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Opinion: World Telecoms Day – MTN celebrates 30 years and looks towards 2054

By: Creamer Media Reporter 17th May 2024 In this article, MTN South Africa CEO Charles Molapisi writes about the telecommunication group's impact over the past 30 years, as well as its future plans. →

Altron expects double-digit earnings increases from continuing operations

By: Natasha Odendaal 17th May 2024 JSE-listed Altron expects to deliver higher earnings from continuing operations for the year ended February 28, 2024. In a revised trading statement on Friday, Altron said that its headline earnings per share (HEPS) for continuing operations are expected to be 35% to 38% higher, at between 115c... →

Tenth Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation finalists revealed

By: Sabrina Jardim 17th May 2024 Four innovators from Kenya, Côte d'Ivoire and Uganda – whose innovations address recycling in construction, AI tools for healthcare and farming, and reengineered waste collection – have been selected from a shortlist of 16 to compete for this year’s £50 000 Africa Prize for Engineering... →

Mining-focused manufacturers see innovation as key to survival and future growth

By: Sabrina Jardim 17th May 2024 Amid the challenges of loadshedding, logistical constraints and volatile commodity prices, South Africa’s mining-focused manufacturers and equipment suppliers view ongoing innovation, including embracing digitalisation and artificial intelligence (AI), as increasingly central to their survival... →

RMB provides bespoke $100m funding package to Powerfleet

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 16th May 2024 Financial services provider Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) acted as the sole mandated lead arranger and funder of a $100-million funding package for global telematics business Powerfleet. The entity was created from a merger between Powerfleet and Mix Telematics. The combined business aims to become a... →

MTN Q1 performance muted on ongoing macroenvironment challenges

By: Natasha Odendaal 14th May 2024 JSE-listed MTN on Tuesday posted a dip in service revenue and earnings during the first quarter of the year, amid ongoing high inflation and local currency devaluations in some of its key markets. The group reported a 28.7% contraction in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and... →

Weekend’s geomagnetic storm was the strongest to hit South Africa in over 20 years

By: Rebecca Campbell 13th May 2024 The solar storm which hit Earth on Friday and Saturday was the most severe to affect South and Southern Africa in 21 years, the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) has reported. The SANSA Space Weather Centre, located at the SANSA Space Science facility in Hermanus, in the Western Cape,... →

Photo by Johan le Roux/SANSA
Auroras over Gansbaai, triggered by the severe geomagnetic storm this last weekend

Vodacom FY earnings dip on challenges, revenue up

By: Natasha Odendaal 13th May 2024 JSE-listed Vodacom Group on Monday posted double-digit increases in revenue, however, its earnings a share for the year ended March 31, 2024, declined. The group reported a 11.2% decrease in earnings a share to 842c, along with a 10.8% decline in headline earnings a share to 846c during the year... →

61% of organisations report cloud security incidents, up from 24% a year ago

By: Schalk Burger 10th May 2024 Cybersecurity firm Check Point Software Technologies' ‘2024 Cloud Security Report’ shows a critical surge in cloud security incidents, with 61% of organisations reporting significant disruptions, compared with 24% in 2023. This sharp rise underscores the risks associated with cloud environments... →

Personality affects susceptibility of people to cybercrime

By: Rebecca Campbell 8th May 2024 Personality type is a major factor in people’s vulnerability to cybercrime, a Stellenbosch University (SU) researcher has established. People with an “agreeable” personality were more vulnerable than others to “social engineering” cyberattacks. The research was carried out by systems analyst Vian... →

Vian Smit

Telecommunications to play a critical role in upcoming elections

By: Creamer Media Reporter 8th May 2024 As South Africa approaches its 2024 national elections, scheduled for May 29, telecommunications infrastructure will play a key role in ensuring seamless communication among voters, electoral bodies and all stakeholders involved in the electoral process, the Communication Risk Information Centre... →

Image of COMRiC CEO Advocate Thokozani Mvelase

New fellowship programme, to bring researchers into government policymaking, launched

By: Rebecca Campbell 7th May 2024 The pilot phase of a joint programme of the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) and the National Research Foundation (NRF), to bridge the gap between government and academia, was officially launched on Tuesday. Called the DSI-NRF Policy Placement Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme, it is... →

MTN achieves record 98% network availability in Limpopo

By: Natasha Odendaal 7th May 2024 As telecommunications giant MTN South Africa accelerates its nationwide modernisation programme, the company has achieved a record 98.33% network availability daily in Limpopo. The 2024 resilience plan, which was completed in the first quarter of 2024, aims to ensure that all sites have power... →

