Latest news with #PanAfrican
Zawya
3 days ago
- Politics
- Zawya
The Chairperson of the African Union Commission Message on the occasion of the Independence Day of the Republic of Liberia
The Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, extends his warmest congratulations to the Government and people of the Republic of Liberia on the occasion of the anniversary of their independence. This momentous occasion not only commemorates Liberia's rich and remarkable history but also celebrates its enduring role as a steadfast contributor to the African Union's mission, championing peace, democracy, and regional integration. As a founding member of the Organization of African Unity, Liberia's legacy is a proud testament to its unwavering commitment to Pan-African values. The African Union remains firmly committed to supporting the Republic of Liberia in its ongoing efforts to strengthen democratic governance, promote national unity, and advance socio-economic transformation for the benefit of all its citizens. May Liberia continue to shine as a beacon of Africa's resilience and promise. Let us all draw inspiration from its journey as we collectively strive for a peaceful, prosperous, and integrated continent. Happy Independence Day! Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Union (AU).
Zawya
7 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Bank of Africa Group launches working capital platform on Kyriba for 20-country network
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates --(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Kyriba, a global leader in liquidity performance, today announces its collaboration with the Bank of Africa Group. Bank of Africa, one of the largest Pan-African banking groups, has completed the implementation of Kyriba's Working Capital platform to deliver enhanced digitized supply chain finance capabilities across its extensive network serving 20 African countries. The first phase of the project facilitates working capital management for The Group's customers in Morocco with plans to expand to other markets. Bank of Africa has onboarded its first customer, with the aim to bring on several new customers in 2025. This collaboration underscores Kyriba's continued growth in the region and globally, as well as its unmatched receivables and payables finance solutions, dynamic discounting and supplier onboarding. Kyriba's expertise and platform will enable Bank of Africa Group's customers to enhance cash flow, strengthen supplier relationships, and maintain sustainable growth amid economic uncertainties. 'Bank of Africa Group's adoption of Kyriba's Working Capital solution demonstrates their commitment to innovation and underscores our ability to meet the complex needs of financial institutions in today's complex and volatile global economy. As the industry evolves, banks that embrace digitization and automation will be best positioned to lead—modernizing operations, gaining real-time visibility, and delivering more value to clients. Together, we look forward to setting a new standard for innovation and efficiency in African supply chain finance," said John Stevens, Kyriba's Global Head of Capital Markets, Financial Institutions & Working Capital. Kyriba has also seen incredible growth in the volume of working capital financing among both banks and corporates, growing nearly 5X since 2020 and more than doubling the number of invoices uploaded to the platform. This surge highlights the increasing focus on unlocking trapped liquidity and mitigating market volatility through working capital solutions, which can unlock cash flow by accelerating payables and accessing receivables. With over 6,500 employees and a legacy spanning more than a century, Bank of Africa Group is a key financial enabler empowering businesses and enhancing economic opportunities in Africa. 'Kyriba stood out to us for its local expertise, customer-centric approach, comprehensive product offerings, and proven impact delivering working capital efficiency to customers across the continent and world. We are excited to work with Kyriba to unlock new levels of financial insights that can help us optimize working capital and achieve operational success,' said Adil Lahbichi, Executive Director – Global Transaction Banking, Bank of Africa Group. The African supply chain market is poised for rapid growth, driven by increasing demand for working capital optimization. Bank of Africa Group's implementation of Kyriba's platform demonstrates the immense potential for digitized working capital solutions across the region. About Kyriba Kyriba is the global leader in liquidity performance, empowering CFOs, Treasurers and IT leaders to connect, protect, forecast and optimize their liquidity amid economic complexity. As a secure and scalable SaaS solution trusted by 3,000 customers, Kyriba delivers intelligence and financial automation through innovative technologies — including its trusted agentic AI (TAI) — bringing precision, efficiency, and insight to financial operations. With an expansive ecosystem of banking, technology and consulting partners, Kyriba's platform powers more than 3 billion bank transactions and $15 trillion in payments across 9,900+ banks annually – helping companies gain enterprise-wide visibility, ensure financial stability, and outperform their business strategy. About Bank of Africa Group BANK OF AFRICA is a multinational and multi-trade banking group. It was incorporated by Royal Dahir in 1959 under the name of Banque Marocaine du Commerce Extérieur, and has been transformed over more than 60 years to become BANK OF AFRICA since 2020, a universal bank that puts its expertise at the service of innovation, progress and excellence. Thanks to its large banking network on the continent and its international influence, BANK OF AFRICA is determined to take part in the emergence of Africa to make it the continent of the 21st century. Present in 32 countries across Africa, Europe, Asia and North America, BANK OF AFRICA has one of the leading banking groups in Africa, with nearly 2,000 branches. It serves 6.6 million customers worldwide and positions itself as a key economic bridge between Africa and the rest of the world.
TimesLIVE
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- TimesLIVE
The future of film: women win big at the Simon Sabela Awards
The 12th annual Simon Mabhunu Sabela KZN Film & Television Awards took the Durban International Convention Centre by storm on the weekend in a celebration of this year's winners in local film and television. Topping the winners list this year was Rethabile Ramaphakela's Disaster Holiday with four major awards. A surprise winner was newbie Dineo Nxumalo, the youngest of the teen and tween entrants, who won in the Newcomer Actress category. Both were proud of the progress being made by women in film, and said it was high time they got their dues. 'You always come to these things and you think maybe I'll get one,' said Ramaphakele, who walked away with wins for Best Pan African Film, Best Feature Film, Best Production Design, and Best Use of KZN as a Filming Location.
IOL News
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- IOL News
'Disaster Holiday' wins big at the 12th Simon Mabhunu Sabela Awards
The annual celebration took place at the Durban ICC under the theme 'Africa's Giants of Storytelling: From Piers to Pages', a fitting homage to a night steeped in heritage, creativity and excellence. Mzansi film and TV stars shone bright on Saturday, July 19, at the 12th Simon Mabhunu Sabela KZN Film and Television Awards. This year marked a milestone for the awards as they recognised talent across 25 competitive categories. Leading the pack of winners was the film "Disaster Holiday", produced by Rethabile Ramaphakela, which secured an impressive four accolades: Best Pan African Film, Best Feature Film, Best Production Design, and Best Use of KZN as a Filming Location. "Masinga the Calling" followed closely behind with three awards. Mbuso Khoza picked up Best Supporting Actor in a Film, while Mark Engels took home Best Director and Best Screenplay. Best Supporting Actress in a Film went to Zola Mhlongo, and Best Newcomer Actress to Dineo Nxumalo for the movie "Sent". On the TV front, Kwenzo Ngcobo clinched the Best Actor award for his performance in "Scandal", while Nqobile Magwaza was recognised as Best Actress for her work in "Smoke and Mirrors". Meanwhile, Best Actor and Actress in a Film went to Ntando Mncube for "Themba" and Sibongiseni Shezi for "Umjolo: The Gone Girl", respectively.
Zawya
18-07-2025
- Health
- Zawya
Merck Foundation CEO, Senator Dr. Rasha Kelej, emphasizes the transformative power of creativity in driving social change on the occasion of World Art Day 2025
Merck Foundation ( the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, marks 'World Art Day 2025' through their Pan African 'Art and Fashion with Purpose' Community, established by Senator Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation. Through this dynamic community, Dr. Kelej continues to raise awareness on critical health and social issues while empowering artists across Africa and beyond to use their creativity as a powerful tool for advocacy, education, and fostering a cultural shift within their communities. Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation and One of 100 Most Influential Africans 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 emphasized, 'I am delighted to mark 'World Art Day 2025' as I strongly believe that art, fashion, and media hold immense power in raising awareness and addressing critical social and health issues—ultimately creating a culture shift in the communities. Art and fashion, to me, go far beyond aesthetics or entertainment, they serve as meaningful tools for education and advocacy. With this vision, we have launched many initiatives including our first-ever pan-African TV program, Our Africa by Merck Foundation, which uniquely highlights pressing issues across the continent through the voices of our 'Fashion and Art with Purpose' community. Through this one-of-a-kind show and our other unique initiatives, we continue to raise awareness about critical social issues such as Breaking Infertility Stigma, Supporting Girl Education, Ending Child Marriage and Female Genital Mutilation, Stopping Gender-Based Violence, Women's Empowerment, and also about health issues like diabetes, hypertension, and much more.' 