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Perspective: There’s a Lot We Still Don’t Know About Libra
Last month, Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg spent over five grueling hours answering myriad questions from the members of the House Financial Services Committee on issues like election interference, hate speech, censorship and discriminatory advertising. While it was an important reminder of the many dangers that Facebook already presents to our society, we didn’t actually learn much about the hearing’s ostensible topic: Facebook’s audacious plan to create an association of big businesses to issue a new digital currency called Libra.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- cryptocurrency, fintech
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Vodacom Drives Financial Inclusion with Affordable Smartphone Offers
“Many people in the country cannot afford high-tech smartphones or don’t want to commit to a contract,” says Vodacom Financial Services Chief Officer, Mariam Cassim.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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The Pocket-Sized Las Vegas Addicting Kenya’s Youths
Mobile-savvy youths are flocking to sports gambling, and the government is cracking down on betting companies.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- youth
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Press Release: Turn.io Launches Behaviour Change Chat Platform for Social Impact
Turn.io is a startup incubated by Praekelt.org, an early partner in the WhatsApp Business API pilot programme. Developed to connect social impact organisations with audiences using chat messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Google's Android Messages, Turn.io is underpinned by the crucial role of chat as the growing platform of choice for the majority world.
- Categories
- Technology
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MIT: 20 startups using tech to build a more inclusive economy
A “social reputation” algorithm, a crowdsourcing platform for homeless job seekers, a digital credit line for bodega owners, an identity-blind hiring platform. The ideas and inventions of the 2019 MIT Inclusive Innovation Challenge finalists are as wide-ranging as the international competition’s boundaries.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Latin America
- Tags
- agtech, cybersecurity, edtech, fintech
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Tata, Rockefeller Foundation Plan 10,000 India Microgrids
Tata Power Co. Ltd., in collaboration with the Rockefeller Foundation, plans to develop 10,000 microgrids in India to boost access to affordable and reliable electricity to homes and enterprises across the nation’s vast rural areas.
- Categories
- Energy, Technology
- Region
- South Asia
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Delivering Online Skills Training in Africa: Three Keys to a Successful Program
The shortage of data science skills is a major challenge for Africa. With relatively few local institutions offering degrees in the subject, African data scientists must often acquire their skills via online courses, leaving some unable to fully participate in the continent's emerging digital future. Dumisani Dube at Insight2Impact shares insights from a successful online course offered to its DataHack4FI participants, which could help other organizations better leverage digital learning in Africa.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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MTN Launches Mobile Money API Hackathon
The Hackathon, run in partnership with Ericsson (MTN’s MoMo technology partner), will give app developers based in Ghana, Uganda, Cote d’Ivoire, Cameroon and Zambia the opportunity to create innovative financial and transactional applications using the MTN MoMo API platform.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa