The African Innovation Foundation (AIF) recently announced the finalists of the prestigious Innovation Prize for Africa (IPA) 2014. Like the years before, the 10 finalists have been chosen for their practical, innovative solutions to local problems that are unique to the African continent. From South Africa to Togo, the finalists were chosen from almost 700 applications from 42 countries and produce inspiring innovations from a domestic waste biogas system to a wafer matrix for pediatric antiretroviral (ARV) drug treatment. To be announced ...

A billion people on Facebook translate to a billion reasons for businesses to be there. Any business – big or small – now finds the need to be on Facebook and tap into the ever-increasing appeal Facebook has for businesses. Now, Facebook might not be everyone’s favorite. Yet it has potential. It has a user base, and it allows myriad applications and tools to interact with it. Friends trust friends and Facebook goes a long way to help translate that fact ...

Restaurant discovery service, Zomato, recently announced the roll-out of its revamped web and mobile platforms, adding a social layer to the food directory. This new feature will help people who are scouting the web for munchies to search for hotspots based on friends' recommendations. The social integration to discovering food, or anything else really, is becoming more and more prominent in personalising the whole online experience. Deepinder Goyal, Founder and CEO of Zomato, notes: “Even before the advent of the internet, ...

Classifieds are sometimes seen as the clumsy cousins of ecommerce, but in reality they are cleverly designed, well-planned, and developed with sophistication. People are shopping for cars, clothes and services in different ways than they did even five years ago. Fundamental shifts in consumer and advertiser behaviour in major verticals have forced businesses to re-examine how they approach customers, particularly for community businesses -- and classifieds are particularly well-suited to this new model of business. In a certain sense, classifieds have ...

Built in Africa focuses on entrepreneurs, startups and technologies that are affecting the continent and empowering African people. Non-profits are important and harnessing the power of a community to power a business is key in building ecosystems. Empowering Africa's youth and training them with the right tools for the 21st century is also important. In this, the third installment of our “Built in Africa” series, we feature Olivia Mukam, a self-professed "solutioneur" from Cameroon, her community and youth-driven NGO and for-profit ...

In an effort to paint a picture of what the demand and expectations in South Africa's job world might look like for developers, local developer Eshaam Rabaney recently created this awesome infographic titled The State of Developer Recruitment 2014. The global economy is gearing more and more towards an information-based network where the demand for skills is crucial for job creation and growth. According to a study done by the World Economic Forum, The Global Information Technology Report 2013, South ...

What’s the difference between being happy and feeling alive? Let me tell you. Being happy involves feelings of joy, contentment and euphoria while often excluding, ignoring or suppressing negative feelings. Feeling alive is knowing that every day brings challenges that you either will or will not overcome. Feeling alive isn’t restricted to joy. It involves pain, fear, anger, confusion, frustration, happiness, euphoria, triumph, accomplishment, failure, success, remorse, resentment and everything in between. That’s how most entrepreneurs I know would probably define what ...

Africa Internet Holding (AIH) recently announced the launch of Lendico in South Africa -- a digital alternative to banks that enables investors to directly fund the loans of private individuals. Using a peer-to-peer model, the platform introduces social lending that promises borrowers cheap finance while investors get great return on investment. Under the umbrella of German startup incubator Rocket Internet, the service is NCR-approved and has so far launched in Germany (December 2013) followed by Spain, Poland, Austria and now ...

ICT management company Integr8 recently announced that it has invested in the future of South Africa’s ICT sector by making available its new internship program to fifteen young candidates. The South African government's National ICT Plan aims to address the skills shortage that is estimated to be 27%. Most of the demand comes from the specialised sectors such as technology and is where Intrgr8 hopes to ultimately contribute. This latest move, the company says, highlights its commitment to skills development ...

For the South African government to achieve its goal of creating five million jobs over ten years, the SME sector would need to grow by a staggering 40%. Pravin Gordhan, the Minister of Finance, emphasised the importance of SMEs in achieving this goal by stating that “about 70% of private employment is in firms with fewer than 50 workers”. This supports what we have always known about the SME sector: it has a critical role in supporting economic and social ...