'Our Africa by Merck Foundation' is a pan African TV program that is conceptualized, produced, directed, and co-hosted by Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation to feature African Fashion Designers, Singers, and prominent experts from various domains with the aim to raise awareness and create a culture shift across Africa. The program has captured the attention and hearts of millions of viewers across Africa. The TV program has been broadcasted on prime TV stations of many countries like KTN HOME (Kenya), GH One&TV3 (Ghana), NTV (Uganda), BTV (Botswana) Mashariki TV (Burundi), QTV (The Gambia), KTN (Kenya), LNTV (Liberia), Mibawa TV (Malawi), Deffi Media (Mauritius), AYV (Sierra Leone), NTV (Uganda), ZNBC (Zambia), ZTN (Zimbabwe), NTV (Namibia) and more. 'Our Africa' TV Program is currently on social media handles of Social Media handles of Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej [Facebook ( Instagram ( Twitter ( and YouTube ( and Merck Foundation [Facebook ( Instagram ( Twitter ( and YouTube ( Watch the Promo of the Program here: Beyond Our Africa TV Program, Merck Foundation in partnership with The First Ladies of Africa announces annually 8 important Awards, under two themes, for Media, Fashion Designers, Filmmakers and Musicians/ Singers, and potential young African talents in these fields. The themes of the two categories of awards are: 1) Breaking Infertility Stigma, Support Girls' Education, End Child Marriage, End FGM, Stopping GBV and/ or Women Empowerment at all levels and 2) promote a healthy lifestyle and raise awareness about prevention and early detection of Diabetes and Hypertension. The 2025 editions were announced during the 11th edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary held in Tanzania in October 2024. Dr. Kelej emphasized, 'It is very well known that Africa's creativity reflects its rich heritage, expressed in the form of art, fabrics, music, and storytelling and is carried forward through generations. Hence, we launch these awards annually, with my dear sisters, the African First Ladies who are also the Ambassadors of Merck Foundation 'More Than a Mother'. Through our Awards, we aim to inspire the continent's youth to use their innate talents to address our important and critical social and health issues, by raising awareness through their creative work at all levels.' Entries for the Awards can be sent to: submit@ Also, as a part of the Community Awareness Programs, Merck Foundation has created over 30 songs with many African Artists, in English, French, Portuguese and also local African languages to address critical issues like breaking infertility stigma, empowering women, supporting girl education, ending child marriage, diabetes awareness, promoting a healthy lifestyle, and more. Merck Foundation in partnership with The First Ladies of Africa has also launched 8 Children's Storybooks in three languages: English, French and Portuguese. Additionally, Merck Foundation has adapted these storybooks to create interesting animation films with the purpose of reaching out to the communities to raise awareness on the important issues with an aim of instilling change at grassroot levels. To listen to the Merck Foundation songs, read Merck Foundation storybooks and watch Merck Foundation animation films, click on the below links: Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Merck Foundation. Contact: Mehak Handa Community Awareness Program Manager Phone: +91 9310087613/ +91 9319606669 Email: Join the conversation on our social media platforms below and let your voice be heard! Facebook: X: YouTube: Instagram: Threads: Flickr: Website: Download Merck Foundation App: About Merck Foundation: The Merck Foundation, established in 2017, is the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, aims to improve the health and wellbeing of people and advance their lives through science and technology. Our efforts are primarily focused on improving access to quality&equitable healthcare solutions in underserved communities, building healthcare&scientific research capacity, empowering girls in education and empowering people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) with a special focus on women and youth. All Merck Foundation press releases are distributed by e-mail at the same time they become available on the Merck Foundation Website. Please visit to read more. Follow the social media of Merck Foundation: Facebook ( X ( Instagram ( YouTube ( Threads ( and Flickr ( The Merck Foundation is dedicated to improving social and health outcomes for communities in need. While it collaborates with various partners, including governments to achieve its humanitarian goals, the foundation remains strictly neutral in political matters. It does not engage in or support any political activities, elections, or regimes, focusing solely on its mission to elevate humanity and enhance well-being while maintaining a strict non-political stance in all of its endeavors.
