South Africa’s franchise sector contributes R721 billion to GDP. It employs hundreds of thousands of people and, on most measures, outperforms independent business ownership by a considerable margin. Those numbers are worth acknowledging. They represent real businesses, built by real people, in conditions that have been anything but straightforward. But there is a conversation the…
Bangui — new World Bank report released today calls for urgent structural reforms in the public finance sector and the mobilization of domestic resources in the Central African Republic (CAR) to consolidate macroeconomic stability and support human development, boost growth, and create the conditions for job creation. Entitled “Strengthening the Transparency, Sustainability and Efficiency of…
The Estonian Business Angels Network (EstBAN), one of Europe’s most active early-stage investor networks, has confirmed its partnership with the Pan African AI & Innovation Summit (PAAIS) 2026. This collaboration signals a growing interest from global investors in Africa’s rapidly evolving artificial intelligence ecosystem. As part of the partnership, EstBAN will co-underwrite the Summit’s “Hack-AI-Thon,”…
South African edutech and youth development organisation, Ukiyo has officially launched the Global Student Support Platform (GSSP), a mobile application designed to centralise education, funding, career opportunities, and student support services into a single digital ecosystem. Nozuko Mzamo, founder of Ukiyo The platform, available for download via Google Play Store and the Apple App Store,…
The Trump administration has outlined a renewed Africa strategy centered on national sovereignty, commercial partnerships, and targeted support for Nigeria, as Washington moves to reshape its engagement on the continent. Senior US officials say the new approach prioritises measurable outcomes and strategic interests over what they described as “moral lectures” in foreign policy. Speaking at…
Nairobi — China has deployed a specialized medical expert team to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to support efforts to contain the ongoing Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo strain, as international partners intensify assistance to the Central African nation. The team, “specially dispatched” by the Chinese government, departed Beijing on Tuesday and…
Washington, D.C. — At an extraordinary meeting, the Governing Board of the Pandemic Fund approved the activation of the Fund’s Emergency Financing Procedures (EFP), enabling the mobilization of up to US$220.6 million in Pandemic Fund grant financing to provide rapid and flexible support to fill critical gaps in response to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in Central and…
Stefan Steinle, executive VP and head of global customer support at SAP. AI is reshaping enterprise support and changing how solution providers think and operate, says Stefan Steinle, executive VP and head of global customer support at SAP, who adds that support has evolved into a strategic driver of business value. Support in this context…
Troops say Army ignored request for more medical support before fatal Iranian strike – CBS News Watch CBS News Soldiers who survived a deadly Iranian drone strike in Kuwait tell CBS News the U.S. Army ignored a request for more medical support weeks before the attack. Jonah Kaplan reports.
Washington — Lawmakers in both parties say the U.S. should continue to provide arms to Taiwan after President Trump, at the end of his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, said he hasn’t decided whether to move forward with a pending arms sale to the island. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One Friday after…
