The H1 numbers on African VC funding reveal that debt funding has shown an overall decline compared to H1 in 2023 of -56%, with equity funding still the dominant player, totaling 127 deals and a total funding value of US $489.76 million. A significantly larger portion, almost 2.5 times more, went towards growth stage deals (38.04%) compared to early stage deals (16.95%).The Mobility and Fintech sectors captured the most debt funding in H1-2024, at 79.90% of the total debt funding. Benin’s Spironet and Kenya’s M-Kopa raised USD 50 M & 51 M debt rounds respectively.Non-equity rounds were the least popular funding…
Author: Greg Stewart
Rwanda Election results: Paul Kagame wins Rwanda presidential vote in landslide victory extending his current 24-year rule for an additional five years. Partial results indicate that the incumbent president has won 99% of the vote, with 79% of ballots counted from Monday’s election indicating that his status as a national hero still holds sway with te Rwandan people. Kenyan Protests Flare up again: Reports indicate that at least one protestor was killed in Kitengela as protestors took to the streets across the country. Widespread protests have been occurring for weeks and President William Ruto is under pressure to resign after…
The first study of its kind, on linking AI use impact on quality of life and lifestyles, has indicated that: 1. AI use and uptake is increasing rapid, particularly on mobile devices and 2. That Ai has an impact on quality of life, was conducted by the Institute of Management Studies at Goldsmiths in the University of London and published recently. The study found that those who use AI more frequently are about 1.4 times more likely to rate their quality of life as “good to very good” compared to those who rarely use it. The report, which surveyed more than…
Users of AI tools are projected to reach 729.11 million by 2030, a 132% jump from an estimated 314.38 million users in 2024 and a 529% surge from 2020, data as indicated by data supplied by Statista. With users of AI tools set to grow extensively through this decade, to almost three quarters of a billion users, it is critical that principles for trustworthy AI are developed and adopted broadly. Lucia Rossi, an economist and policy analyst at the OECD’s AI division, commented that “We see that policymakers across the globe are issuing different regulatory frameworks … we encourage interoperability…
Somali Car bomb: A car bomb has exploded outside a cafe in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, killing at least nine and injuring 20 others according to reports. The al-Qaeda-linked armed group, al-shabab, has claimed responsibility for the senseless attack on civilians. Kenya – Suspected Serial Killer Confesses: The Kenyan Police have reported that a 33-year old suspect had been apprehended in connection with the nine bodies discovered at an abandoned quarry in Kware. According to the Acting Inspector General of Police, Douglas Kanja, the suspect had been arrested at about 3am local time (00:00 GMT) in a joint operation by the…
Johannesburg, South Africa – July 15, 2024, There is a good reason that TCL Electronics leads the world in sales of Ultra-large XL TV’s. They have taken the development of home entertainment to a new level and there is not a single solitary feature or Tech advance that has achieved this, it is multiple layers of intense research & development that has accumulated into three series of world winning Television Tech. The TCL QD-Mini LED television series includes: For those looking to enhance their entertainment experience, QD-Mini LED products recently launched in South Africa are a must-see. Those who seek…
Too often aspiring business leaders, and entrepreneurs would appear to be driven by all the wrong reasons. Many are driven by motivations, such as, status, gaining power, wealth or living up to other people’s expectations, when in fact a focus on satisfying their personal interests, passions and desires is likely to lead to more success and personal satisfaction. As part of that process it is important to stay focussed on what is important even when the world around you might feel like it is coming unhinged in a storm. It is often the experience of those who have succeeded that…
Rwandan Presidential Elections Today: Although strictly speaking the voting commenced yesterday, at Rwandan Embassies, for Rwandan citizens outside the country, today marks the official Presidential election day. The three candidates include the current President, Paul Kagame, Frank Habineza, and Philippe Mpayimana. Kagame is standing for is fourth term in office and he has effectively been in power for 30 years, since the Aftermath of the Rwandan genocide in 1994, is anticipated to win again. Kenyan Police Investigations on Gruesome killing ground: The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) is conducting, what it called an “open and transparent” investigation into the discovery…
Kenya – President William Ruto has fired the full cabinet Secretaries and the Attorney General and has only retained the Minister of foreign affairs and the Deputy President. This follows after widespread protests regarding the new tax bill that has now been scrapped and general corruption within the government. Commentators have suggested that President Ruto is simply playing for time and believe that he has lost all support as president and should have resigned his position or called for new elections. He intends to hold further consultations and it is likely that he will try form a Government of National…
Your daily update on Breaking News stories VBS Bank Chair Sentanced Tshifiwa Matodzi, former chairman of the VBS Mutual Bank board, pleaded guilty to 33 counts of corruption, theft, fraud, money laundering and a pattern of racketeering activities in the Gauteng High Court on Wednesday. Matodzi was sentenced to 495 years – 15 years on each count. The sentences will run concurrently, so he will only serve an effective 15 year sentence. Life Esidimeni Ruling Confirms Neglect The Pretoria high court has ruled that the deaths of some of the mental health patients transferred to ill-prepared non-governmental organisations from Life…
