AFRICA: Changing the Narrative: Recent Episodes
Africa.com LLC
70% of Africans make a living through agriculture, and technology could transform their world. Rural areas are chronically underserved by financial service providers, which is a limiting factor for economic development. Even where financial services are accessible, evidence shows that social concerns are often not fully incorporated in funding decisions and the delivery of services.
Standard Bank brings you this six-part series that delves deeper into key topics affecting the continent. Take a listen to how Africa can better prepare for the fight against climate change, leverage our agricultural potential, take advantage of deepening digitisation and protect the human rights of her people.
Many African companies have realised that life will never be the same again post Covid-19. Business survival will, to a large extent, depend on how organisations embrace the future, use technology, invest in skilling and re-skilling employees, develop tailor-made employee benefits, incorporate mental well-being into HR models, develop sustainable working models, and embed Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) practices in business models.
In this episode, Teresa Clarke talks with Kenny Fihla, Chief Executive: Corporate and Investment Banking at Standard Bank Group about how businesses can reorganise themselves post Covid-19.
Many mining and minerals businesses are already taking active steps on their ESG agenda; identifying their priorities and measuring their performance. But the real benefits come when you move beyond measurement and take action to improve.
Blockchain is, for many people, still synonymous with cryptocurrencies and financial applications. Yet the features that make blockchain technologies so appealing for asset management and monetary transactions -- transparency, tamper-resistance, efficiency, and smart contracts -- are also useful in areas that have little to do with finance.
Investing in impact businesses can increase access to basic services such as finance, healthcare, education, clean water, and energy. Several prominent examples in Africa demonstrate that impact businesses can be both profitable and beneficial for a wide range of stakeholders and while offering tangible social and economic benefits.
Podcast host Teresa Clarke invited two women who are very familiar with the impact investing space.
Adesuwa Okunbo Rhodes is the Founder and Managing Partner of Aruwa Capital Management, one of the few women-owned and led growth private equity funds closing the gender gaps in Africa.
Hema Vallabh is an engineer, turned entrepreneur, turned investor. Hema is a founding partner at Five35 Ventures, a pan-African VC fund investing in women in tech. She is also Co-Founder at WomHub and WomEng.
Africa’s situation deserves extraordinary attention: the continent contributes just 4 percent of global total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the lowest of any region, yet its socio-economic development is threatened by the climate crisis. In other words, Africa contributes the least emissions but suffers the brunt of the consequences.
Africa.com's TERESA CLARKE talks with SIMON FREEMANTLE, Senior Political Economist, Standard Bank Research Chair, and PENNY BYRNE, Climate Research Analyst at Standard Bank.
The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26, is the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference. It is scheduled to be held in Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom, between 31 October and 12 November 2021, under the co-presidency of the United Kingdom and Italy.
Men significantly outnumber women not just at the senior management and board levels but at every stage of the African Corporate pipeline. This is why Africa.com is committed to supporting talented women who aspire to climb the corporate ladder in Africa.
This workshop will inspire junior women by hearing the story of a successful African woman who reached the pinnacle of the corporate ladder, followed by an interactive session with a Harvard Business School career advisor and author of “The Unspoken Rules – Secrets to Starting Your Career Off Right.”
Why is it that most discussions of African women in business are focused on small and medium-sized businesses? We want to see African women dream big – why not earn the top spot in a large, complex organization? On October 13, 2021, we began the journey of supporting every African woman to take on a new dream – climbing the corporate ladder to the number one spot.
In addition to revealing the names of the 50 women on the Africa.com Definitive List of Women CEOs, this podcast features two big discussions:
Beating the Odds, with Harvard Business School’s Tony Mayo’s research on black women graduates of Harvard Business School who made it to the top spot. He will share what a study of these successful women tells us.
Then, a panel of Women CEOs from the Africa.com Definitive List of Women CEOs react to Professor Mayo’s research by sharing their own journeys to the top of Corporate Africa, and commenting on what is similar to Corporate America, and what it takes for women to get to the top in Corporate Africa.
