Author: Elan
Joshua Harvey, CEO of Specno. Image supplied and owned by Specno. As South Africa’s online retail market grows, retailers have an opportunity beyond competing for customers who already shop digitally: making the first purchase easier for people who remain outside the market. The Online Retail in South Africa 2026 report, produced by World Wide Worx in partnership with Mastercard, Peach Payments and Ask Afrika, forecasts online retail sales of R159 billion in 2026. That would represent approximately 22.5% annual growth and around 10% of national retail turnover. Those figures are forecasts for the full year. Separately, consumer research underpinning the…
Egyptian climate technology company NoorNation has raised $1.05 million in seed funding from Linah Farms, Catalyst Fund and KBW Ventures.NoorNation is making clean energy and water solutions more accessible to farmers and underserved communities. Through its LifeBox technology and pay-as-you-go solar irrigation model, the company is helping farmers reduce their reliance on diesel-powered pumps and access affordable, sustainable irrigation without high upfront costs.The new funding will help NoorNation expand its operations, scale its clean technology solutions and bring solar-powered irrigation to more farmers and communities.Want to know who is raising, investing, and exiting in Africa? Get Africa Private Equity News’…
Madica has secured an additional US$6 million from Flourish Ventures to extend its pre-seed investment programme by three years. It plans to invest in 25 to 30 more African start-ups and expand support for founders who are often overlooked by traditional VC networks. The funding builds on Madica’s initial investment pilot. Since its launch in 2022, the pilot has backed 18 start-ups across 10 African countries and 12 sectors, pairing early-stage capital with hands-on business support. According to Madica, the extension will also give it more time to test whether its model can help overlooked founders achieve sustained growth and…
Technology often tells its most meaningful story when people can experience it for themselves. At the Republic of Korea’s National Day celebration in Abuja, guests were given that opportunity as LG Electronics showcased innovations designed to support more convenient, connected and efficient lifestyles, reinforcing the enduring relationship between Nigeria and South Korea. Hosted by the Embassy of the Republic of Korea under the theme “One Heaven. One Earth. One Humanity,” the event brought together government officials, members of the diplomatic community, business leaders and development partners to celebrate friendship, collaboration and shared aspirations for sustainable growth. Amid discussions on diplomacy…
Nigeria’s technology market is usually described by its problems, from unreliable infrastructure to a volatile economy. Dotun Daniel Adekunle, OPay’s chief operating officer and chief technology officer, argues that the country’s most durable companies are the ones built to survive its worst days. “Stubbornness is a business model in Africa,” Adekunle said in a keynote titled “Markets That Refuse to Break” at Moonshot by TechCabal on 28 October. A market this hard, he argued, rewards companies that keep adapting to local conditions. On 9 October, OPay filed to list on the New York Stock Exchange. The filing shows revenue of…
Andy Walker / Android AuthorityAdd Android Authority on Google: Keeping up with the latest and greatest apps and games is a difficult task, but I’m here to help. Each month, I detail a list of the best new Android apps and games, and this month’s edition includes a new Android launcher, a brilliant daily notes app, and more.Let’s jump right in. Here are the best new Android apps and games you should try in November 2026. If you missed it, catch the October edition here. Android Auto Maker Make almost any app Android Auto compatible. Price: Free Developer: malebuffy Google…
EDFI Management Company, through the European Union-funded Agriculture Financing Initiative (AgriFI), has signed a $2.5 million convertible-note investment in Tomato Jos, a vertically integrated tomato farming and processing business in northern Nigeria.Tomato Jos produces and sells consumer-packaged tomato paste nationwide in Nigeria. Its model combines farm operations, smallholder sourcing and local processing, helping to convert fresh tomatoes into value-added products for the domestic market.The funding will finance packaging equipment, factory upgrades and the expansion of drip irrigation.Rodrigo Madrazo, chief executive officer of EDFI Management Company, said: “Tomato Jos combines a compelling commercial model with tangible development impact. Its integrated approach…
The South African Police Service (SAPS) says it is operationally ready to ensure the 2026 Local Government Elections is safe and peaceful, with increased deployments planned, specialised units on standby and additional security measures in place. With exactly three days to go before the elections, with the start of the Special Voting Process on Monday, National Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Fannie Masemola said police had been preparing for several months to ensure that the necessary security arrangements were in place. “The South African Police Service wishes to assure South Africans that we are operationally ready to secure these elections. We…
LPG investment is Africa’s defining downstream opportunity over the next two decades. The window to act is open now. At the IEA’s first Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa in Paris in May 2024, Akinwumi Adesina, then African Development Bank President, recalled studying by smoky lamps and cooking fires, which he links to eyesight damage. Still today, nearly one billion Africans cook with firewood and charcoal. Household air pollution kills about 815,000 Africans annually. Between 2022 and 2023, sub-Saharan Africa’s population grew by 30 million while only 11 million gained clean cooking access. For a decade, refining has dominated Africa’s…
In brief Attackers stole roughly $6.4 billion from Binance on Thursday in the largest crypto hack ever, more than four times the previous record. Binance says it will cover all losses with company funds and its emergency reserve, having set aside more than $6.34 billion. Here’s how it happened and what’s being done about it. Crypto just suffered the largest hack in its history.On Thursday, attackers drained roughly $6.4 billion from Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, in a breach that dwarfs every theft before it and has triggered a cross-border law-enforcement investigation, a scramble by stablecoin issuers to freeze…