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MasterCard Commits Up to $1 Million to Advance Financial Inclusion in Rwanda
The MasterCard Centre for Inclusive Growth has committed up to $1 million over the next three years in order to advance economic growth and financial inclusion in Rwanda. The funds will be used to deliver a holistic mix of tools and resources, providing an opportunity to connect micro-entrepreneurs in Rwanda to the formal economy. This will help them to expand their business.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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The Unstoppable Rise of Fintech Is Rapidly Changing the Way Africans Transact
Africa is fertile ground for new fintech services which are leveraging the power of communities and social media to make financial services more relevant, while using data to deliver more meaningful financial services on an ongoing basis.
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- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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FINCA and First Access Announce World’s Largest Microfinance Fintech Collaboration
Today global microfinance leader FINCA and First Access, whose technology predicts the credit risk of borrowers in informal markets, announced a new collaboration that will create the largest and most sophisticated alternative credit-scoring approach by a microfinance institution (MFI) in the world. The partnership will vastly improve FINCA's outreach to excluded populations.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Mobile Money in South Africa: What’s in It for Banks?
The 2015 State of the Industry Report on Mobile Financial Services tabled at the World Mobile Congress in Barcelona brings some interesting but not unexpected figures on the state of mobile money today. I say “unexpected” because any innovation that delivers simple, affordable and accessible product is bound to make its presence felt and disrupting the traditional systems.
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- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- fintech
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Ford Turning Captured CO2 Into Car Parts
Ford Motor Company claims to be the first automaker to formulate and test new foam and plastic components using captured carbon dioxide (CO2) as feedstock. Within five years, the company expects to be using the new biomaterials in its vehicles.
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- Health Care
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Africa Accounts for Only 1.4% of World Insurance Premium
The African Insurance Organisation, AIO, has decried the low level of insurance penetration in Africa, saying that the continent can boast of only about 1.4 per cent of total world premium. President of AIO, Mrs. Lamia Ben Mahmoud who made the assertion at the 43rd Conference and Annual General Assembly of the AIO in Marrakech, Morocco last week noted that there is clear predominance of developed countries on the insurance market.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Mosquito-Repellent Soap Invention Seeks to Wash Away Africa Malaria Threat
Two former students from Burkina Faso have designed a mosquito-repellent soap, which they hope could be a simple and affordable solution in the fight to end malaria, but more funds are needed to test the idea, according to the startup behind it.
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- Health Care
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Facebook Has Finally Launched Free Basics in Its Biggest African Market
Social network giant, Facebook, has launched its Free Basics service in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country—and its biggest market on the continent. The platform which allows users to access listed websites at no cost was launched in partnership with Airtel, the country’s third largest telecoms operator with almost 34 million subscribers.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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