Report - Afrikan Heroes

MTN Partners Ozow in South Africa to Make MoMo Transfers Simpler

November 12, 2020

Africa’s leading Telecommunications Company MTN has partnered with Ozow to make loading funds simpler for Mobile Money (MoMo) users in South Africa. Speaking on the development, the CEO of Ozow Thomas Pays said that the partnership is viewed by his organization as “one more step in our efforts at displacing cash and enabling greater digital and financial inclusion for all South Africans. The rapid growth of mobile money services this year points to the growing demand among South Africans for safe and efficient ways to store, send and spend money via their mobile device.”

MTN MoMo was launched at the beginning of 2020 and crossed the one million user milestone in June. It offers users an easy way to send money to friends and family members as well as access to a range of value-added services such as purchasing prepaid electricity, renewing car licence discs, and purchasing products online through a network of affiliated eCommerce partners.

Felix Kamenga, Chief Officer of MTN SA’s Mobile Financial Services said that MTN will continue to introduce innovative new features to benefit our users, with a number of new services having rolled out over the past few months. “Our partnership with Ozow” according to him, “is another step toward making it easier, safer and more convenient for millions of South Africans to conduct essential and convenient transactions via their mobile device using a simple USSD number or in-app.”

Africa is the centre of the global mobile money industry. Data from the GSMA suggests there are 469 million registered mobile money users in sub-Saharan Africa, transacting 23.8 billion times at a value of $456.3-billion in 2019 – nearly two-thirds of the global total. However, Southern Africa accounted for only 2% of registered mobile money accounts in sub-Saharan Africa, pointing towards tremendous growth potential.

“Any effort at greater digital and financial inclusion in South Africa needs a mobile-first strategy,” says Pays. “Smartphone penetration in South Africa reached 90% this year, but that leaves 10% still using feature phones. To support this customer segment, we have worked with MTN to enable a USSD service from which they can load funds to their wallet quickly and safely. We see this as another positive step toward the mass adoption of digital financial services in South Africa and support our efforts at displacing cash for the benefit of all.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Telkom Reports Increasing Subscriber Base

November 11, 2020

South Africa’s third mobile telecommunications operator, Telkom South Africa has revealed that it recorded a rise in subscriber base pushing its numbers by to 13.7 million – to claim the position of South Africa’s third mobile operator. Telkom delivered solid EBITDA growth despite a slight revenue decrease of 0.4% to R21.4 billion in the face of difficult trading conditions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Telkom’s decision to invest in infrastructure ahead of demand enabled us to meet the surge in demand and weather the acceleration of the decline in fixed voice revenue during the national lockdown,” says Sipho Maseko, Telkom Group CEO. Telkom Mobile expanded margin by 13.2 ptts to 29.9%, optimised direct cost to revenue ratio from 53% in the prior period to 38% and more than doubled its EBITDA to R2.9 billion.

Mobile data traffic is up 81%, a significant increase attributable to the increase of people working from home and online schooling due to the national lockdown. “Telkom Mobile has performed exceptionally well, despite the negative impact of the national lockdown on parts of our business,” says Maseko.

BCX and SMB saw a decline of 11.3% and 25% respectively, driven by a decline in enterprise fixed voice revenues. The decrease in fixed voice volumes also impacted Openserve negatively with revenue declining by 13.6%, a shift driven by 22.7% decline in fixed voice revenue compared to the prior period. Despite this, Openserve maintained the highest connectivity rate in the market through improved fibre to the home connectivity rate from 43.6% in the prior year to 53.8%. Gyro masts and towers revenue increased 7.7% to R628 million despite the slowdown in the permitting and construction process due to the national lockdown.

“We are pleased with a solid set of results in a year where growth was challenging due to the COVID-19 pandemic that strained the South African economy. These results reflect the quality and dedication of our people and business partners,” concludes Maseko.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Nigerian Government Under Attack for ‘Special Waiver’ to Dangote Cement for Exports

November 10, 2020

Michel Puchercos, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dangote Cement

Many Nigerians have taken to social media to criticize the federal government’s decision to give Dangote Cement a Special Waiver to resume exports across its land borders. This decision according to the reactions smacks of nepotism and encouraging monopoly because Dangote Cement is not the only cement manufacturer in the country, moreso, there are hundreds of businesses that have lost so much to the border blockade that has lasted for a year and two months. Since the news broke Tuesday morning, both Twitter and Facebook have been trending with comments expressing the people’s dismay at what they described as unnecessary favouritism capable of destroying the economy on the verge of a recession.

Questioning the rationale behind such a decision, Mr. Atedo Peterside, Chairman of Stanbic IBTC Bank using his handle (@AtedoPeterside) Tweeted: Allowing legitimate exporters & importers to move their goods across the border should be a no-brainer. Why refuse everybody else & allow only one company (Dangote)? This is why some of us argue that the Nigerian economy is rigged in favour of a handful of well-connected persons”, he noted.

Also a Facebook commentator Ugochukwu Nwakohu said that even during the closure, that Dangote Cement has been moving products across the border noting that the government of the Republic of Benin earlier refused them entry but later agreed that once their advance transit duty payment is exhausted, they won’t be able to be allowed passage. This new waiver he reasoned might be part of efforts by the government to walk around the challenge by giving them export papers which they have refused to issue to others. Many others noted that a policy that suffocates SME’s but massage the ego of a behemoth is not good for the economy.

Some business people expect that this thaw from the government’s side might portend the end of the border closure as President Muhammadu Buhari‘s administration gave its authorization for Africa’s biggest producer to export cement to Niger and Togo in the third quarter for the first time in ten months. Confirming the news, Michel Puchercos, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Dangote Cement was quoted by Bloomberg News as saying that the export was made possible “through authorization given by this administration.” The exemption to Dangote Cement is seen as a softening of the government’s position on a border closure that started in August last year, and could open the way for other businesses to fully resume exports across the country’s land barriers.

It could be recalled that the federal government closed borders with neighboring countries including Benin and Niger to curb smuggling and boost local production. Although the blockade encouraged the consumption of locally grown produce such as rice, it hurt factories across West Africa, which rely on Nigeria’s market of 200 million people.

Dangote resumed land export with “restricted volumes,” and plans to grow the trade using the sea channels, according to Puchercos. A total of 69 tons was exported through land borders in the period, less than one percent of the 11,741 tons of cement sales while shipping by sea is also being explored, the company said.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Bitsika Becomes Payment Method on Paxful Platform

November 8, 2020

Paxful, a global peer-to-peer crypto marketplace has announced the addition of Bitsika to its platform, expanding its range of local payment methods in Nigeria. The addition enables users to deposit Cedis, Naira, Dollars, CFA through the Bitsika app to facilitate easy transactions.

Speaking on the partnership, CEO and co-founder of Paxful, Ray Youssef, was quoted in a statement yesterday to have said: “As an organisation that constantly devises alternatives to ensure seamless and safe transactions for our users, we’re excited to add Bitsika as a payment option to the platform.

“With this partnership, users don’t have to worry about the restrictions on the US dollars imposed by African banks. Dollars can be held in a crypto form called BUSD. And with simplified security measures, there is no need to provide full Naira bank details, all that’s needed is a Bitsika tag.”

Bitsika was launched in 2019 to provide faster and easier payments across the globe while curbing the high costs of traditional money operators.

“With Bitsika you can load up money in a particular currency (say Cedis, Naira, USD, etc). Once done, you can now anonymously and instantly send the money to anyone who has a Bitsika cashtag, without fail,” the CEO of BitSika, Atsu Davoh said, adding, “Say goodbye to revealing the personal info of your Mobile Money number or Naira bank details every time you do or receive a transfer. And the best part is that all internal transfers are free.”

“There is a growing demand for crypto as Nigeria becomes one of the fastest-growing markets in the world. To deepen Paxful’s integration in the country’s crypto industry, the company has been recently recognized and accepted as a premium member of the Fintech Association of Nigeria. The partnership will help Paxful become an important part of the local financial ecosystem and protect its Nigerian users better.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Binance launches African affiliate program

November 7, 2020

The world’s largest crypto exchange announced two subsidiary suspensions within one month with the announcement of the launching a new affiliate program in Africa after announcing the termination of its Uganda-based service. The Binance Africa Affiliate Program, which aims to promote Binance across the continent. According to the exchange, the new program is open to influencers, crypto enthusiasts and content creators across Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda.

