Tag Archive for: Economic Development

Andrew Stegmann
,

Pivotal Investments for African Recovery

Investments will be pivotal for an African recovery after Covid-19. Last week the Africa Investment Forum’s founding partners unveiled a unified COVID-19 response to support Africa’s private sector, which includes 15 deals valued at about USD3.79-billion.

Increased and decisive investment will be the channel for Africa’s economic recovery post COVID-19. Partners of the Africa Investment Forum expressed confidence in the continent’s potential to rebound from the ongoing health and economic crises.

“Africa will come out of this pandemic, tough as it is, and will build better and stronger economies. As partners of the Africa Investment Forum, the premier investment platform for Africa, our gaze must be clear. It must be to help Africa reboot its economy,” said African Development Bank President Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, during a two-day virtual meeting.

In a virtual marketplace which mirrored typical sessions of its annual market-days, the Africa Investment Forum convened over 190 participants including current and prospective partners, investors, and project sponsors. The Forum showcased its unified COVID-19 response and provided an update on its activities, as well as opportunities for new partners and investors to engage with the platform.

During the meeting, the Africa Investment Forum revealed 15 projects identified across five sectors for priority funding consideration under its unified COVID-19 response. The sectors include agriculture and agro-processing, energy, health, ICT and telecoms and industrial and trade. Collectively, these 15 deals which are from the Forum’s current portfolio, amount to USD3.79-billion and will help increase the continent’s self-sufficiency and resilience against future shocks. Four projects sponsors were invited to pitch their deals to over 100 investors present at the meeting. These included a dairy processing project in Angola, a vaccine manufacturing plant in Kenya, a cotton manufacturing project in Mozambique and a proprietary telemedicine platform in Nigeria.

Following the meeting, the Africa Investment Forum’s deal tracker mechanism was immediately deployed to capture investment interest and ensure effective investor-project matchmaking.

The meeting took place as the Africa Investment Forum continues to build on the successes of its first two years in bringing to market deals with transformative potential for Africa’s development.

“The Africa Investment Forum is not a talk shop. What we are trying to do is to focus our partner’s efforts on the platform’s bankable deals from the 2018 and 2019 portfolio, as well as some new ones in 2020,” said Chinelo Anohu, head and senior director of the Africa Investment Forum. “We are concentrating not just on the health sector, but also on other sectors that will help jumpstart recovery across the continent,” she said, adding that deals “more responsive” to the pandemic are being curated, in order to provide much-needed support to the private sector.

Beyond boardroom sessions, the Africa Investment Forum continues to support project sponsors through its Deal Tracker mechanism which monitors the conversion of investment interests to financing commitments and facilitates the progress of deals towards financial close. So far, the forum has facilitated the closure of eight deals valued at about USD2.18-billion from the 2018 portfolio.

The Africa Investment Forum, championed by the African Development Bank and its founding and institutional partners, is working to accelerate the closure of the continent’s investment gaps. Founding Partners are the African Development Bank; Africa 50; Africa Finance Corporation; African Export-Import Bank; Development Bank of Southern Africa; Trade and Development Bank; European Investment Bank; and Islamic Development Bank. Institutional partners include development finance institutions, multilateral development banks, commercial banks and institutional investors.

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].

Andrew Stegmann

Safaricom Launches Lipa Na M-Pesa Business App for Kenyan Market

Safaricom has announced a Lipa Na M-PESA Business smartphone app for the more than 170,000 merchants on the service.

Named “M-PESA for Business“, it will empower business owners to access real-time statements, export statements, and track their business performance on the go.

Through the app, business owners can further withdraw funds from Lipa Na M-PESA to their M-PESA accounts, bank accounts or at an agent. Business owners with a business till can now also send money to other M-PESA customers such as to pay wages, pay for supplies, and make payments to other businesses all through the app.

“At Safaricom, we are taking a focus on the needs of small and medium businesses to provide them with suitable technology solutions to help them grow. The M-PESA for Business smartphone App is one such solution. It empowers more than 170,000 businesses across Kenya to send money and make payments and provides them with simple and detailed reports from the convenience of the mobile phone,” said Peter Ndegwa, CEO, Safaricom.

In addition to making transactions from their Lipa Na M-PESA tills, the app will offer additional management features such as an overview of different tills for business owners with multiple outlets and till usage management. The app is also packed with rich, detailed reports including money-in and money-out charts, store overview and frequently used Lipa Na M-PESA Tills and PayBills.

The “M-PESA for Business” App is immediately available from the Android Google Play store and the iOS App store and complements the *234# menu which has been providing Lipa Na M-PESA merchants with the ability to manage their till and to make transactions. It is designed to take advantage of unique smartphone capabilities to provide businesses with powerful, additional features and a digital, modern way to use the service.

Safaricom has also rolled out a portal where any business across the Kenya can now apply online for a Lipa Na M-PESA Till. The “M-PESA for Business” app will be immediately available to these businesses once their application is processed and a Till Number allocated.

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].

Andrew Stegmann

COVID-19: Current Status and the Future of Mobile Money Services Across Africa

Mobile money services on the African continent have not only been a great business success story but also a significant social success, as mobile money offers an opportunity to promote greater financial inclusion and stimulate economic growth.

Customers in the Vodacom International markets, including Safaricom, now process more than US$14.7 billion in monthly transactions through the M-Pesa platform. 40 million customers transact through M-Pesa across all Vodacom’s operations, growing at 22% per annum.

Although M-Pesa activity in the short term in some of our markets has been impacted by extended lockdown periods, Vodacom believes that in the longer term, the Coronavirus pandemic could prove to be a catalyst for the increased uptake of mobile money services. The World Health Organisation recently cautioned that cash could contribute towards the transmission of the virus. With ongoing uncertainty around how long it will take to find a vaccine, cashless and contactless mobile money services offer a safer way to conduct business transactions, protecting consumers and merchants alike.

Some countries are actively promoting the use of mobile money services over cash, such as in Vodacom International Business markets Mozambique, the DRC, Lesotho and Ghana, where certain tariff reductions on M-Pesa transactions have been implemented. Together with the Kenyan Central Bank, Safaricom has also implemented a fee-waiver incentive on M-Pesa transactions to encourage consumers to move away from the physical exchange of currency.

Almost all industries have been affected in one way or another by the pandemic. Varying levels of lockdowns implemented and regulations set by governments have restricted the movement of people, reduced trade or temporarily stopped business completely. Cash transactions have reduced in volume, and mobile money transactions are no different. There is however still an inflow and outflow of cash when users make a deposit or withdrawal, which requires frontline M-Pesa agents to complete each transaction.

Depending on each market and the types of lockdown restrictions that are in place, a number of measures have been implemented to ensure the safety of all M-Pesa agents. In Mozambique, Vodacom is assisting 30,000 frontline agents with 25 litre water tanks to ensure that cleanly and hygienic cash transactions are maintained. In Lesotho and Kenya, Vodacom has also contributed funds for agents to acquire cleaning products such as hand sanitizer, soap and other protective equipment. Educational content has been provided on how to ensure a safe and hygienic work environment.

As the pandemic continues, mobile money services are likely to have an even bigger role to play across the continent. Post lockdown there will be a ‘new normal’ way of life. The benefits of mobile financial services will become increasingly clearer, as people and businesses adapt to a brave new world.

By Diego Gutierrez, Vodacom International Business Chief Officer.

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].

Andrew Stegmann

Mobile Operator MTN Plans to Launch 5G Services in South Africa by End June

MTN has confirmed to Business Insider South Africa that it is launching its 5G network in major cities “across the country” but the exact locations are still “confidential”.

To date, only Vodacom has a 5G network in more than one region, as it is active in Cape Town, as well as Johannesburg and Pretoria. Data-only network Rain is only available in Gauteng.

The company announced this week that it is planning on launching its own 5G network at the end of the month.

MTN had initially planned to launch at the start of June, but encountered “delays in bringing some equipment into the country.”

The company has also confirmed that, like Vodacom, it will be using emergency spectrum allocated by the government to provide 5G services. In April the government allowed access to some of the radio frequency spectrum best suited to 5G on an emergency basis to help fight Covid-19. The allocation is to help the operators cope with demand. The catch is that operators only get access until November, or until the end of the state of emergency.

The company has, as yet, not indicated how it will offer 5G services that are not using the emergency spectrum allocation.

MTN outed itself in the latest issue of its Y’Ello magazine, in which it is running a promotion for 5G connectivity using Huawei’s recently launched line of P40 smartphones. Along with the LG ThinQ, these are currently the only smartphones in the country capable of using 5G services.

Technically, the pricey Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra also uses 5G, but Vodacom and MTN have not indicated whether they will support it.*

The big mobile operators have been struggling for years to get permission to use the parts of the radio spectrum best suited for 5G. The government is due to auction off blocks of the spectrum later this year.

Only two networks, Vodacom and Rain, have been able to offer 5G services, and both have achieved it by working around government regulations.

Vodacom recently announced a deal with Liquid Telecom to use their 5G network. Liquid owns the parts of the spectrum that formerly belonged to Neotel. In the case of Rain, they’re repurposing the parts of the spectrum formerly used by iBurst after they bought parent company WBS.

This article was updated to reflect MTN’s confirmation of offering 5G services across the country, the use of emergency spectrum, and the availability of another 5G-capable phone in SA, the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra.

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].