Africa

12 African innovators you need to know about

The UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering has announced the 12 finalists for its 2015/2016 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation. The finalists are responsible for…

Nairobi Garage seeks to become Africa’s largest co-working space

Co-working space Nairobi Garage is set to expand its offering with a new branch opening early December 2015 in Westlands, Nairobi, Kenya. This expansion…

Top startup events in South Africa, Africa you should know about this week [02/11/2015]

Looking to get into the South African startup scene or scratch up on some of your skills? Well, you’ve come to the right place….

Nigeria online booking space set to heat up with TravelBeta launch

Ex-Jumia and Konga executive Onyeka Akumah and others have launched TravelBeta (“beta” pronounced as pidgin English for “better”), a platform that seeks to disrupt…

SAVCA CEO: we need to be ‘realistic’ about SA’s growing VC sector [Q&A]

Venture capital is on the rise in South Africa. According to a recent survey by Southern African Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (SAVCA)…

Ghana’s online real estate portal meQasa strikes $500k deal

Ghanian online real estate platform meQasa has just secured a US$500 000 investment from global investment firm Frontier Digital Ventures, highlighting the increase in venture…

South African private equity returns continue to grow, says report

South African private equity returns continue to grow, according to a report released by South African Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (SAVCA). This…

Google SA invites women entrepreneurs for free workshop

International Women’s Day is just around the corner (8 March). To celebrate, Google South Africa is inviting women entrepreneurs to apply for a Digital…

Cape Town will never be Silicon Valley, and that’s a good thing

As an American tech journalist who transplanted herself to Cape Town a year and a half ago, I get asked one question all the…

MTN, UCT’s Graduate School of Business whip up R15m innovation deal

One of Africa’s top business schools, the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business (UCT GSB), and major telecom MTN have announced a…

Springleap’s new Creatives Insights platform helps brands expand to foreign markets

As more and more foreign brands try to ride the growth that many African countries are experiencing, the more critical local insights about these…

Littlemarket signing up 30 new sellers each month, expects ‘huge growth’ in 2015

South African ecommerce platform Littlemarket says that it’s been signing up around 30 new approved sellers each month. Since launching in October 2014, the online…

Solvesting’s P2P lending wants to bridge SME investments in emerging markets

Over the past few years, Africa has seen record levels of foreign direct investment, peaking at US$56.3-billion in 2013. Yet, studies still show that medium-sized enterprises…

GoMetro launches Email My Boss button for commuters stuck on trains

The buzzing sound of murmuring voices in the train builds up to a mix of conversations. Often when the train gets stuck, you can,…

Impact Beyond Innovation: How Lumkani’s fire detection system is saving lives

Impact Beyond Innovation is an article series that features startups from Africa putting social good at the forefront of their business models. In 2013,…

Jumia Nigeria’s former MD secures $850k funding from Interswitch for new venture

Pan-African integrated payment, processing and transaction switching company, Interswitch, has announced it has made an initial investment of US$850 000 in Africa Courier Express…

Gingerbox: Why Nigeria’s clever niche startup is selling fruit online

The Nigerian city of Lagos is, simply put, chaotic. With horns blaring from 4am till 1am, the best way to avoid getting caught up…

Soweto to host its first tech, digital conference in April

Soweto — Johannesburg, South Africa’s south western township — is about to host its first ever technology and digital conference. The Soweto Innovation Week…

From proof to pivot: How Nomanini is becoming the future of prepaid sales

We here at Ventureburn write a lot about mobile payments in Africa. From old favourites such as Kenya’s M-Pesa to newer ones like South…

Innotribe Startup Challenge expects cryptocurrency, payments to be big

Sub-Saharan Africa’s fintech scene is really exciting. From innovative lending solutions like peer-to-peer services like RainFin and Lendico to interesting payments companies like Nomanini…

The African Startup is the latest podcast to explore the continent’s entrepreneurial scene

Startups can be fickle yet disruptive things. The line between those two is thin and so, getting to grips with one can be hard….

A tale of two online shopping giants: Konga & Jumia put to the test

They both claim to be the largest ecommerce platform in Nigeria and Africa — even though they won’t make their sales figures publicly available…

Kenya’s BitPesa announces $1.1m investment led by Pantera Capital

Despite recent tales of Bitcoin’s demise, people still seem to be throwing money at startups focusing on the virtual currency, especially in the remittance space. Led…

How VR Meditation Apps Like Realms of Flow and Others Are Redefining Our Connection with Reality

Transforming Healthcare in Africa with Technology

How forex trading is transforming startup investment strategies

How One Energy Project Could Reshape Climate Action

Microsoft launches new Surface devices in new AI era

Honor Magic V3 launches, four things to know

Honor Magic V3, a Guinness world record attempt

German luxury cars require a rethink for China

Trump wins – Tesla goes beyond $1 Trillion

Vivo update – a big safety gain