – due to the poor quality of education at the basic and secondary levels, students entering higher education are unprepared and usually with poor performance.

The paper continues that even with the extraordinary growth in access to ICT, its use in multiple sectors of society is uneven because of certain interconnected conditions that needs to be taken care of including the following:

Enabling Conditions for Effective Technology (ICT) Use

  • Access to Electricity – the use of ICTs requires access to power such as electricity, solar power, batteries, etc.
  • Internet Connectivity – access to the Internet and wireless capabilities is key for the use of ICTs in classroom
  • Human Resource Capacity – the need to attract, recruit and train skilled and qualified IT professionals
  • Political will and Management – development of national and institutional ICT policies and the will to act on them
  • Financial Resources – most of the developing countries need external support in implementing successful ICT projects in the educational sector
  • Link between Infrastructure Availability and Ability to Integrate – these countries also need to effectively integrate ICTs into the various sectors once the infrastructure is in place.

The paper then mentioned different types of ICTs for use in education in the developing nations.

Technology Types and their Prevalence

  • Radio – Even though is being referred to as “old technology,” radio and radio instruction such as Interactive Radio Instruction (IRI) has been utilized across the developing world as a tool to help facilitate learning and increase access to educational opportunities.
  • Television – Television is used to supplement classroom instruction with educational videos that teach and support lessons in language learning, mathematics, history, life skills and among other subjects.
  • Computers – Personal computers (PCs) are one of the most frequently cited and used forms of technology in education in the developing world and act as indicators of technological progress.
  • Mobile Phones – Cell phones and smart phones have been seen as increasingly useful educational tools in developing countries.
  • Tablets and E-readers – Tablet PCs like the iPad and ereaders are becoming a trend in education technology, and many experts see an important future for them in developing countries, due to the relatively low procurement cost.
  • Multimedia Projectors – These are devices used to project documents and/or computer images onto a wall in an effort to display the image to an entire classroom and allow the teacher to interact with the material along with the students, etc.
  • Open Educational Resources (OER) – OER are “teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits the free use and repurposing by others”.
  • Cloud Computing – Cloud computing allows organizations to increase computing capacity or add computing capabilities without needing to invest in infrastructure or train additional personnel.

The paper suggests seven guiding principles for the use of ICTs in education to be able to achieve the intended teaching and learning goal.

Seven Principles for Smart use of Technology in Education

  1. Educational Problem First – First, identify the educational problem that needs to be addressed, and then assess which, if any, is the best technology to do the job.
  2. Added Value – make sure that the technology will add value to other existing solutions.
  3. Sustainability – Carefully consider the full range of enabling conditions such as the total cost of ownership, the ultimate relevance of the technology to the particular location, access to appropriate infrastructure, and human resource capacity.
  4. Multiple Uses -Where possible, select a technology and design an intervention so that the technology can be used for multiple purposes.
  5. Lowest Cost – While there may be many different types of technologies that can provide the assistance sought, other things being equal, it is best to select the least expensive option for the job(s) desired.
  6. Reliability – Before deploying a technology, ensure it is reliable and will not rapidly break down. Nothing slows a project down more than unresolved problems.
  7. Ease of Use – Finally, in educational interventions, technology should be easy to use.

It concludes that, if these principles are followed it can help avoid many future problems and, more importantly help leverage the power of ICT in educating young people in some of the poorest regions of the world.

The full paper can be accessed here.

Photo Credit: NBC Nightly News

The Global development is hosting a live chat with people involved in supporting relief efforts at the Horn of Africa on Tuesday January 10 between 2-3pm GMT (9am EST) to answer your questions on the food crisis and famine at the Horn of Africa.

On the panel will be Clive Jones, chairman of the board of trustees at the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), who has been traveling through the region, and Abdalla Rashid, head of Islamic Relief’s Emergency Programs, who works mainly out of Wajir district in north-eastern Kenya.

Some of the general questions to start the discussion are:

  • What is happening on the ground in the countries affected by the crisis?
  • What’s the biggest challenge facing staff day-to-day, or those at a strategic level trying to track and supply a huge area?
  • Why, in a region not unaccustomed to famine, has the food crisis been so bad this time?
  • How can more resilience and better planning be built to prevent this happening again?

The food crisis in east Africa is affecting over 13 million people in parts of Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan. Last year, the UN said the region was experiencing the worst drought in 60 years. On 20th July 2011, famine was officially declared in three regions of Somalia, and on 13th December, the UN made an appeal for $1.5bn to support projects in the country in 2012.

Send your questions now for the online chat and click here to join the chat on Tuesday!

Orange Money, the mobile payment service from telecommunications company Orange,  has reached the threshold of 3-million customers in the eight countries where it is now offered, thus becoming one of the most powerful electronic money services in Africa.

Orange Money has reached the threshold of 3-million customers (image: stock.xchng)

Orange Money has tripled its customer base in the past year and continues to grow with the recent launch of services in two new countries: in Botswana in partnership with the Standard Chartered Bank, and in Cameroon in partnership with the BICEC (BPCE group).

In countries where it is available, mobile phone customers may open an Orange Money account whether or not they have a bank account. Orange Money allows customers to carry out simple banking operations and transactions in total security.

Orange plans to expand the Orange Money offer in the near future to include the possibility of receiving international money transfers. Orange and Western Union, a global leader in international money transfer services, have joined forces to develop this new service, which will enable Orange Money customers to receive transfers directly on their mobile phones via Western Union’s global system.

According to the World Bank, countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia (AMEA) in which the Group operates receive more than 25 million transfers every year.

“Orange Money is a very important part of our strategy in Africa and emerging markets. Mobile payment services have the potential to bring cost-effective and secure access to banking services to people with low incomes, who often live in rural or remote areas. By providing our customers with the means to save money, pay bills, run their businesses and receive money from abroad, we are not only reinforcing customer fidelity but we are also able to play an active role in the economic and social development of the country,” said Marc Rennard, Orange’s Executive Director for AMEA operations.

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