A spokesperson for Binance was quoted as saying that Binance’s services in Africa include a fiat on-ramp for users from Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda. The exchange also provides peer-to-peer services for users from Kenya. The move follows Binance’s Oct. 27 announcement that it was shutting down its Uganda subsidiary. Binance Uganda is expected to be entirely terminated as of Nov. 28, 2020, while the closure of trading services is scheduled for Nov. 11. The exchange has already closed deposits and new registrations on Oct. 28, the announcement reads.

Binance Uganda was a fiat-to-crypto platform launched by Binance in June 2018, allowing users in Uganda to access crypto with the Ugandan shilling, or UGX, and promote crypto adoption in Africa. Despite the platform’s suspension, local users will be still able to deposit UGX through Binance’s main platform, the exchange’s representative noted. In September 2020, Binance delisted its native token Binance Coin (BNB) from Binance Uganda. Executives then explained that the BNB/UGX trading pair did not meet the exchange’s trading standards.

Binance Uganda is the second local exchange subsidiary to close in the last 30 days. On Oct. 19, Binance announcepd the upcoming termination of Binance Jersey. The exchange did not specify the reasons for shutting down operations in Jersey, instead stating that Binance.com “will continue to offer services to citizens of Jersey through compliant banking channels.” According to the Binance representative, the two suspensions are not connected, as “Binance Jersey and Binance Uganda are two independent entities.” The spokesperson noted that the exchange will continue to expand globally to provide more localized products and services for local users.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Nigeria hopes blockchain will generate $10B revenue by 2030

November 6, 2020

The Director-General for Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency, or NITDA, has said that the country could potentially expect a revenue stream between $6 billion to 10 billion from blockchain technology in the next ten years. According to a Nov. 5 announcement from the NITDA, Director-General Kashifu Inuwa spoke at a stakeholders meeting in the Nigerian capital of Abuja to review the agency’s National Blockchain Adoption Strategy Framework. A draft of the strategy was first released in October and stated that blockchain and decentralized ledger technology (DLT) would “facilitate the development of the Nigerian digital economy.”

“We want Nigeria to be strategically placed to capture value from this economic potential of blockchain,” stated Inuwa. “Looking at our youthful population, which is mainly digitally native and with our position in Africa, we are looking at how we can get at least around six to 10 billion dollars by the year 2030.”

“Blockchain is going to play a key role in terms of creating, tracing products and services.”

Inuwa cited an October study from PricewaterhouseCoopers which found that blockchain technology — through its wide range of use cases — would potentially add $1.76 trillion to the global gross domestic product in the next 10 years, making it 1.4% of the global GDP in 2030. He stated that Nigeria could incorporate the technology through its provincial services, payment services, digital identity, customer engagement, and contract and dispute resolution applications.

“We see the need for us to position our country well so we can capture value from the blockchain.”

Nigeria has been one of the countries at the forefront of crypto and blockchain adoption in Africa. A May report from Arcane Research determined that the country had the second-highest percentage of cryptocurrency ownership or use among internet users in Africa at 11%. In September, the nation’s Securities and Exchange Commission officially defined digital assets under its regulatory umbrella. Recently, the country has been in the spotlight as crypto donations have been used by a group of Nigerian feminists to help fund protests against the police’s Special Anti-Robbery Squad, or SARS. Thousands of Nigerians have taken to the streets since early October to protest police brutality in the country, calling for SARS to be disbanded.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Bitcoin breaches $14,000 on Election Day, up 1,900% compared to 2016

The price of Bitcoin (BTC) rose by more than 2% in two hours to briefly top $14,000 as the polls were starting to close across many U.S. states on Nov. 3. At the time of writing, it was just under the key mark. Today is Election Day in the United States, and many crypto leaders are predicting Bitcoin could be the big winner in the highly contentious race. So far, officials have counted more than 400,000 ballots.

Bitcoin has only been around for two U.S. presidential elections, but the price has risen significantly with each successive race. In November 2012, 1 BTC was valued at roughly $12, while the price in 2016 was more than $700. With the coin now reaching $14,309 at the time of publication, it represents a rise of 1,900% in four years, or roughly 140,000% in eight years.

This is the second time BTC has peaked above the $14,000 barrier in just one week, with crypto influencer “The Crypto Lark” noting that the daily candle had just closed above $14,000 for the first time since January 2018. Non-political factors, including increasing institutional interest and PayPal’s decision to offer crypto services, may explain the price rise. Engagement on social media has also increased this month.

According to analytics platform The Tie’s weekly report, the volume of tweets mentioning Bitcoin rose by 15% in October to reach 835,000. The Tie reported t BTC saw positive returns of 30% in October compared to 10% returns on Ether (ETH). As ballots continue to be counted across the U.S., many are predicting volatility among cryptocurrencies and the stock market.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Raseedy launches Egypt’s first digital wallet

November 5, 2020

Karl Marco, co-founder and COO/CPO at Raseedy

Egypt-based fintech startup, Raseedy in partnership with The Saudi Investment Bank (SAIB) and Mastercard has launched the country’s first independent licensed digital wallet. The new fintech innovation allows users to transfer money, make payment via QR code, pay regular bills, issue online virtual debit cards and receive remittance internationally. Egypt’s first independent licensed digital wallet offers an alternative convenient payment method for users. Speaking on the development, Jacques Marco, co-founder and CEO at Raseedy said that fintech expects the digital wallet to be used by one million people in the months to come, giving users the opportunity to better manage their finances.

“We are proud to announce Raseedy’s launch. We believe that it is our mission at Raseedy to improve our users’ lives by giving them more control and visibility over their finances. With the government’s push towards financial inclusion and digital transformation, launching our independent wallet now is the prime opportunity for Raseedy. We are excited to see our wallet hit the one-million users’ milestone in the coming months.”

Founded in 2018 by Jacques and Karl Marco, Raseedy has built and developed the technology for Egypt’s first digital wallet. The objective of the digital wallet is to offer a reliable alternative to cash payments in Egypt. The digital wallet is a lightweight, cross-platform mobile app that grants users financial flexibility and security. The digital wallet is licensed by the Central Bank of Egypt and certified by Meeza which is the national payment’s scheme operator.

The Egypt fintech startup combines their business-to-customer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) model and applies this to digital financial inclusivity, resulting in a wide range of financial services for users. Disbursement and collection solutions are presented to Raseedy’s business partners, as a number of clients are currently utilisng the fintech’s services for payroll and microfinance-specific use cases. Karl Marco, co-founder and COO/CPO at Raseedy, speaks about user inclusivity and the benefits the digital wallet has as customers and businesses can receive and transfer money via the app.

“We, at Raseedy, have a vision that our digital wallet will substitute cash in everyday life in an efficient, transparent, and cost-effective way. We strive to deliver easy-to-use, trustworthy, and innovative digital solutions. Raseedy achieves this by focusing on having simple registration procedures and an intuitive user experience accessible at every socio-economic level.”

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Morocco Reaches Record-Breaking Unemployment Rate of 12.7%

November 3, 2020

Morocco’s unemployment rate has maintained its growth, reaching 12.7% in the third quarter of 2020, from July to September. In the previous quarter, the unemployment rate broke the highest record since 2001 when it reached 12.3%.

By annual comparison, Morocco’s unemployment rate increased by 3.3 points. In the third quarter of 2019, it stood at 9.4%. The unemployment rate remains higher in Moroccan urban centers compared to rural areas. In cities, the unemployment rate rose from 12.7% in 2019 to 16.5% in 2020. Meanwhile, the rate in rural areas witnessed an annual increase from 4.5% to 6.8%.

Youth unemployment

Unemployment in Morocco remains most prevalent among young people aged 15 to 24, with 32.3% unemployed. Additionally, the unemployment rate among university graduates in Morocco is 18.7%. By gender, the unemployment rate is higher among women (17.6%) compared to men (11.4%).

Overall, the total number of unemployed Moroccans increased by 368,000 between the third quarter of 2019 and the same period in 2020. It went from 1,114,000 to 1,482,000, recording a 33% annual increase. Morocco’s High Commission for Planning (HCP) announced the new unemployment rate in its report on the domestic job market’s evolution in the third quarter of 2020. The HCP published the report on November 3.

