Latest news with #digitalinclusion
Zawya
6 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
Hardy Pemhiwa, President and Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Cassava Technologies, ranked among the top 50 chief executives globally
Cassava Technologies ( a global technology leader of African heritage, is proud to announce that its President and Group Chief Executive Officer, Hardy Pemhiwa, has been recognised as one of the world's top 50 chief executives driving digital infrastructure transformation. This global honour highlights his leadership in advancing connectivity and digital inclusion across Africa. Compiled by The Tech Capital, a leading digital infrastructure intelligence platform, the inaugural CEO 50 ( list highlights outstanding leadership across areas such as data centres, fibre networks, towers, and edge computing. 'It is a privilege to be recognised alongside esteemed global peers in The Tech Capital 's CEO 50. This honour reflects the work being done by the entire Cassava Technologies team to advance Africa's digital future through inclusive, innovative, and locally led solutions. It reaffirms progress towards our vision of being the leading digital solutions provider in our chosen markets, and our commitment to transforming lives and accelerating social and economic development across the continent,' said Cassava Technologies' President and Group CEO, Hardy Pemhiwa. The comprehensive CEO 50 list, which showcases executives from both publicly traded corporations and privately held companies, is a testament to the diverse and exceptional leadership, innovation, and strategic vision driving the advancement of digital infrastructure finance, investment, and development. Hardy's inclusion in the CEO 50 list is a testament to Cassava Technologies' global impact and continued growth. The company's innovations in digital infrastructure, which include over 110,000 km of fibre that provides African users with world-class connectivity, Africa's largest network of carrier- and cloud-neutral data centre facilities, and the continent's first NVIDIA-powered AI factory, are empowering communities, organisations, and individuals on their digital transformation journeys. This recognition not only honours his leadership but also reassures all Cassava employees of the strong and visionary leadership at the company's helm. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Cassava Technologies. About Cassava Technologies: Cassava Technologies is a technology leader providing a vertically integrated ecosystem of digital services and infrastructure enabling digital transformation. Through its business units, namely, Liquid Intelligent Technologies, Liquid C2, Africa Data Centres, Distributed Power Africa, Sasai Fintech, Cassava has operations across key growth markets like Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and the United States of America. Cassava provides its customers in 94 countries with offerings that will help them grow, transform, and expand their operations.
The Guardian
23-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
New rules will radically change the way we use the internet in Australia – and not just social media
The way we use the internet in Australia is changing. Soon, it won't just be social media platforms asking to verify your age. Come December, age verification requirements will also extend to search engines – with significant ramifications. That means you may need to scan your face or do an identity check to use a search engine as a logged-in user. And it's unlikely to stop there: the eSafety commissioner is considering rules for mandatory age checks across the entire internet landscape. Whether or not you support the idea of age-gating the internet, this is a huge, unprecedented change. These are not small decisions; they will impact everyone who uses the internet in Australia – not just people under 16. There are implications for privacy, digital inclusion, access to information and online participation that go beyond the controversial teen social media ban. All of this warrants meaningful public debate. If this is the first time you're hearing about it, you're not alone. Despite the significance of the changes, these latest rules are the result of industry codes, which differs to regular legislation. These codes don't go through parliament. Instead, they're developed by the tech industry and registered by the eSafety commissioner in a process called co-regulation. On one hand, this can be good: it can allow for more flexibility or technology-specific detail that is less appropriate in legislation. On the other: it creates risk of industry co-option, and by bypassing parliamentary process, can give an enormous amount of power to an unelected official (in this case, the eSafety commissioner). Greens senator David Shoebridge has called the implications of age verification for search engines 'staggering' and noted that 'these proposals don't have to go through an elected parliament and we can't vote them down no matter how significant concerns are. That combined with lack of public input is a serious issue.' The age verification policy development process has been littered with blunders that make a mockery of meaningful consultation and evidence-based policy development. It is particularly striking that these codes were drafted before the completion of the government's $6.5m trial into the efficacy of age assurance. Later, the trial's preliminary findings conceded the technology is not guaranteed to be effective, and noted 'concerning evidence' that some technology