Telkom set to support 2024 elections

By: Natasha Odendaal 6th May 2024 Telecommunications group Telkom is preparing to support South Africa’s upcoming national elections as the information and communications technology partner to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC). South Africa’s 2024 elections are set to be held on May 29. →

CSIR Coastal Engineers help ports and ship owners with physical and computer model tests

By: Rebecca Campbell 3rd May 2024 Although South African ports are sheltered from swell waves, three of them – Cape Town, Ngqura and Saldanha – can and do experience what are called infra-gravity waves. These are a category of gravity waves, which are waves travelling along the surface of the sea (where it interfaced with the... →

A ship mooring behaviour experiment being run in a CSIR water tank; in the background, another ship model is on the moment-of-inertia calibration cradle

Photo by Creamer Media's Rebecca Campbell
A ship mooring behaviour experiment being run in a CSIR water tank; in the background, another ship model is on the moment-of-inertia calibration cradle

Ransomware payments increase 500% in past year, attack rate falls slightly

By: Schalk Burger 3rd May 2024 The average payment for ransomware attacks has increased by 500% in the past year to $2-million, up from $400 000 in 2023, cybersecurity firm Sophos reports in its 'State of Ransomware 2024' report. Additionally, excluding ransom payments, the survey found the average cost of recovery reached... →

Data, drones can improve local agriculture

3rd May 2024 Smart technology, powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and unmanned vehicles, can counter various challenges in the agricultural sector, boosting productivity, reducing costs and assisting in preserving precious resources, says drone technology company DJI product manager Ruan Botha.... →

An image of DJI product manager Ruan Botha

RUAN BOTHA Innovative solutions are required for long-term sustainability and growth

Access to farming equipment boosts mechanisation

By: Nadine Ramdass 3rd May 2024 Agricultural technology company Hello Tractor, celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, aims to improve small-scale farming practices through its app Hello Tractor, which facilitates increased access to farming equipment. With a core focus on improving African agriculture through... →

An image of farm equipment working on a farm

FARM MECHANISATION Farm equipment can supplement the need for physical labour, minimising the impact of labour shortages on small-scale farms

South African tech startups have three more days to enter Irish Tech Challenge

By: Darren Parker 2nd May 2024 High-impact South African startups have until May 5 to submit their applications for the Irish Tech Challenge South Africa, which promises to provide winners global market access. The challenge is a partnership between the Embassy of Ireland in South Africa, the Department of Science and... →

Scientists explore how to improve crop yields – on Mars

By: Reuters 2nd May 2024 For future human bases or colonies on Mars to be self-sustaining, a reliable source of home-grown food will be a must. It simply would be too costly and risky to rely upon rocket deliveries to meet the food needs of colonists. With this in mind, scientists are exploring ways to optimize space... →

Mauritius Telecom in talks for subsea cable to link Africa, Asia

By: Bloomberg 30th April 2024 Mauritius’ top telecommunications company is in talks with operators including Reliance Jio Infocomm and Orange for a new undersea cable linking Africa, Indian Ocean islands and Asia, improving redundancy in region hit by breakdowns. The new line named T4 will replace the South Africa Far East... →

Airbus announces its next generation of Earth observation satellites

By: Rebecca Campbell 29th April 2024 Airbus Defence and Space, part of the Europe-based global major aerospace group Airbus, has announced that it is to augment its in-house Earth observation (EO) satellite constellation capability through the development and deployment of the next generation of its Pléiades Neo satellites.... →

Photo by Airbus Defence and Space
Images of the Eiffel Tower taken by Airbus Defence and Space's Pléiades Neo satellites

Rand Refinery donates R2m to seven Gauteng schools

By: Sabrina Jardim 29th April 2024 As part of its commitment to education, precious metals refiner Rand Refinery has donated R2-million to seven primary and secondary schools in Gauteng. The company says this donation will be allocated towards refurbishments at, and procurement of modern educational tools by, the selected schools. →

MTN SA launches Made4U career portal Skillsbox to empower job seekers

By: Natasha Odendaal 29th April 2024 Telecommunications giant MTN South Africa has launched a new portal to assist unemployed South Africans on their job seeking journeys. The new Made4U career portal Skillsbox offers a comprehensive suite of resources on a user-friendly website and mobile platform designed to empower job seekers. →

TEBOGO MAENETJA

Paratus Botswana completes Botswana Kalahari fibre route

By: Natasha Odendaal 25th April 2024 Telecommunications and network services provider Paratus Botswana has completed the last leg of the new 840 km Botswana Kalahari Fibre (BKF) route between the Namibian border and Lobatse. The new BWP70-million route, which was activated at the end of March, is the largest significant investment... →