Finally, we explore the surprising role that stock exchanges are playing worldwide in advocating for women in big business.
For more information about Africa.com events, visit https://www.africa.com/
GE Healthcare – East Africa Projects Development Director Alexander Oketch
KUTRRH is poised to become the only Public facility in East and Central African region to offer the comprehensive continuum of cancer care with the establishment of an MIC. This centre will have state of the art technologies that will help in early diagnosis and management of cancer that will be expected to increase the survivorship of cancer patients, reverse outbound medical tourism while at the same time increasing inbound medical tourism into Kenya. This marks a significant milestone in the health sector and is a part of the country’s Big Four Agenda that prioritises increased access to quality and affordable healthcare to achieve Universal Health Coverage.
Kenneth Oyakhire of GE Gas & Power Sub - Saharan Africa. Restoring Up To 360MW In Nigeria Amidst Covid-19 Pandemic.
“Being Nigeria’s largest electricity generating company, with a total installed capacity of 4.0 gigawatts (GW), representing about 35% of Nigeria’s generating capacity, we are committed to strengthening Nigeria's power sector, despite the unexpected logistical challenges of the COVID-19 outbreak.”
For more than 125 years, GE has invented the future of industry, and today the company’s dedicated team, leading technology, and global reach and capabilities help the world work more efficiently, reliably, and safely. GE is rising to the challenge of building a world that works in Africa.
Njideka U. Harry is the President and CEO of Youth for Technology Foundation (YTF), an innovative non-profit organization focused on using the power of technology to transform the lives of youth and women living in developing countries.
YTF’s strength lies in its ability to access market demands, design developmental programs, provide linkages that accelerate business opportunities and administer customized information and communications technology (ICT) and entrepreneurship training programs that uplift youth and women from poverty.
More information here.
Overview This Virtual Summit, the first and the largest of its kind convenes thousands of c-suite executives and decision-makers at African businesses, large and small, to present to you, from the highest ranks, the ways in which the U.S. can assist in growing your businesses through trade, investment, and technical assistance.
Objective Designed specifically to serve African business leaders, this Virtual Summit is a portal, a one stop shop, into the United States Government’s resources at the highest levels. The summit is structured as four sessions taking place in one day.
History For decades, The United States Government has funded a number of agencies and platforms to support African companies to do business with both the U.S. government itself, and with the U.S. private sector. We are pleased to bring these resources together, at one time, in one place, for African business leaders.
COVID 19 has unearthed massive inequalities within our societies and brought to glaring light the unique burdens that women carry the world over.
Graça Machel and Melinda Gates joined Africa.com to discuss their policy recommendations in regards to women during the pandemic.
Both of these women are strong advocates for women’s issues. And both have governments and private sector conduct policies to not only address inequities experienced by women during COVID-19, but interestingly, both women independently concluded their works with the view that if we manage the responses to these critical issues strategically, women could come out of this period having made important gains.
Led by Teresa Clarke, Chair and CEO, Africa.com
Panelists:
- Dr. Acha Leke, Senior Partner, Johannesburg, Chairman, McKinsey Africa
- Dr. John N. Nkengasong, MSc, PhD, Director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- Dr. Vera Songwe, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)
Dr. James Mwangi, Managing Director and CEO of Equity Group Holdings and Executive Chairman of the Equity Group Foundation is featured in a fireside chat with Harvard Business School Professor Caroline Elkins, as part of Africa.com’s webinar series Crisis Management for African Business Leaders.
Among specific themes to be discussed is the balance between a company’s ethos and its ethical compass during crisis, and the leadership required to navigate the two.
William Miller, GE Senior Leader for Learning and Development
The Africa Industrial Internet Programme
GE partnered with African Leadership Group to build a new generation of digital leaders for Africa. The Programme enables mid-career engineers to build new skills in data analytics, data science, data engineering and data visualization. The programme is creating globally competitive, digital engineers right here in Africa, and we can’t wait to see their full impact on the continent.
Featured speakers include Victor Williams, Head of Corporate and Investment Banking for Africa Regions at Standard Bank Group and Mark Chaban, GM & CTO, Microsoft Middle East, and Africa.
