Author: Akin Naphtal

At the intersection of innovation and governance stands Dr. Nihinlola Mary Fafore, a distinguished technology executive and the Deputy Director of Business Environment and Affairs at Huawei Technologies Nigeria. With a career defined by the pursuit of digital excellence, she serves as a vital bridge between transformative technology and the regulatory frameworks that shape it. Armed with an advanced background in Information Technology and a sharp vision for public policy, Dr. Fafore is a pivotal architect of Huawei’s mission to accelerate Nigeria’s digital transformation and foster enduring stakeholder synergy. There is a particular kind of professional that every transforming nation…

As South Africa’s e-commerce sector surges past R130 billion (over $7.7 billion) in 2025 — capturing nearly 10% of all retail sales — many businesses are treating payment compliance as the final tick-box for security. However, this mindset poses significant risks, according to Martin Petrov, Chief Technology Officer for Payments Compliance at Integrity360. Petrov cautioned that while payment compliance standards, such as PCI DSS, provide an essential baseline, they are far from a complete defence against evolving cyber threats. “Compliance raises the floor and eliminates obvious vulnerabilities, but it cannot cover every emerging threat,” he said. “True security requires organisations…

Moniepoint Inc., a leading digital financial services provider and one of Africa’s fastest-growing financial institutions, has officially opened applications for the 2026 edition of its Women in Tech internship programme. Now in its sixth year, the initiative continues to expand its reach, creating more opportunities for women across Nigeria to enter and thrive in the technology sector. Launched under the theme “There is Space for You,” the 2026 campaign is a direct call to women with talent, ambition, and drive, particularly those who have faced barriers to accessing opportunities in tech. The theme reflects a broader industry reality: despite recent progress, women make…

Vodacom Tanzania is set to undertake a significant $28 million migration of its flagship M-Pesa service from the legacy G2 infrastructure to a next-generation fintech platform, in a proactive move to future-proof the country’s leading mobile money system. Athumani Mlinga, IT and Billing Director at Vodacom Tanzania PLC, who oversees the company’s technology infrastructure, including M-Pesa, emphasised that the decision was driven by strategic foresight rather than system failure. “There is a well-known dilemma in technology leadership: do you wait for a system to fail before you replace it, or do you invest in modernisation while everything still works?” said…

Leah Nakazwe Kooma has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of Liquid Intelligent Technologies Zambia, effective April 1, 2026, as the company strengthens its leadership to accelerate digital infrastructure growth in the country. The announcement was made by Liquid Intelligent Technologies, a subsidiary of Cassava Technologies, which said the appointment underscores its commitment to expanding connectivity and digital services across Zambia and the broader Southern African region. Kooma takes over from Mwendamo Mazaba, who served in an acting capacity and led the business through key initiatives, including the rollout of SME-focused digital portals and public Wi-Fi projects. ALSO READ: M-PESA SOARS IN ETHIOPIA AS SAFARICOM HITS…

Safaricom is recording rapid growth in Ethiopia, with its flagship mobile money platform M-PESA reaching 5.2 million active users, a 258.5 percent year-on-year increase in the quarter ended December 2025. The surge follows M-PESA’s integration with EthSwitch in October 2025, a move that has significantly expanded interoperability and accelerated adoption across the country’s digital payments ecosystem. According to Safaricom, the EthSwitch connection links M-PESA to more than 30 banks and digital wallets regulated by the National Bank of Ethiopia, enabling real-time wallet-to-bank and bank-to-wallet transfers, as well as interoperable merchant payments through EthQR. This has expanded acceptance of the platform to over 50,000 merchants nationwide. …

Bayobab, an MTN Group company, has reported consolidated external revenue of R5.6 billion (over $326m), underscoring a solid financial performance driven by strategic investments and operational efficiency. The company recorded an EBITDA growth of 38.8%, attributed to an improved revenue mix and a strong focus on cost optimisation. Its fibre business emerged as a key growth driver, delivering 41.2% growth in external revenue, supported by infrastructure contracts, new FibreCo revenue streams, and ongoing network expansion. However, revenue from communication platforms declined by 24.3%, largely due to reduced international and transit voice traffic. ALSO READ: ODC RAISES $45M TO POWER AI-NATIVE TELECOM INFRASTRUCTURE …

ORAN Development Corporation (ODC) has secured $45 million in a Series A funding round to accelerate deployment of its AI-native, open-architecture telecom platform designed to unify communication, sensing, and edge intelligence. The funding round brought together a global syndicate of major technology and telecom players, including NVIDIA, Cisco, Nokia, Booz Allen Hamilton, AT&T, MTN Group, and Telecom Italia, alongside Phoenix Venture Partners and affiliates of Cerberus Capital Management. The investment will support the rollout of ODC’s Odyssey RAN platform, an AI-native Radio Access Network (AI-RAN) system that aims to transform traditional telecom infrastructure into a distributed computing layer capable of powering…

Sanlam has appointed its Group Chief Technology and Information Officer, Theo Mabaso, as Group Chief AI Officer, marking a strategic shift to position artificial intelligence at the centre of its operations and long-term growth. The appointment places Mabaso on the Group Executive Committee (Exco), where he will drive AI as a key lever for competitiveness, operational efficiency, and organisational resilience across the Group. Sanlam said the move reflects its commitment to embedding AI across its businesses—from underwriting and claims processing to client engagement and financial advisory—while maintaining strong governance and ethical oversight. Although the Group has already recorded progress in…

Cincoze, a leading rugged edge computing brand, has unveiled the DX-1300, the latest addition to its high-performance DIAMOND product line. Designed as a powerful yet ultra-compact industrial computer, the DX-1300 delivers exceptional computing performance in environments with severely limited space. Building on the strong reputation of the DX series — already deployed in numerous large-scale industrial projects — the new DX-1300 combines high performance, rich I/O connectivity, and versatile expansion options. It is positioned as the ideal edge computing core for demanding applications such as high-end image processing, AI inference, multitasking data integration, real-time video analysis, smart inspection, and machine…