Author: Elan

First published 21 Dec, 2025 Thanks for reading The Next Wave this year. Your engagement hasn’t just been a metric because it has shaped these conversations every Sunday. I want to specifically thank my co-writers Adonijah Ndege, Frank Eleanya and Muktar Oladunmade. They are the intellectual muscle behind these stories and the ones who help me find the signal in the noise. As we look toward 2026, the tech ecosystem on the continent is finally shedding its skin. We are moving past the era of easy capital and vanity metrics into a period of hard institutionalisation. 2026 will be the…

Meet TARS — a simple, repeatable, and meaningful UX metric designed specifically to track the performance of product features. Upcoming part of the Measure UX & Design Impact (use the code 🎟 IMPACT to save 20% off today).So we design and ship a shiny new feature. How do we know if it’s working? How do we measure and track its impact? There is no shortage in UX metrics, but what if we wanted to establish a simple, repeatable, meaningful UX metric — specifically for our features? Well, let’s see how to do just that.With TARS, we can assess how effective…

** For the best experience, download the free Africa Private Equity News app Android | iOS **AfricInvest, through its blended-finance impact vehicle, the Transform Health Fund (THF), has invested $8.5 million in Promamec, a Moroccan supplier of medical equipment and consumables. The investment will support Promamec’s working capital needs and strengthen its capacity to deliver equipment and consumables to healthcare providers in Morocco.The company supplies a broad range of specialised medical equipment, including dialysis, imaging, and surgical solutions, as well as consumables used daily in patient care. THF’s investment is structured as a senior secured loan facility and complements the…

By David McDonald, CEO at SolarAfrica  For more than a decade, South Africa’s energy sector was stuck in a constant state of crisis. But come 2025, and we finally saw a real step change across the industry, as we started to move from firefighting to future-facing mode. And while it’s not yet perfect – and it certainly hasn’t been smooth sailing – for those of us in the renewable energy space, it felt like watching a sector long stuck in neutral finally click into gear. Here are five big power moves that this year brought us. Power Move 1: SA moves towards…

Africa’s fintech sector continues to grow at a rapid pace. A young, mobile-first population and evolving financial regulations are fueling the rise of digital financial services. From mobile money platforms in Kenya to payment processors in Nigeria and Zambia, fintechs are gaining traction. However, expansion across African markets presents legal, regulatory, and operational challenges that funding alone cannot address. Some investors are bridging this gap. Firms like Velex Investments are combining financial capital with legal and operational expertise to help fintechs scale efficiently and avoid costly setbacks. This model is proving essential as fintech companies aim to grow beyond their…

TechCabal, Africa’s leading technology publication, has released the inaugural Builders List, its annual index of the 50 most consequential individuals shaping the direction of the continent’s technology ecosystem. In an ecosystem often dominated by funding announcements and short-lived hype cycles, the TechCabal’s Builders List is built around substance. It is not a popularity contest or a vanity ranking. Instead, the list serves as a rigorous record of momentum, recognising individuals whose work in 2025 delivered measurable, verifiable impact, whether they are founders appearing in the headlines or operators working quietly behind the scenes. The Builders List spotlights both the highly…

Nigeria’s blockchain story in 2025 is not just about price charts, policy debates, or trading volumes. It is about people. Builders, operators and advocates who stayed the course through volatility and regulation in Africa’s most complex crypto markets and still found ways to create value. This year, as adoption deepened and infrastructure matured, the human layer of Nigeria’s blockchain ecosystem came into sharper focus. To understand who truly shaped the year, I spoke with founders, developers, investors, regulators, exchange operators and editors across the Nigerian Web3 space. Some were happy to go on record, while others preferred anonymity. What stood…

Calvin Wankhede / Android AuthorityThere are plenty of mixed opinions on AI’s potential benefits and harms, but I’ll admit I’ve been somewhat hooked on it from day one. I tend to dive deep into subjects with AI for short bursts that might last hours or on-and-off for a few days, and then drift away for weeks or more when life gets busy with things that are obviously more important. Slowly but surely, though, I realized I was doing less and less when it came to other personal interests. While my AI use never disrupted my real-life obligations or relationships, it…

Accra, 19th December; In a landmark moment for the global reparations movement, President John Dramani Mahama of Ghana welcomed a special delegation of leading advocates and experts from across the African diaspora to align on a unified, intercontinental reparations agenda. The group, which comprises experts from Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, Latin America and the United States thanked President Mahama for his political leadership in championing the cause of reparations within the African continent. They also called on the President to encourage other African leaders to choose courage over comfort by aligning with civil society and affected communities across global Africa,…

Hassan Laaziri, CEO of CDG Invest Growth** For the best experience, download the free Africa Private Equity News app Android | iOS **CDG Invest Growth’s Capmezzanine III fund has exited Morocco-based Soludia Maghreb, a key player in the manufacturing of hemodialysis products – used to filter waste and excess fluid from the blood when kidneys fail. CDG sold its stake to Sothema, a Moroccan pharmaceutical company.Founded in 1998, Soludia Maghreb specialises in the manufacturing of hemodialysis concentrates and the distribution of pharmaceutical products and medical devices sourced from international laboratories.Since its December 2021 investment in Soludia Maghreb, CDG Invest Growth…