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IFC Promotes Access to Finance for SMEs in Peru With US$50 Million Loan to Mibanco
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, disbursed a loan of S/.167.6 million (approximately US$50 million) to Mibanco, the largest microfinance institution in Peru and Latin America, with the aim of increasing financing to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and low-income sectors of the population, thus helping boost job creation and economic growth.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- Latin America
- Tags
- microfinance
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WeChat Proprietor Tencent Seeks $2 Billion Loan for FinTech Expansion
The Chinese internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd, most famous for its WeChat messaging app, is reported to be soliciting a loan that could run as high as two billion dollars in order to deepen its interests in the FinTech sector.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
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Ghana’s Startup Bub Pioneer Is Going Pan-African With a $50 Million Fund
Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST) has built one of Africa’s best known startup ecosystems in Accra, Ghana over the last eight years—and now it’s doubling down on a push to take its vision pan-African.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- incubators
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In the Birthplace of Mobile Money, Kenyans Prefer Paying Cash for Uber
Despite fierce opposition from traditional taxi drivers, Kenya has become one of Uber’s fastest-growing African markets, and allowing cash payments played a crucial role in the growth, according to Alon Lits, Uber general manager for sub-Saharan Africa.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- fintech
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3 Key Takeaways From Facebook’s F8 Conference
Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg put it simply at the annual F8 conference in San Francisco, California, this week. Facebook’s mission, he said, is to “give everyone the power to share anything with anyone.”
- Categories
- Technology
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Viewpoint: Much Hangs on Mobile Money in East Africa
From his shack in Kangemi, a slum at the western edge of Nairobi, Gilbert Onduko sells bare essentials to his neighbours. A blackboard above the hatch lists prices for ugali(maize cooked into a sort of porridge), farina (similar to semolina) and cooking oil. On the roof of the shack is a small solar panel, about the size of a tea tray, which powers two lights inside and a mobile phone. Since he got it, about a month before your correspondent visited, Mr Onduko has been able to keep his shop open until midnight rather than just in the daytime. He has also cut down his kerosene bill by 100 shillings (about $1) a day—a hefty saving in a Nairobi slum. “And now my phone is always charged,” he grins.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Malaria Resistance ‘Unable to Spread’
The first case of the malaria parasite being unable to spread its resistance to drugs has been discovered by scientists in Australia.
- Categories
- Health Care
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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A New Map of Poverty, a New Approach to International Aid
More people are living longer and living better than at any time in history. In the past 25 years alone, child mortality has declined by more than half. The proportion of people suffering from hunger has been cut almost as much. And countries like China and South Korea—once major recipients of development aid—have emerged as global-economic powers.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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