Author: Akin Naphtal

MTN Group, Africa’s largest telecommunications operator, has formally applied to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) for approval to acquire a controlling stake in IHS Towers, the continent’s leading independent communications infrastructure company. In a letter to investors released Thursday morning, MTN confirmed it is in advanced discussions to purchase 75% of IHS Towers’ shares, which would position the telecom giant as the majority shareholder of the tower company. The move, if completed, would rank among the most significant infrastructure transactions in African telecom history. ALSO READ: CELLULANT APPOINTS MICHAEL MURIUKI AS CHIEF PRODUCT AND TECHNOLOGY OFFICER  MTN cautioned that “no final…

Pan-African payments processor Cellulant has promoted long-time executive Michael Muriuki to the role of Chief Product and Technology Officer (CPTO), consolidating leadership over product strategy, platform development, and software engineering as the company intensifies its focus on profitability and infrastructure resilience. Muriuki, who joined Cellulant more than a decade ago as an implementation engineer, takes on end-to-end responsibility for the company’s technology roadmap at a pivotal moment for Africa’s digital payments landscape. The appointment reflects Cellulant’s strategic shift toward product-led growth amid rising competition from banks developing in-house platforms, global card networks expanding merchant services, and fintech rivals battling on price, reliability, and value-added offerings such…

Veteran expert Adrianus Warmenhoven details how geography shapes digital defense and why boardrooms struggle to fund the “cost of nothing happening.The global cybersecurity landscape is not a monolith but a patchwork of cultural practices, economic realities, and national digital maturity Moving beyond geography,Warmenhoven delivered a stark message to corporate leaders: cybersecurity is no longer an IT department issue. “This is a societal issue. Every transaction is digital now, so small lapses have enormous consequences,” he said. “Criminals exploit every angle—phishing, social engineering, even gamification on websites. It’s not purely technical; it’s crime, now mostly cybercrime, but crime nonetheless.” ALSO READ: DIGICLOUD AFRICA FORECASTS GROWTH DRIVEN BY SURGE IN GEMINI AI…

Digicloud Africa, the exclusive Google Cloud value-added distributor and reseller enablement partner in Africa, is projecting a transformative year ahead, driven by surging enterprise demand for Google’s Gemini AI models and advanced security solutions. CEO Gregory MacLennan described current market sentiment toward Google as “exceptionally positive,” noting that major enterprises are now implementing Google technologies alongside existing systems and making long-term strategic commitments.“Major players such as Discovery Health have signed multi-year agreements to harness Gemini across their organisation,” MacLennan said. “Other large enterprises are taking notice, and that’s where the real excitement begins.” A landmark development fueling this momentum is…

MTN Ghana has officially unveiled Business Eye, a cutting-edge enterprise surveillance service designed to deliver enhanced security, operational visibility, and asset protection to businesses nationwide. The new solution targets organisations operating in high-traffic and asset-sensitive environments, including retail stores, restaurants, petrol stations, warehouses, office buildings, and similar locations where continuous monitoring is essential. Business Eye enables companies to keep a constant watch over their premises, providing real-time visibility into activities and enabling swift responses to security incidents or operational irregularities. The platform is available in two flexible configurations—SIM-enabled and WiFi-enabled—allowing deployment in virtually any location regardless of existing connectivity infrastructure.…

Telefónica and Liberty Global, the co-owners of Virgin Media O2 (VMO2), are reportedly close to finalizing a major £2 billion acquisition of Netomnia, one of the UK’s leading alternative full-fibre broadband network operators, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. The deal would be executed through Nexfibre, the fibre joint venture co-owned by Telefónica, Liberty Global, and private equity firm InfraVia Capital. Nexfibre already operates a growing full-fibre network across the UK, currently reaching approximately 2.4 million premises. Netomnia, one of the country’s largest “altnets,” has built its independent fibre infrastructure to around three million premises, serving more than…

Cassava Technologies and AXON Networks have announced a strategic partnership to co-develop, deploy, and manage Africa’s first end-to-end Operator-as-a-Service (OaaS) platform, a move aimed at accelerating the continent’s digital and artificial intelligence transformation. The partnership, unveiled at the Counder Conference 2026 in Cape Town, will combine AXON’s AI-ready, real-time, multi-tenant, digital twin-enabled platform with Cassava’s extensive pan-African high-speed fibre backbone to connect millions of people and businesses across Africa and unlock new avenues for economic growth and innovation. Speaking at the announcement, President and Group CEO of Cassava Technologies, Hardy Pemhiwa, said the collaboration marks a shift away from traditional, hardware-centric infrastructure toward…

In a high-level engagement this week, MTN Group President and CEO Ralph Mupita, alongside MTN Nigeria CEO Dr. Karl Olutokun Toriola, met with Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, Honourable Minister of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy, to discuss the strategic importance of telecommunications in driving Nigeria’s economic ambitions. The meeting, held in Abuja, centered on strengthening the telecom sector to serve as a reliable foundation for national growth, innovation, and the federal government’s target of building a $1 trillion economy. Both parties expressed strong alignment on two key priorities: enhancing quality of service to deliver better experiences for Nigerian consumers and ensuring the long-term financial and operational…

Airtel Africa today announced another strong quarterly performance for the third quarter of its 2026 financial year, underscoring the company’s accelerating growth momentum across its African markets. The results highlight sustained demand for data services, rapid expansion in mobile money, and strategic investments in network infrastructure. The total customer base grew 10% year-on-year to 179.4 million, with data customers increasing 14.6% to 81.8 million. Smartphone penetration climbed 3.9% to 48.1%, driving average data usage per customer to 8.6GB per month from 6.9GB previously. This fueled a 16.6% rise in data ARPU in constant currency, supported by enhanced network investments. Airtel Money achieved…

Industrial maintenance in the UK is moving into a year where digital tools will influence how faults are predicted, how work is assigned, and how quickly teams can bring equipment back online. The strongest change is not a single breakthrough, but the way several technologies are now arriving together, driven by tighter labour markets, higher uptime expectations, and a growing appetite for evidence that maintenance spend is reducing risk rather than merely reacting to it. Chris Burns, Global Marketing Communications Director at HTL Group, a leading provider of hydraulic torque wrenches and controlled bolting solutions, explores five technologies that maintenance leaders will…