Nearly half the world’s population now accessing mobile Internet through smartphones – report

More than half of the global population, about 54% or 4.3-billion people, own smartphones, while 4.6-billion people are now using mobile Internet. Four-billion people, or 49% of the global... 

Rand Water reports stabilising bulk system

Bulk water supplier Rand Water on Thursday reported a recovering and stabilising bulk water system, as critical reservoirs start improving to acceptable levels and metropolitan consumption is on a... 

Experian, MTN’s Chenosis partner to drive financial inclusion in South Africa

Credit bureau Experian and MTN platform company application programming interface (API) marketplace Chenosis have partnered to leverage data to drive financial inclusion in South Africa. The... 

MTN Group resilient in face of forex volatility, elevated inflation

Telecommunications group MTN Group on Tuesday posted an increase in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) for the nine months to September 30, 2023. Maintaining a... 

Establish water reuse infrastructure as an asset class – DBSA

Water reuse infrastructure in South Africa should be established an asset class to attract private sector capital and improving the water sector’s resilience, says Development Bank of Southern... 

Rand Water continues to over-abstract, nonrevenue municipal water a concern

Water utility Rand Water continues to over-abstract from the Integrated Vaal River System as it works with municipalities to help them reduce consumption, physical losses and nonrevenue water.... 

Network International plans payment switch investment following R500m injection into on-soil platform

As Dubai-based FTSE-listed Network International’s cloud-based, integrated digital payment suite Network One onboards local banks, mobile network operators (MNOs) and fintechs, it announced an... 

GenAI solutions spend to reach $143bn – IDC

Enterprises worldwide are expected to invest about $16-billion on generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) solutions in 2023, with spending predicted to increase at a compound annual growth rate... 

Drakenstein municipality breaks ground on R1.4bn upgrade project

The Drakenstein municipality has started the upgrade and refurbishment of the Paarl Wastewater Treatment Works (WWTW), in the Western Cape, as part of the first phase of the new R1.4-billion Budget... 

City of Cape Town awards water saving stars certifications

The City of Cape Town’s Water and Sanitation Directorate has recognised 17 businesses and organisations for efforts in implementing good water management practices at their premises. The various... 

MTN Ghana posts double-digit growth in Q3

Telecommunications group MTN Ghana has posted double-digit growth in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda), profit after tax, revenue and service revenue for the... 

MTN Nigeria forex losses weigh on Q3 results

Telecommunications group MTN Nigeria on Monday reported an 16.3% increase in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) to N907.9-billion during the nine months to... 

Luminous Power Technologies, Hudaco partner to bring branded energy solutions to South Africa

India-based energy solutions brand Luminous Power Technologies and South Africa’s Hudaco Energy have teamed up to bring to a new range of applicable energy solutions to South Africa. With ambitions... 

Sun City’s newest high-end development nears completion

Sun International’s R295-million Lefika Villas development is 85% complete and fully booked one year after breaking ground on the expansion at its iconic Sun City resort, in the North West. The... 

Scientists using AI to improve detection of respiratory-disease-causing pollen spores

South African scientists are leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to detect and classify pollen spores in real time, with two AI counters already set up in Pretoria and Kimberley, to help... 

First trial blasting at Clanwilliam dam construction site

The first trial blasting has been undertaken at the Clanwilliam dam construction site in the Western Cape, as the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) works to raise the dam wall by 13 m. The... 

State of Safety Report unveils rail sector’s crossroads

While South Africa’s railway sector works to rebuild post-pandemic, riots and a variety of disasters, the latest Railway Safety Regulator’s (RSR’s) State of Safety Report 2022/23 has painted a... 

MTN appoints David Behr as ICT Centre of Excellence CEO

Telecommunications giant MTN Group and MTN South Africa on Monday announced the appointment of David Behr as the new CEO for the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Centre of Excellence... 

DWS accelerates Operation Bulela Metsi to address severe water challenges in North West

The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) is accelerating the implementation of Operation Bulela Metsi to enhance access to consistent and reliable water supply in the North West province. The... 

New management for Nissan SA, company seeks replacement for soon-to-be-halted NP200 production

As Independent Markets Africa and new Nissan South Africa country director Maciej Klenkiewicz takes the reins, he is navigating a right-sizing, expansions into Africa, disrupted strategic plans... 

Cloud adoption to deliver R3.9tr worth of economic benefits over the next decade

A new report commissioned by Amazon Web Services has revealed a potential R3.9-trillion economic boost by 2033 from cloud adoption in South Africa. The report, quantifying the relationship between... 

Paratus goes live with Starlink in Zambia

Following the announcement of a distributor agreement for Starlink’s high-speed services across Africa, pan-African telecommunications, data centre and network services provider Paratus has gone... 

Vodacom KwaZulu-Natal injects over R1-billion into network

Over R1-billion is set to be injected into telecommunications group Vodacom KwaZulu-Natal’s network this financial year to increase capacity and resilience, as well as accelerate access to... 

Higher interest rates hurting household finances, to mute seasonal spending

Higher interest rates, offsetting the gains made in the post-Covid-19 recovery period, continue to weigh on South African households’ finances, and could dampen spending during Black Friday sales... 

Consumer Tribunal imposes administrative fine for Consumer Act contravention

South Africa’s National Consumer Tribunal (NCT) has imposed a R1-million administrative fine against Vodacom for what it calls ‘unconscionable’ and prohibited conduct by imposing terms and... 

Vodacom Group targets secondary listing, trade on A2X

Telecommunications giant Vodacom Group is preparing for a secondary listing on the A2X Stock Exchange, while retaining its primary listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). The group will... 

Competition Commission launches enquiry into media, digital platforms

The Competition Commission on Tuesday officially launched its Media and Digital Platforms Market Inquiry (MDPMI) after publishing the final terms of reference (ToRs) for the a month ago. The MDPMI... 

AfDB preparing to launch new sanitation financing facility in the new year

The African Development Bank (AfDB) is currently operationalising a new financing mechanism to support citywide inclusive sanitation projects and development across Africa. Developed in partnership... 

Sun City’s solar installation performs beyond expectations

The newly installed solar plant at Sun International’s Sun City, in the North West, is exceeding expectations, having saved the company over R1-million over the past two months. The R16-million,... 

AfDB and Google collaborate on digital transformation on African continent

The African Development Bank (AfDB) and Google have signed a letter of intent to formalise cooperation aimed at advancing digital transformation across Africa. The agreement, signed during the... 

Cape Town crane manufacturer ups production to meet rising demand

Cape Town-based crane manufacturer BB Cranes is ramping up production as orders from general industry and consulting engineers increases. According to a statement released by BB Cranes parent... 

More features, services added to MTN’s MoMo platform

South African telecommunications giant MTN has expanded its Mobile Money (MoMo) platform to incorporate a wider variety of features and services to transform consumer financial experiences in South... 

Delays in finalising water, sanitation projects concern Portfolio Committee

The Portfolio Committee on Water and Sanitation has raised concerns over weaknesses in finalising bulk infrastructure projects within the water and sanitation portfolio. Following the receipt of... 

Recent outages highlight importance of undersea cables to South Africa and across the rest of the continent

The recent outages experienced across some of the undersea Internet cables connecting Africa to the world have unveiled the need for network resilience and the importance of these systems to South... 

Search trends show interest in artifical intelligence in SA is at all-time high

Search trends revealed by Google show that interest in artificial intelligence (AI) in South Africa has reached an all-time high in 2023, increasing 230% since last year and by 700% in the past... 

MTN South Africa progresses network resiliency

South African telecommunications giant MTN has deployed more than 20 000 batteries, 5 000 rectifiers and nearly 900 generators to sites across South Africa and is spending R4.5-billion to... 

TCS Sustainathon announces winners of 2023 South African edition

The Tata Consultancy Services’ (TCS) second yearly Sustainathon South Africa has unveiled its winners for the 2023 edition of the global initiative aimed at empowering and engaging the youth to... 

Super-app ayoba passes 30m monthly active user milestone

After surpassing the milestone of 30-million monthly active users, African superapp ayoba is on track to achieving 100-million monthly active users by 2025, in line with telecommunications giant... 

New initiative aimed at developing climate-resilient sanitation for South African low-income communities

The Water Research Commission (WRC) has entered into an agreement with eThekwini metropolitan municipality and the City of Cape Town to develop sustainable, climate-resilient sanitation systems.... 

Vodacom rolls out measures to curb rising battery theft and vandalism

Telecommunications giant Vodacom has been intensifying efforts to protect its sites against increasing theft and vandalism across South Africa’s provinces. In July, Vodacom warned that battery...