The Africa Investors Conference is designed to connect institutional investors to leading policymakers and some of Africa's most successful companies, sharing ideas with a view to finding key opportunities for growth on the continent.
Introduction by Sim Tshabalala, Group Chief Executive, Standard Bank Group. Presentation by Goolam Ballim, Chief Economist, Head: Standard Bank Research Standard Bank Group.
The Africa Investors Conference is designed to connect institutional investors to leading policymakers and some of Africa's most successful companies, sharing ideas with a view to finding key opportunities for growth on the continent.
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Challenges and Opportunities for Africa at the 10th Africa Investors’ Conference
From the Africa Investors Conference, Goolam Ballim, Chief Economist and Head of Research, Standard Bank talks with Teresa Clarke, Chair and CEO of Africa.com.
Mr. Ballim highlighted the stellar GDP growth that Africa has experienced over the past two decades with surging exports and flourishing trade with BRIC countries. Presently, however, Mr. Ballim believes that the impending economic downturn resulting from COVID-19 will be detrimental to the continent with a potential 4% GDP contraction in 2021.
View Slide Presentation
The Africa Investors Conference is designed to connect institutional investors to leading policymakers and some of Africa's most successful companies, sharing ideas with a view to finding key opportunities for growth on the continent.
This session explores the many ways in which African consumers have shifted towards digital products and services. The discussion will explore how Africans are shifting towards delivery takeaways with UberEats, how telemedicine has taken a huge leap forward, how distance learning is gaining ground, and how contactless payments are the next big thing in the mobile payment space. To round it all off, the chief operating officer of Silicon Valley’s leading online tech business magazine, TechCrunch, will comment on how these trends dovetail with the digital consumer trends taking hold in the U.S.
Led by Dayo Olopade Author of The Bright Continent, a book on innovation, technology, and opportunity in sub-Saharan Africa
Panelist:
- Dr Funmi Adewara, Founder/CEO Mobihealth International
- Ned Desmond, COO, TechCrunch
- Mark Elliott, Division President, Mastercard, Southern Africa
- Wambura Kimunyu, CEO, Eneza Education _ Makano Mosidi, Chief Information Office, Standard Bank
- Ailyssa Pretorius, Regional General Manager, Uber Eats Sub Saharan Africa
A discussion with experts working with agricultural companies on development strategies, the introduction of technology, and creating sustainable employment opportunities for the continent’s burgeoning youth population.
How governments/development partners/private sector along the agriculture value chain can respond to COVID-19 and specifically what opportunities the pandemic might provide to rethink our agriculture and food systems.
Moderator Gillian Pais is a Partner in McKinsey & Company’s Nairobi Office and leads McKinsey’s Agriculture practice in Africa.
Panelists:
- Linda Manda is the Global Head Agribusiness, Client Coverage, Corporate and Investment Banking, Standard Bank Group.
- Kola Masha is the Managing Director of Babban Gona. Babban Gona is an award winning, high impact, financially sustainable and highly scalable social enterprise, part-owned by the farmers we serve.
- Mezuo Nwuneli is the Managing Partner, Sahel Capital Agribusiness Managers Ltd., a food and agriculture focused private equity firm which invests in mid-sized agribusinesses.
- Atsuko Toda is serving as the Director of Agriculture Finance and Rural Infrastructure Development Department at the African Development Bank. The department is responsible for the Bank’s investments in private sector agribusiness companies and development of Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones across the African Continent.
A moderated discussion on how the current crises, health and economic, have focussed a bright light on numerous social issues facing Africans including inequitable access to healthcare, the economic vulnerability of workers, occupational safety and wellbeing, temporary improvements in air and water quality resulting from lockdowns, police brutality and excessive use of force, disparities in access to technology, and more.
Intro Remarks by Sim Tshabalala, Group Chief Executive, SBG and Executive Director, SBSA Standard Bank Group
Special Guest Speaker Jide Zeitlin, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Tapestry, Inc. The parent company of luxury brands Coach, Kate Spade, and Stuart Weitzman.
