News earlier in the week broke that Opera-backed Nigerian fintech startup, OPay has reportedly shut down all its business operations in Nigeria following a letter issued by its foreign investors amidst the poor economic climate caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.. A report claims that all verticals of the startup, including ride hailing, ORide and OTrike — which were still active in other states aside Lagos; the recently launched B2B and B2C eCommerce platforms, OMall and OTrade; OExpress for logistics; and food delivery feature, OFood will be closed down. Opay launched…
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9mobile hosts a New Mobile Network Operators workshop
9mobile, the leading telecom operator in Nigeria, in association with Google, and Kirusa, a global leader in communication solutions over data networks for consumers and enterprises, recently hosted a workshop in Lagos for Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), Aggregators, and brands to introduce Rich Communication Services (RCS), and showcase how RCS Business Messaging (RBM) is revolutionizing enterprise communication with their consumers. The workshop was attended by over 50 attendees, including representatives from MTN, Airtel, Glo, GTB, Zenith Bank, Unity Bank, Accion Microfinance, Interswitch, and Infobip, among others. Touted as the next-generation…
Read MoreGoogle Launched first New Developers Space in Lagos
Google launched its first Google Developers Space in Lagos, Nigeria last month. Previously referred to as the Google Launchpad Space, the Google Developers Space is a hub for African developers, entrepreneurs and startups. Google CEO Sundar Pichai, made a commitment to African entrepreneurs In July 2017, to start the Launchpad Accelerator Africa program and launch a space to house these efforts in Nigeria. Google launched the Google Developers Space in Lagos to provide that home, and a space where entrepreneurs, developers, VCs and investors can connect and collaborate with each other.…
Read MoreNigeria proposes New law to tax local online purchases
Online purchases in Nigeria could soon come with a tax bill in part of plans to raise more revenue to fund a record budget, Nigeria’s government is considering a 5% Value Added Tax (VAT) specifically for online purchases. Babatunde Fowler, head of Nigeria’s federal tax agency, says the government may appoint banks as agents to deduct 5% VAT on all local online purchases with a bank card. The policy could be in place by early next year, Fowler said in an interview with Premium Times, a local online newspaper. This…
Read MoreNigerian Start up innovates Recycling; Q&A with Bilikiss Abiola, Founder WeCyclers
Bilikiss Adebiyi Abiola , Founder and CEO of Wecyclers The Nigerian tech startup space is developing at speed, and stands a good chance of being the Africa’s leader. ITBusinessDirect spoke with Bilikiss Adebiyi Abiola , Founder and CEO of Wecyclers, a company that offers household recycling service using a fleet of low-cost cargo bikes. They are powering social change using the environment by allowing people in low-income communities in Nigeria to capture value from their waste. Question: How can you define the technology sector in Nigeria? Bilikiss: I believe it’s…
Read MoreMicrosoft to target 1000 nonprofits for technology donations
Non-profits around the globe have limited resources, and often face the choice between investing in IT infrastructure and investing in programmes to support the communities that they serve. Microsoft created the Technology for Good programme to empower every non-profit to achieve more. The tech giant has restated its commitment to empowering them with the needed technology, and finding more creative ways to solve humanity’s greatest challenges to further technology adoption among Non-profits in Nigeria. According to the Guardian, the tech giant helps non-profits do more good with Microsoft’s cloud technology,…
Read More#SheTechsAfrica: Miss.Africa Seed Fund Announces its 2016/17 Prize Winners
Closing the global digital gender divide is a pressing concern. Women are yet to reach their full potential as participants in all aspects of society. Closing this digital gender gap can help empower women and girls to actively participate in governance as civil society members and political leaders. The Miss.Africa digital Program, a Pan-African trust program of DotConnectAfrica (DCA) , is aimed in attracting more young girls and women to the Internet platform to enable them form a sizable demographic of Internet users in Africa, thereby involving them in complementary…
Read MoreNigerians Take The Lead In Mobile Online Shopping
When compared with other countries in the continent, Nigerians take the lead when it comes to mobile online shopping, local retailers or foreign notwithstanding. A research conducted by Ipsos in Nigeria indicates that this trend is not likely to wane anytime soon. Nigerians love mobile commerce. The research conducted by Ipsos on behalf of Paypal shows that Nigerians are the keenest shoppers on the African continent. 72% of these shoppers use their smartphones to shop. This places Nigeria after China(86%) and India (82%) when ranked according to incidences of shopping…
Read MoreVodacom Nigeria Trains 25 Female Students on IoT
Vodacom Nigeria trained 25 female students on IoT as part of its support for the Girls In ICT program, Vanguard reports. The students learned how IoT is used in ensuring people’s safety and in securing the world today. The girls got a chance to tour the company’s facilities which exposed them to the importance of connectivity and data security. Vodacom hopes that by training female students in matters ICT, they will help in demystifying the myth that ICT is a male dominated field and in so doing encourage more female…
Read MoreOnline retail begins to click in Africa’s biggest market
The headquarters for this Internet startup is cheekily nicknamed “Graceland” and its co-heads are young Harvard graduates with grand plans who have rapidly expanded the business over the past year. Silicon Valley? Not even close. This emerging world Internet company, called Jumia, is now located in Nigeria, and the founders of the business here say there is no better place to pursue their strategy. Nigeria, Africa’s biggest market of 160 million people, has seen Internet access expand rapidly in recent years, opening opportunities for companies to exploit. While major obstacles…
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