providers were seeking to collect too much personal information. While a government-commissioned survey on the teen social media ban found overwhelming support in theory, it also found most people have no idea what that means in practice, with many uncomfortable with the methods it might entail – such as biometric face scanning or handing over your credit card details. And while there was much fanfare around the social media ban, it's not clear there is a social licence to extend this approach to search engines and beyond. It seems many people may be unpleasantly surprised. Importantly, it's not just about verifying age, but what happens after that. Assuming a person's age is accurately verified (this is not a given – research shows it's fraught with problems), then comes the challenge of identifying and filtering out content. The intention is to limit young people's access to pornography, high-impact violence and other inappropriate but not illegal material. It may seem like a simple task – you probably have your own gut sense of what should be filtered out. But automating content moderation at scale is a notoriously complex task both technologically (how do you avoid accidentally capturing too much or too little?) and politically (who gets to decide what is or is not appropriate?). Some digital media scholars have called the idea of using tech to restrict online content by age 'problematic'. In particular, they highlight how automated content moderation often incorrectly restricts sex education, sexual health information, harm reduction and health promotion. This also challenges digital inclusion. For some, digital identification can be a major barrier to online participation. Digital rights advocate and technologist Kathryn Gledhill-Tucker highlights that search engines are not an 'optional luxury' but have 'become basic services in a digital world'. Taken together, there are serious questions about the impact these codes will have on people's right to access information – questions that ideally would be addressed through public scrutiny. None of this is to say the Australian government should do nothing. Nor is it to defend the behaviour of tech giants. Governments can and should intervene to challenge their power and force them to clean up the swamp of online harms. But age verification isn't the only option on the table. Academics, advocates and digital policy experts have suggested a range of other approaches to enhance online safety. Gledhill-Tucker notes a 'profound disregard for human rights advocates, who have called for meaningful legislation to temper the power of large technology companies for years'. For example, Australia could move away from the current 'content-first' approach, which becomes a game of whack-a-mole of removal and restriction, towards a 'systems-first' paradigm, which prioritises challenging the underlying business models to create systemic change. Australians are going to have differing opinions about how best to minimise harms on the internet, but we should at least all have the opportunity to participate in meaningful public debate about such significant changes to our online lives. In this case, it seems the horse has already bolted. Samantha Floreani is a digital rights advocate and writer based in Melbourne/Naarm
Zawya
21-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
South Africa: Community Wifi, MVNO and the rise of hybrid communications providers
SA Connect is the South African government's national broadband policy and strategy. This framework aims to deliver universal, affordable internet access to all citizens. Launched in 2013, the initiative seeks to connect government institutions, schools, healthcare facilities, and underserved communities to fast and reliable internet. As part of the programme, the government aims to deliver full broadband coverage by 2030, ensuring that every South African, regardless of location, can participate in the digital economy. But as the government works on longer-term broadband infrastructure projects, like SA Connect, there is a significant opportunity for ISPs to fill these connectivity gaps. Introducing the hybrid carriers In the past, a company might specialise in offering fibre networks, and that's the only field they played in. But this has changed. To compete, you need to expand your offerings. This trend is driving the rise of hybrid carriers; service providers that find other ways to connect communities. Hybrid carriers and ISPs are companies that combine multiple connectivity technologies or service models to deliver internet access more efficiently and affordably, especially in areas where a single approach falls short. These hybrid players are usually smaller than the more traditional telcos, and they're able to succeed by servicing the more isolated and underserved communities. They're typically more agile and can deploy modern connectivity solutions at pace. This agility also allows them to experiment with innovative service models that might be unfavourable to larger, more traditional providers. Fibre companies like those mentioned above face multiple obstacles in deploying new infrastructure to remote township communities, such as obtaining demand and intent confirmation and securing municipal approval. The time and cost associated with digging or erecting fibre lines is another barrier. Couple this with the reality that many of these communities are unbanked and have constrained disposable income, which limits their ability to sign on for debit payments and what they can afford to spend on data or subscriptions. Additionally, smaller user bases and lower ARPU (average revenue per user) mean that the financial return on these infrastructure investments is typically far lower. The business case for Community Wifi Underserved South African communities alone represent R26 billion in annual spending power, much of which remains disconnected from digital commerce and services. Across these underserved areas, community Wifi has the potential to empower people by allowing them to connect to the Internet. In action, a Community Wifi model will see subscribers buying prepaid vouchers that they can use to get online at different Wifi hotspots across their community, be it their local supermarket or the cafè down the road. For a small fee of around R5 or R10, community members can access the Internet for a day as they move about connecting to different hotspots across their community. For a fibre operator, offering this additional service makes good business sense because the average person might not be able to afford their fibre services, but can afford to connect for a small daily fee. Now, this single fibre point might be servicing a few hundred people, and that small daily fee equates to a positive return on investment. In this way, they're able to make money where fibre isn't a good fit, while also driving digital inclusion because the solution is more affordable. In addition to fixed and hotspot coverage, hybrid carriers also represent the next frontier in MVNO growth, with many ISPs leveraging their existing presence in underserved communities to roll out mobile services. This omni-service approach ensures that providers are able to service their customers at home, at their destination and anywhere in between. While expanding your service offerings opens up new business opportunities, it can also increase billing complexity. Many OSS (Operational Support System) / BSS (Business Support System) vendors offer billing software that caters to a specific type of billing, but few are equipped to meet the complex and evolving needs of hybrid carriers. To scale effectively, hybrid telcos need flexible, integrated billing systems that can support their growing needs and cater to multiple disparate services, like mobile (MVNO), fixed line, fixed wireless and fibre, as well as the voucher inventory, distribution and redemption requirements associated with community WiFi or prepaid mobile. Across our portfolio of products and services, VAS-X remains committed to supporting providers looking to bridge the digital divide with capable and cost effective solutions..
The Herald
13-07-2025
- General
- The Herald
'Now I can do it myself': Gogos learn to use smartphones in 'Gogos with Vuma' digital skills training programme
In a step towards digital inclusion, 49 elderly residents from Katlehong graduated on Friday from a digital skills training programme aimed at empowering senior citizens with essential tech knowledge. Hosted by VumaTel in partnership with goGOGOgo (NPC) at Matsediso Primary School in Katlehong on the East Rand, the programme equipped the participants, many of whom had little or no prior experience with technology, with vital digital skills. It covered fundamental skills such as using smartphones, navigating the internet, sending emails, using social media, accessing online services and practising digital safety. One of the graduates, Phinet Lekau, 88, speaking at the graduation ceremony, said he was grateful to have been part of the course as he now knew how to use the internet, order supplies from shops and speak to his friends with ease. 'I knew nothing about the internet before this course. My grandchildren would simply call me holding the phone, telling me what to do. But this course has opened my eyes. I can now do all of those things on my own,' said Lekau. Agnes Letsoge, 82, said she can now use her smartphone. 'I am very happy to have been part of this programme, because the phone was being used by my grandchildren and they would constantly finish my money and airtime. Since I've been taught how to use it by myself, I can finally enjoy my pension money,' Letsoge said. Before doing the course she couldn't even load airtime, she said. 'Now I can do it myself, they can no longer rob me,' she said. Vumatel CSI co-ordinator Thando Mokoena said with most NGOs focusing on the youth and children, they identified a gap for training for the elderly. 'We know that almost 40% of children in South Africa are living with grandparents. We want to revive that thing that they are still here, we still care and we see that they matter. The course we put them through is a standard ICT course, learning how to browse the internet, and how to use a smartphone, as most of them used or knew how to use small phones,' Mokoena said. The programme, which was part of Vumatel's ongoing commitment to community upliftment and digital inclusion, also fostered intergenerational learning, with younger facilitators helping to mentor the elderly participants throughout their training. Jane Simmonds, founder and executive director for goGOGOgo (NPC), an NGO aimed at building capacity in elderly people raising grandchildren, Simmonds explained that with 9.7-million children in South Africa essentially living in multigenerational households with grandparents playing an important part in their upbringing, the organisation is working to strengthen the role of the older people to build their footprint and amplify their voices. This is to ultimately give them knowledge, information and modern-day practices to navigate raising children in the digital age. 'Many of these older people are also raising fourth generation, so they raise their children, their grandchildren and are now looking after their great-grandchildren. We are working at strengthening the role of these women and men, building their footprint, their voice, amplifying their voices, giving the knowledge, information about modern-day practices. When raising children with internet and wi-fi, social media, violence, GBV, so many things that these elderly people have to address when raising children. We provide programmes where we strengthen the role of grandparents raising grandchildren and recognise the importance of this vulnerable, marginalised, often excluded population of people who are the heroes of South Africa,' she said. Simmonds said the initiative, which started during the Covid-19 lockdown, has funded more than 10 programmes with about 400 beneficiaries. She said the grandparents are identified through local schools and organisations. TimesLIVE
Zawya
12-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Orange Jordan continues empowering persons with disabilities
Orange Jordan continues to strengthen its pioneering role in empowering persons with disabilities and enhancing their digital and social inclusion through its umbrella of solutions and initiatives, "Differently Abled, Definitely Enabled." As part of this commitment, Orange Jordan supported a specialized training titled "The Art of Dialogue Management," organized by Al-Ataa Club Sport for the Blind at the Orange Digital Village, with the participation of more than 20 persons with visual disabilities. The training focused on deepening participants' understanding of the rights of persons with disabilities, with a particular emphasis on visual impairment. It also aimed to raise awareness around psychological and social challenges, encourage the use of positive and inclusive language, and promote a culture of constructive and open dialogue. By fostering collaboration and mutual support, the program helped reinforce the values of equality and social justice among participants. The training aimed to enhance participants' understanding of the rights of persons with disabilities, especially those with visual impairments. It also focused on raising awareness of the psychological and social impacts, empowering them to use positive and inclusive language, and promoting a culture of constructive dialogue. Additionally, the training emphasized fostering a spirit of cooperation and mutual support, contributing to strengthening values of equality and social justice. The training also included developing digital awareness campaigns and programs. In addition, 20% of the participants were selected to help create podcast content in collaboration with specialized producers, aiming to deliver their messages in innovative and impactful ways. Through supporting this initiative, Orange Jordan reaffirmed its ongoing commitment to promoting digital inclusion and providing equal opportunities for all. The company emphasized its belief that empowering persons with disabilities strengthens the values of equality and tolerance, contributing to building a more inclusive and just society. It is worth noting that through its diverse initiatives and programs, Orange Jordan continues to solidify its position as a leading, responsible digital provider and a key supporter of community development. The company reaffirms its commitment to supporting and empowering persons with disabilities, providing them with opportunities for active participation and enabling them to realize their full potential within society. To learn more, please visit our website: About Orange Jordan Orange Jordan, with over 1800 employees across nearly 300 shops and locations throughout Jordan, strives to provide the best customer experience through an integrated set of digital solutions including fixed lines, mobile lines, internet, data, and Smart Life Solutions to around 4.6 million customers in Jordan. Orange Jordan is a subsidiary of Orange Global Group, which is present in 26 countries worldwide. In line with the Group's strategy 'Lead the Future' and through its positioning as a true responsible digital leader, Orange Jordan supports the national digital transformation vision. Orange Jordan prioritizes community service, and in this context, it implements a comprehensive CSR strategy that revolves around 4 pillars including digital education, digital inclusion, entrepreneurship, climate, and environment. In addition to serving individual customers, Orange Jordan offers tailored solutions for businesses through its sub-brand, (Orange Business). To learn more, please visit our website: About Orange Orange is one of the world's leading telecommunications operators with revenues of 40.3 billion euros in 2024 and 127,000 employees worldwide at 31 December 2024, including 71,000 employees in France. The Group has a total customer base of 291 million customers worldwide at 31 December 2024, including 253 million mobile customers and 22 million fixed broadband customers. These figures account for the deconsolidation of certain activities in Spain following the creation of MASORANGE. The Group is present in 26 countries (including non-consolidated countries). Orange is also a leading provider of global IT and telecommunication services to multinational companies under the brand Orange Business. In February 2023, the Group presented its strategic plan "Lead the Future", built on a new business model and guided by responsibility and efficiency. "Lead the Future" capitalizes on network excellence to reinforce Orange's leadership in service quality.