Moderator Kamil Olufowobi, CEO, Most Influential People of African Descent (MIPAD) 100 Under 40
Panelists:
- Tara Durotoye, Founder & CEO, House of Tara International
- Vanessa Nakate, Activist, Climate Change
- Diallo Shabazz, Co-Founder, Birthright AFRICA
- Vusi Thembekwayo, CEO, MyGrowthFund Venture Capital
- Phyllis Wakiaga, CEO, Kenya Association of Manufacturers
- Adebola Williams, Co-Founder & CEO, Red Media Africa
A timely and valuable series produced by Africa.com in partnership with faculty from Harvard Business School to address this unprecedented humanitarian and economic crisis as a result of COVID-19.
Professor David B. Wilkins leads the discussion with top lawyers across Africa while the welcome is delivered by Eric Holder, 82nd Attorney General of the United States.
Panelists:
- Gerald Abila, Founder and Executive Director, BarefootLaw
- Dr. Myma Belo Osagie, Co-Founder, Udo Udoma Belo-Osagie
- Michel Brizoua-Bi, Partner, Bilé-Aka, Brizoua-Bi & Associés
- Stephen Chege, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Safaricom
- Prof. Vincent O. Nmehielle, SJD, Secretary-General, African Development Bank Group Office of the Secretary-General and General Secretariat
- Prof. Ruth L. Okediji, Jeremiah Smith, Jr. Professor of Law, Harvard Law School, and Co-Director of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society
- Sandie Okoro, Senior Vice President, and General Counsel, World Bank Group
- Thandi Orleyn, Chairperson, Legal Resources Trust
- Dr. Godfred Penn, General Counsel & Director, African Development Bank
A pitch competition to showcase and support African entrepreneurs who have developed solutions to support Africa’s fight against the coronavirus. Entries are evaluated primarily on their impact against the virus and the viability of delivering the product or service. Financial sustainability is of secondary importance. Entrepreneurs will “pitch” their ideas, and will be questioned by a judging panel comprised of a seasoned group of innovation investment experts.
Welcome Address by Professor Tarun Khanna, Harvard Business School
Judges Panel inclues Juliet Ehimuan, Director - West Africa, Google, Andile Ngcaba, Founding Partner and Chairman Convergence Partners, Eric Osiakwan, Managing Partner, Chanzo Capital, and Adrian Vermooten, Head of Digital Innovations, Standard Bank.
Leading health experts on the frontlines of the pandemic in Africa will answer questions such as: “The numbers are low, but why?”, “Is it a question of access to testing?”, “Is it the climate?”, “Is it the youthful population?” and “Is it a matter of reporting?”
Led by Teresa Clarke, Chair and CEO of Africa.com
PANELISTS:
_Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa
_Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Centre for Disease Control
_Professor David Kaye, UN Special Rapporteur
A timely and valuable series produced by Africa.com in partnership with faculty from Harvard Business School to address this unprecedented humanitarian and economic crisis as a result of COVID-19.
Led by Teresa Clarke, Chair and CEO of Africa.com
Panelists include Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila, Prime Minister of the Republic of Namibia, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of UN Women and Former Deputy President of South Africa, Oby Ezekwesili, Senior Economic Adviser, Africa Economic Development Policy Initiative, Former Minister of Education Nigeria, and Former VP Africa Region of World Bank, Anne Juuko, Chief Executive, Stanbic Bank Uganda, Suzan Kereere, Global Head of Merchant Sales & Acquiring, VISA Inc., and Natasha Wang Mwansa, Women Deliver Young Leader.
A timely and valuable series produced by Africa.com in partnership with faculty from Harvard Business School to address this unprecedented humanitarian and economic crisis as a result of COVID-19.
Led by Andy Zelleke, Ph.D., Harvard Business School Senior Lecturer of Business Administration.
Panelists include Nolitha Fakude, Chair of the Management Board, South Africa Anglo American, Acha Leke, Senior Partner, Johannesburg, Chairman, McKinsey Africa, Funke Opeke, Founder and CEO of MainOne, and Rob Shuter, Group President and CEO of MTN.