Over half a million lost jobs

Between the third quarter of 2019 and the same period in 2020, the Moroccan economy lost 581,000 jobs, including 237,000 positions in cities and 344,000 in rural areas. The lost jobs are mainly attributed to the suspension of several economic activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The services sector lost the highest number of jobs between 2019 and 2020.

Over the past 12 months, the tertiary sector lost 260,000 positions, including 196,000 in urban centers and 64,000 in rural areas. The figure represents 5.2% of the sector’s overall jobs. The primary sector, mainly concerned with agriculture and fisheries, lost 258,000 jobs in total, while the industrial sector lost 61,000 positions.

Prevalent underemployment

Underemployment is also a prevalent challenge in the Moroccan economy. Underemployment occurs when a person does not work full time or takes a job that does not reflect their actual training and financial needs. According to the report, 1,182,000 Moroccans are underemployed, including 627,000 in cities and 556,000 in rural regions. Morocco’s national underemployment rate stands at 11.6%. It varies from 10.5% in urban centers to 13.3% in rural areas.

Territorial disparities

The HCP report highlighted significant territorial disparities in terms of unemployment rates.

The Oriental region, in northeastern Morocco, has the highest unemployment rate in the country, at 21.2%, followed by the southern regions (19.6%).

Three other regions recorded an unemployment rate that exceeds the national average: Casablanca-Settat (14.7%), Draa-Tafilalet (14%), and Fez-Meknes (12.9%).

Meanwhile, the regions with the lowest unemployment rates are Beni Mellal-Khenifra and Marrakech-Safi, with 5.9% and 7.8%, respectively.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry

Zambia Postpones the Evil Day as it gets deferral on China Development Bank debt

Zambia has reached a deal to defer debt repayments that were due in October on a loan from the China Development Bank (CDB), Zambia’s government said, without giving the size of the loan or the debt repayments that were due. Zambia owed CDB about $391m at the end of 2019 — about a tenth of the $3bn it owes Chinese entities — according to the finance ministry. It was not clear whether the loan in question covers all of this debt or a fraction of it.

“Under the terms of our agreement with CDB, interest and principal due on October 25 2020 will be deferred,” the government said in a statement. “The deferred interest payment is now payable on April 25 2021 and the deferred principal rescheduled over the life of the facility.”

Zambia, one of the world’s top copper producers, has been plunged into a debt crisis as the Covid-19 pandemic hurt its economy and exposed its public borrowing as unsustainable. Zambia’s bonds showed little reaction to the news. They were already showing signs of strain before the pandemic struck in 2020 but are now trading at just 40% of their face value.

The government missed a $42.5m coupon payment on one of its Eurobonds that was due on October 14 but has a 30-day grace period before it goes into default. It has asked Eurobond holders to defer interest payments until April 2021, but they have so far rejected the request. One of the sticking points has been whether other key lenders such as China would also agree to reschedule repayments.

“This is a good step in the right direction but they still need to do more to appease the creditor group,” said one of the members of the Zambia External Bondholder Committee, Kevin Daly at Aberdeen Standard Investments in London.

“It is still piecemeal and what you need is something comprehensive.”

He also said it was not clear whether the announced deal included a deferral of arrears payments believed to have become an obstacle to some Chinese entities participating in debt relief for Zambia. Zambia’s external debt is nearly $12bn, including $3bn of outstanding Eurobonds, $3.5bn of bilateral debt, $2.9bn of other commercial debt and $2.1bn owed to multilateral institutions.

On Wednesday, the World Bank said it has sanctioned a state Chinese state electric engineering group and its subsidiary over fraudulent practices in a power project in Zambia, setting out new conditions for them to participate in bank-financed projects. The action bars China Electric Design and Research Institute from participating in bank financed projects for up to 18 months, with the ability to meet new compliance conditions. The firm’s parent company, China National Electric Engineering, was allowed to continue to participate in projects under a settlement agreement, but could be banned if it fails to meet agreed conditions, the bank said.

Kelechi Deca

Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry