African Technology News, Startups, Mobile and Social Media

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Thu, October 11th, 12:48 · Vincent Matinde

New online service to give SA retirees chance to secure consulting jobs

RetiredConsultants, a new online platform for professionals, is giving South Africa’s highly skilled retired workforce an opportunity to work in consultancy. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 12:23 · Elly Okutoyi

Mobile number portability in Kenya a failed project

Mobile number portability (MNP) remains very low in Kenya even after mobile service providers and the government carried out mobile subscriber education, according to the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK). → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 12:10 · Dan Sudi

Nokia introduces portable solar charger in Kenya and Nigeria

Mobile phone-maker Nokia has rolled out portable solar chargers across the Kenyan and Nigerian telecommunication markets to boost electricity supply in off-grid regions. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 11:47 · Gythan Munga

South Africa’s digital switchover remains in limbo

South Africa’s move from analogue to digital television is not running as smoothly as hoped, with e.tv launching a high court action against Communications Minister Dina Pule which could see the switchover delayed even further. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 11:22 · Tom Jackson

Zimbabwe PM urges involvement in ICT

Morgan Tsvangirai, the prime minister of Zimbabwe, has called on ICT stakeholders to participate in the country’s ICT policy review, which is now at a consultation stage, in order to position the tech sector as the main driver of economic growth in the country. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 10:21 · Dan Sudi

Huawei poses security threat, African presence tremendous

Telecommunication services leaders Huawei and ZTE cannot be trusted and should be barred from operating in the United States as they pose security risks, according to a report released by the U.S. House of Representatives' Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence reveals. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 09:49 · Tefo Mohapi

Mobile penetration in Senegal surpasses 88%

Senegal’s mobile penetration has now passed the 88 percent mark, according to a recent report released by the country’s communications regulator Agence de Regulation des Telecoms et Postes (ARTP) for the second quarter of the year ending June 2012. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 09:17 · Gythan Munga

Student suspended for washing college’s ‘dirty linen’ on Facebook, Twitter

A student in Kenya has been suspended for one year after being accused of ranting against his college on social media. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 08:51 · Gythan Munga

Whatever happened to Herman Heunis?

Almost 8 years ago, Herman Heunis set-up African instant messaging platform Mxit – flying in the face of critics who insisted Instant Messaging (IM) was over. Heunis’ faith in his project has been well placed – Mxit is now Africa’s fastest growing social networking site and rivals are also having successes, with 2go, billed as the next Mxit, having reached over 10 million users – proving that Heunis was right to insist IM still has a long life ahead. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 08:18 · HumanIPO

The HumanIPO Debate: Is there a case for digital censorship?

In the first of a new series, HumanIPO reporters and guest writers debate important issues within the African tech sector, inviting readers to join in the discussion on Twitter and Facebook. We begin with digital censorship, which remains a hot topic, particularly in Africa, where social media was credited with fuelling the revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia and where Ethiopia’s government stands accused of cracking down on the likes of Skype and Google Talk. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 08:13 · Vincent Matinde

Media-owners in Kenya set up East Africa’s first presidential debate

Kenya’s Presidential Debates 2013, which will be the first to take place in the region, will incorporate the use of social media and SMS text messages, with eight television and 32 radio stations participating. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 07:28 · Paul Adepoju

Nigeria’s health ministry to use SMS to monitor countrywide operations

Patients in Nigeria will soon be able to lodge complaints on the nation’s healthcare system through, with plans underway to launch the technology in the near future, according to Nigeria’s health minister Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 06:47 · Tefo Mohapi

Tanzania and Uganda in agreement to build alternative route for undersea cable

Tanzania is reportedly in the process of entering into a contract with Uganda to build an alternative route for the undersea cable as the latter seeks to triumph over prevalent slow Internet speeds caused by recurrent cable breakdowns. → Read more
Thu, October 11th, 05:00 · Elly Okutoyi

Safaricom loses some of its market share to rivals

Kenya’s mobile services leader Safaricom has seen a fall in subscribers, according to a new Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) report, with rival telcos escalating competition in the sector with new products and advertising campaigns. → Read more
Wed, October 10th, 15:32 · Dan Sudi

LifeLine uses Mxit’s chat service to mark Mental Health Awareness month

South Africa’s LifeLine Johannesburg, a humanitarian organisation focused on counselling, has partnered with Africa’s fastest growing social networking site Mxit to offer mobile chat platform for counselling services during October’s Mental Health Awareness (MHA) month. → Read more
Wed, October 10th, 14:32 · HumanIPO

Closet49 seeks to be Africa’s eBay for fashion

Closet49, a new online fashion marketplace launched last month, is seeking to enable the swapping and selling of clothes online. → Read more
Wed, October 10th, 13:24 · Gythan Munga

Nhleko fights claims of bribery on MTN watch

Steering South African telecoms group MTN for nine years, Phuthuma Nhleko amassed quite a reputation for the successes the company achieved under his leadership. However, since leaving his position as Group CEO last year, Nhleko has been plagued with criticism and accusations of corrupt practices while at MTN. → Read more
Wed, October 10th, 13:09 · Robert K'Odingo

Heavy fines for Kenya’s wayward telecoms imminent

The Kenyan government has warned mobile network operators in the country that they will face heavy fines if they keep maintaining their “poor services”. → Read more
Wed, October 10th, 12:39 · Tom Jackson

CCK to be disbanded and replaced by independent body

The Kenyan government is to replace the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) with a new, independent, corporate body free of government influence, in line with the country’s constitution. → Read more
Wed, October 10th, 12:33 · Tefo Mohapi

North Africa, Angola have cheapest fixed broadband prices

North Africa and Angola have the cheapest fixed broadband prices on the continent, reports oAfrica.com, an analytic site that tracks Africa’s digital progress. → Read more