A timely and valuable series produced by Africa.com in partnership with faculty from Harvard Business School to address this unprecedented humanitarian and economic crisis as a result of COVID-19.
Led by Hakeem Belo-Osagie, Chairman, FSDH Holding Company, and Harvard Business School Senior Lecturer of Business Administration
PANELISTS:
- His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo
- President of Ghana _The Honorable Nasir El-Rufai
- Governor of Kaduna State, Nigeria
- Ahmed Mushfiq Mobarak, Professor, Yale University
- Amandla Ooko-Ombaka, Senior Engagement Manager, McKinsey & Co.
A timely and valuable series produced by Africa.com in partnership with faculty from Harvard Business School to address this unprecedented humanitarian and economic crisis as a result of COVID-19.
Led by Kunle Elebute, Chair of KPMG Africa
Panelists include Welela Dawit, CFO, GE Africa, Admassu Tadesse, President & Chief Executive, Eastern & Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB), and Sim Tshabalala, Group Chief Executive, SBG and Executive Director, SBSA
Leadership in Times of Crisis is led by Harvard Business School Professor, Linda Hill, Ph.D., Harvard Business School Professor of Business Administration, Faculty Chair, Leadership Initiative. PANELISTS: _Jay Ireland, Former CEO of GE-Africa _Fred Swaniker, Founder & CEO, African Leadership Group _Kuseni Dlamini, Chair, Massmart Ltd. _Foluso Phillips, Executive Chairman and Founder of Phillips Consulting Limited SPECIAL GUEST: Dr Michel Yao, World Health Organization (WHO) AFRO, Emergency Operations Manager
With unprecedented access to technology, the way in which we connect has rapidly evolved and revolutionized the work we are able to deliver to clients.
Harnessing the spirit of Pan-Africanism – which is rooted in the idea that we can operate collectively to achieve a shared goal, despite our differences – we are now, more than ever, able to work across borders to create impact at a local level.
However, in order to do this successfully, there a few things that need to be done correctly.
Jordan Rittenberry serves as the CEO of Edelman Africa. Based in Johannesburg, Rittenberry oversees the firm’s work across the continent. Supporting a number of blue chip brands and multinational corporations, Edelman Africa has executed programs in more than 30 countries across Africa over the last two years on behalf of clients including Deloitte, GE, HP, Mars, Nissan and Unilever.
Group CEO of Standard Bank, Sim Tshabalala believes this is the African century and that Africans will be the ones driving the development of the continent. He spoke to Teresa Clarke of Africa.com at the World Economic Forum in Davos about making sure the African continent plays its rightful role in the world by driving economic, social, human, and environmental developments.
Simphiwe Tshabalala is joint Chief Executive of the Standard Bank Group and Chief Executive of Standard Bank South Africa.
On 22 September 2019, Standard Bank Group became a founding signatory to the UN Principles for Responsible Banking. Alongside the UN Secretary-General António Guterres, Standard Bank signed the first-ever global sustainability framework for the banking industry and committed to aligning its business strategy and practice with the Sustainable Development Goals and the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.
Sola David-Borha, Standard Bank Group’s Chief Executive for Africa Regions, signed the Principles for Responsible Banking document on behalf of the group, which played a role in developing the framework.
In this podcast, Sola David-Borha is speaking with Africa.com CEO, Teresa Clarke.
“The Principles align with Standard Bank’s purpose: to drive Africa’s growth and uplift her people by doing business the right way. They also support the group’s drive to maximise our social, economic and environmental impacts,” David-Borha says. “Standard Bank sees an opportunity to have a significant impact across the continent, given that we have the largest African footprint of all participating banks.”
The new framework, which has been designed for banks at any stage on their journey to sustainability came not a minute too soon. The COVID-19 pandemic, which took hold just as Standard Bank and other signatories were starting to implement the Principles, has served to highlight how reliant society is on healthy ecosystems and resilient economies.
Partnerships Are Key To Driving The Future Of Inclusive Payments In South Africa says Mark Elliott, President of Southern Africa MasterCard.
In this podcast, Africa.com CEO Teresa Clarke discusses the future of payments in South Africa with Mark Elliott.
The financial services sector in South Africa is undergoing an unprecedented transformation. Rapid developments in digital technologies are both disrupting and enabling change in previously disconnected sectors, such as banking, telecommunications and retail. These advancements make digital payments and services more readily accessible and affordable to consumers and small businesses, but the usage of such products will be subject to how well payments providers collaborate to meet their needs. This is according to a new Mastercard and Deloitte Africa report “The future of payments in South Africa: Enabling financial inclusion and innovation in a converging world” released today on the side-lines of the World Economic Forum on Africa. The report states that if we are to achieve meaningful financial inclusion in South Africa, private and public sectors must collaborate to reduce the reliance on cash and encourage the use of digital payment methods and financial services to achieve more inclusive and sustainable economic growth. It is not yet a reality, but several developments are providing encouraging indications of progress.
– Mastercard Deloitte Report
In this podcast, Africa.com talks with Patricia Obozuwa and Brenda Mbathi of GE Africa.
- Patricia Obozuwa, Chief Communications & Public Affairs Officer for GE Africa
- Brenda Mbathi, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for East Africa
The transcript is available here.
In this podcast, Africa.com talks with two of GE Africa’s high-profile women leaders.
- Welela Dawit Chief Financial Officer, GE Power Services – Sub-Saharan Africa, GE West Africa
- Adesua Dozie General Counsel for GE Gas Power Systems and Services, Sub-Saharan Africa
The transcript is available here.
Africa.com CEO Teresa Clarke speaks with Nitika Rosa, GE Africa’s Head of HR and Lerato Molebatsi, GE South Africa’s Managing Director.
The transcript is available here.
The Friendship Bench project is an evidence-based intervention developed in Zimbabwe to bridge the mental health treatment gap.
Health experts say globally there has been an increase in anxiety and depression as people struggle to cope with COVID-19 and job losses. Some grandmothers in Zimbabwe are offering free therapy sessions to tackle these mental health difficulties during the coronavirus lockdown. This is part of an initiative called the Friendship Bench.
South African slam poet Koleka Putuma delivers a powerful recitation of the poem she authored, entitled – “Love Letter to Africa.”
Putuma uses the medium of the spoken word to express her love for Africa and to highlight the unique traditions, legacies, and culture of the African continent. Her words are carefully chosen and beautifully penned, but to see her speak the words that she has written is a spellbinding experience.
Every part of her body speaks to her audience, from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. Video available here: https://youtu.be/6gKqf-nQHLM
Putuma earned a degree in Theatre and Performance at the University of Cape Town, and she has traveled the globe delivering these mesmerizing performances in places as far afield as Glasgow, Scotland, and New York, USA.
She was recognized on the Forbes Africa Under 30s list of creatives making waves for 2018. Other works by Putuma address important social issues facing African women, including health and education.
Mark Elliott - President, Southern Africa - Mastercard, talks to Africa.com about their recent acquisition of South African fintech Oltio, and how they will use the technology to drive cash displacement and innovation in emerging markets.
Brenda Sisane chats with Teresa Clarke about her radio show, The Art of Sunday and how it brings the family together by playing new hidden gems from creative artists around the world, and old jazz records; enabling the parent to school their young ones on art and music in a comfortable setting. The music is mellow, allowing the listener to relax while reading the paper or preparing Sunday lunch.
Africa is making headway in the area of robotics and Zambia is on the forefront. Let's meet these young ambitious ladies and gentlemen who are bound to make Africa proud.
More information here.
Abdoulie Janneh talks to Africa.com about good governance, sustainable cities, and the importance of creating jobs for Africa’s youth
Former Under-Secretary-General of the UN Economic Commission for Africa and the Executive Director of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, Abdoulie Janneh talks to Africa.com about the importance of creating job opportunities for Africa’s youth, and in finding new ways to involve them in critical decision-making processes that promote good governance across the board.
Geoffrey White talked to Africa.com in the run-up to the World Economic Forum for Africa in Durban about the importance of building strong logistical frameworks throughout the continent, the challenges of politics, policy and development, and empowering Africa’s young entrepreneurs.
Daniel Monehin, Division President, Sub-Saharan Africa, Mastercard
Masterpass QR is the first mobile-driven, Person-to-Merchant (P2M) payment solution. The solution is an enhancement to the Masterpass global digital payment service that will enable millions of micro, small and medium enterprises across Africa to begin accepting fast and secure digital payments. This service addresses the challenges of expensive infrastructural issues associated with point of sale devices and eliminates the need for cash.
Africa.com caught up with Jasper Westerink, CEO of Philips Africa, during the World Economic Forum in Durban.
Philips Partners with the Government of Kenya and the United Nations (UN) to Advance the African Healthcare Agenda.
We invited Donald Kaberuka, now a senior advisor to the Boston Consulting Group, to curate the week’s news.
Donald brings a unique perspective to the Africa.com Top10 Business. He served for ten years as the President of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) a perch from which he negotiated with the collective of interests gathered at WEF this week: leaders in the private sector, country presidents, ministers of finance, and community organizations.
During his tenure at the AfDB, he led a strategy to promote regional integration through infrastructure investments in roads, railways, power plants and communications.
With this experience, Donald has surveyed the many stories competing for your attention this week, and carefully selected the top ten business articles that he thinks Africa.com’s readers should focus on right now.
Gaurang Shah, Mastercard’s Lead for Digital Payments and Innovation Labs in Middle East and Africa, talks with Africa.com
Mastercard is highlighting the significance of Masterpass QR, their mobile driven Person-to-Merchant payment solution and the contribution already made in the Middle East and Africa.
The topic of financial inclusion was a major theme at the recent World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa, with many of the recommendations discussed there already being implemented.
President of Women’s World Banking, Mary Ellen Iskenderian, says there is a growing recognition that women’s financial inclusion is not only important in achieving every other social goal, but it makes financial sense.
There are very few women who can straddle several different types of industries at the same time and make it look effortless. Bisila Bokoko, a businesswoman, award-winning entrepreneur, philanthropist, and global brand ambassador, is one of those women. She is rated as one of the most inspirational women, alongside Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Lupita Nyongo. Bokoko is one of Africa’s humanitarians who are breaking new grounds – not just for her, but for millions of people worldwide.
"I believe in the magnificent power of women. Let us help one another and hold hands to climb the ladder of success. If we ever fall from it, let’s be there to pick up the pieces and help to start again."
Bisila Bokoko is an Award-Winning Businesswoman, Wine Entrepreneur, Inspirational Speaker, TV Personality & Philanthropist. Bisila is currently writing her first book and has appeared in Forbes, Harper's Bazaar, Huffington Post, Entrepreneur magazine, and on Bloomberg TV. Follow her on and off duty around the world @BisilaBokoko
Teresa H. Clarke is the CEO of Africa.com, a company she founded in 2010 after resigning from her position as a managing director in the investment banking division of Goldman Sachs & Co.
The African diaspora is the worldwide collection of communities descended from native Africans or people from Africa, predominantly in the Americas.
A dynamic series of Africans sharing what the continent means to them.
Featuring:
- Brad Broder
- Taffi Woolward
- John Dadd
- Susan Stehik
- Simon Freemantle
- Siddharth Morakhia
- Sabringa Munnings
- Melissa Cook
- Larry Seruma
- Brittany Kielhurn
- Alois Monger
- Andrea Pizziconi
- Anindya Ghose
- Ashley Bendell
- Chris Brazell
- Jibola Ayodele
- Lela Bourne
- Busi Matsiko-Andan
- Leon Eastmond
Panel discussion moderated by CNN's Ali Veshi at the Foreign Policy Association with Teresa H. Clarke (Africa.com CEO / former Goldman Sachs Managing Director), Nigerian businessman Tony Elumelu, and former U.S. Ambassador to Gabon and Sao Tome and Principe, Joe Wilson, and focusing on Investment in Africa.