Southern Africa
53% of South Africans are Threatened by Job Automation, Research Shows
53% of South Africans believe that the risk of having their job automated has increased over the last year – more than the global average of 41% – according to a new study from Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and The Network. Additionally, 31% of workers in the digitisation and automation fields have a significantly lower perceived risk of automation in South Africa than 46% globally says Rudi van Blerk, Principal and Recruiting Director at BCG. In South Africa, the interest in developing new skills is highest among those in the early- and midcareer phases as 40% of respondents are reporting a negative impact on their work due to the effect of COVID-19 on employment, including a decrease in working time or being laid off, versus the average of 36% of global respondents. Locally, highly educa...
Apple iMac Officially Available for PreOrder
The all-new Apple iMac is officially available for preorder. The device features a compact design – 11.5 millimetres thin – enabled by the M1 chip. “M1 is a gigantic leap forward for the Mac, and today we’re excited to introduce the all-new iMac, the first Mac designed around the breakthrough M1 chip,” says Greg Joswiak, SVP of Worldwide Marketing at Apple. “With its striking design in seven stunning colours [green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, blue, and silver], its immersive 4.5K Retina display, the best camera, mics, and speakers ever in a Mac, and Touch ID, combined with the amazing performance of M1 and the power of macOS Big Sur, the new iMac takes everything people love about iMac to an entirely new level.” The new iMac also includes a 1080p FaceTime HD camera, studio-quality ...
New Partnership Allows South African Uber Drivers to Become Vehicle Owners
Sourced from CNet. Uber has once again partnered with flexible car ownership company – Moove – to give Uber Go drivers the chance to become vehicle owners at an affordable rate. This partnership replicates successful launches in both Nigeria and Ghana. Drivers on the Uber Go platform now have access to brand new Toyota Agyas from as low as R1,599 per week for Flexi Car Weekly Rental and R1,950 per week for Drive to Own deals, including zero deposit, free maintenance and free insurance. “As we recover, we know we need to continue to offer solutions that respond to consumers who are now more price-sensitive than ever,” says Frans Hiemstra, GM of Uber Sub-Saharan Africa. “We also need to continue to offer drivers quality, compact and cost-efficient vehicle choices that will better help e...
South Africa Ranked as 3rd Most Targeted Country by Ransomware
Over the last few years, the number of users encountering targeted ransomware – malware used to extort money from high-profile targets, such as corporations, government agencies, and municipal organisations – increased by 767%. This increase in targeted ransomware occurred alongside a 29% decrease in the overall number of users affected by any kind of ransomware, with WannaCry still the most frequently encountered family. These are among the most important findings in Kaspersky’s recent report on the ransomware landscape from 2019-2020. The ransomware threat – when attackers encrypt private information and hold it to ransom – became mainstream news in the 2010s following large-scale outbreaks, such as WannaCry and Cryptolocker. They targeted tens of thousands of users and often requested r...
Will an eCommerce Boom Benefit South African Consumers?
The acceleration of eCommerce as the global COVID-19 pandemic revolutionises buying trends is giving rise to exciting new developments in the financial technology industry. According to research by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), eCommerce’s share of global retail trade grew from 14% in 2019 to about 17% in 2020. And the phenomenon shows no signs of slowing down. “Businesses and consumers who were able to ‘go digital’ have helped mitigate the economic downturn caused by the pandemic,” says UNCTAD Acting Secretary-General Isabelle Durant. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_7e3.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_7e3.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } “But they have also sped up a digital transition that will have lasting impacts on our societies and daily live...
Amazon Set to Open New HQ in South Africa
Image sourced from CNBC Amazon is set to open up its new base of African operations in Cape Town, South Africa. The company is currently based in an office block and has been on the hunt for a bigger base of operations in Cape Town since 2018, reports Business Insider. The new headquarters will be located on a 15-hectare parcel of land that has been approved for development by the Liesbeek Leisure Properties Trust. The planned mixed-use development – where Amazon is listed as an anchor tenant – is expected to be a significant boost to the Cape Town economy as the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown remains. “The planned mixed-use development will be a significant boost to the economy and the people of Cape Town in the aftermath of the national COVID-19 lockdown. The City has carefully and thor...
South African can Use WhatsApp to Pay SMEs
Image sourced from YoMZanzi Nedbank, Mastercard and Ukheshe have partnered to launch Money Message – a new payment platform that lets small businesses receive secure in-chat payments from their customers via WhatsApp. A first in South Africa, the solution is expected to enable merchants to send an invoice requesting payment from any customer seamlessly through WhatsApp. Their customers in turn can quickly settle payment directly from the platform. “The need for a diverse range of contactless payment methods is more important today than we could have possibly imagined, as we seek to rebuild the economy by giving businesses the ability to transact in a safe and secure way,” says Chipo Mushwana, Executive of Emerging Payments at Nedbank. “In order to support entrepreneurship and sustainable b...
Paratus to Launch Data Centre in Zambia
Paratus is on track to open its new data centre in the heart of Lusaka, Zambia. This new purpose-built facility is expected to enable businesses to store and access their most vital asset, their data, at any time (24/7) in a secure and world-class 3-tier equivalent data centre. The 1-megawatt (MW) facility will leverage the latest physical and virtual security to ensure the secure storage, protection, and management of data. The data centre will also offer businesses modern-age cloud computing that will help businesses not only enhance operational efficiencies but help cut IT capital and operating costs that come with on-premise data storage and management. Paratus Zambia MD, Marius van Vuuren says, “we are demonstrating our commitment to deliver the best quality services within an ever-gr...
Cell C Reports R5.5 Billion Loss
Image sourced from Town Press Cell C has reported a loss of R5.5 billion after tax following the announcement of its annual financial performance for the 12 months ending December 2020. The telco revealed that total revenue was down by 8% to R13.8-billion (2019: R15.1-billion), with the largest part of the revenue contribution from its prepaid base at R6.2-billion (2019: R6.9-billion). CFO of Cell C, Zaf Mahomed believes that even though the telco made a full-year loss, the latter six months of 2020 was encouraging as it had shown a R2.1 billion profit in the second half. Mahomed says “our results reflect a business in transition. We are starting to see the impact of our changes which included a focus on more profitable subscribers and through the reduction in costs a shift to revenue-gene...
Showmax Reveals Reduced Mobile Plan Prices Across Africa
Showmax has revealed that African mobile subscribers could pay up to 20% less each month. “We believe this change will be appreciated by our mobile customers as will the decision not to increase any of our other prices,” says MultiChoice Group CEO for Connected Video, Yolisa Phahle. “We have our most exciting slate of Showmax Originals this year and look forward to more of our subscribers enjoying our proudly African stories”. Here’s a quick look at how the mobile plans will now be priced /* custom css */ .tdi_3_e69.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_e69.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } Showmax Showmax Mobile WAS Showmax Mobile NOW Showmax Pro Showmax Pro Mobile South Africa R99 R49 R39 R449 R225 Kenya KSh 790 KSh 380 KSh 300 KSh 2100 KSh 1050...
Unpacking the Economic Impact of COVID 19 on SMBs in South Africa
One in two small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in South Africa has yet to see revenues recover to pre-pandemic levels, according to the latest edition of Facebook’s Global State of Small Business Report. 50% of operational South African SMBs on Facebook reported that their sales in February were lower than the equivalent month last year. Some 74% reported that they were operational or engaging in any revenue-generating activities, while 8% of operational SMBs on Facebook expected challenges related to cash flow and 20% expected challenges related to demand or a lack of customers in the next few months. Continuing trends observed throughout the pandemic: Women-owned South African businesses have been hit especially hard. Some 71% of women-led SMBs (vs. 77% of men-led SMBs) on Facebook ...
Fibre Cable Connecting South Africa to Mauritius is Operational Thanks to Emtel
Image sourced from @philBE on Twitter Emtel has provided the official landing point – a ANSI/TIA tier 3 certified data centre – for the METISS (Meltingpot Indianoceanic Submarine System) fibre optic cable in Mauritius – this will see the country connected to Reunion Island, Madagascar and South Africa via a 3,200 km cable. “METISS is already connected to many global public cloud services, application providers and African exchanges with fully redundant backhaul in Mauritius and South Africa,” says Kresh Goomany, CEO of Emtel. “It provides global telecoms organisations, multinationals and enterprises with interests in connected regions, with the reliable services and capacities they need for telecommunications that empower digital enterprises. The whole offer comes with a world-class qualit...