Outa demands information on Sanral, Ceta tenders

By: Darren Parker 24th April 2024 Nonprofit watchdog the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) has accused the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral) and the Construction Education and Training Authority (Ceta) of keeping contracts with questionable companies secret, which it says is in line with a government... →

Defy launches solar-powered off-grid range

24th April 2024 Amid the compounding effects of loadshedding in South Africa and increasing concerns about climate change, appliance manufacturer Defy has launched its Solar Off-Grid fridge and freezer range to address local energy challenges. Sabrina Jardim tells us more. →

Defy launches solar-powered off-grid range

MTN South Africa, Investec, Electrum collaborate to introduce PayShap on MoMo

By: Natasha Odendaal 24th April 2024 Information and communications technology group MTN South Africa has partnered with Investec and Electrum to introduce the PayShap solution on its Mobile Money (MoMo) platform. The collaboration aims to provide users with an instant, cost-effective mobile payment system, with MoMo becoming the... →

Cisco launches AI-powered Hypershield service to protect modern data centres

By: Schalk Burger 23rd April 2024 Networking and security multinational Cisco has launched its Hypershield service, which is a cloud-native, artificial intelligence- (AI-) powered approach to highly distributed security for AI-scale data centres that is built into the fabric of the network, says Cisco executive VP and security... →

Cell C appoints chief data and analytics officer

By: Creamer Media Reporter 23rd April 2024 Communications group Cell C has appointed Bryan O'Donovan as chief data and analytics officer, effective May 2024. He will be responsible for spearheading the management of the organisation's data and analytics assets, championing data-driven decision-making processes and leveraging data assets... →

Image of Cell C chief data and analytics officer Bryan O'Donovan

UK innovation agency highlights quality of the emerging African space sector

By: Rebecca Campbell 22nd April 2024 Innovate UK, Britain’s national innovation agency, has, in a new report, highlighted that Africa is becoming a hub for globally competitive space technology, development and research. In particular, Kenya, Rwanda and South Africa were identified as space sector leaders in Africa. The report was... →

L’Oréal, Unesco launch the 2024 South Africa Women in Science Young Talent Search

By: Rebecca Campbell 22nd April 2024 The Foundation L’Oréal announced on Monday that the sixth edition of the Women in Science Young Talent Search had been launched in South Africa. This initiative is a partnership between the foundation and specialist United Nations agency Unesco. Women researchers under the age of 40 are eligible... →

Icasa officially appoints new chairperson

By: Natasha Odendaal 22nd April 2024 The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) has appointed Councillor Mothibi Ramusi as chairperson, effective May 2, for a five-year term. The official appointment of Ramusi followed Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Mondli Gungubele’s announcement in the... →

Image of Icasa chairperson Councillor Mothibi Ramusi

Project envisions rollout of smart LPG, solar systems, hydrogen stoves to 3.51m indigent households

By: Darren Parker 22nd April 2024 Energy solutions company Kili Energy is spearheading a large-scale initiative, the Kili Energy Clean Energy Democratisation Project, to provide smart liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) canisters and stoves, smart solar systems and novel hydrogen-powered stoves to 3.51-million indigent households in... →

Automated project manager scorecards enhance operations

By: Trent Roebeck 19th April 2024 Gold mining and exploration company Harmony Gold’s project management office (PMO) recently showcased its digital project manager scorecard – developed by project solutions company Project Portfolio Office (PPO) – which provides “clear direction” for project managers and administrators by... →

An image of one of Harmony Gold's mine sites

DRIVING EFFICIENCY Harmony will automate mundane tasks that will prove to be efficient for business processes

Robotics, AI beneficial for business

19th April 2024 The manufacturing industry is currently at the doorstep of a transformational era, one marked by the seamless integration of robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), and augmented reality or virtual reality (AR/VR), says GridRaster co-founder and COO Dijam Panigrahi. This fusion is “not merely a... →

DIJAM PANAGRAHI GridRaster co-founder and COO Dijam Panigrahi that robotics and AI will have an impact on the manufacturing industry

NRF to participate in significant African-European scientific collaboration forum

By: Rebecca Campbell 17th April 2024 The National Research Foundation (NRF) will participate in the fourth AERAP Africa-Europe Science Collaboration Forum, which will be hosted by the South African Embassy in Brussels, Belgium, next week. AERAP is an acronym for Africa-Europe Science Collaboration and Innovation Platform and the NRF... →

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