Real-time stock price for African farmers: a case study of connected agriculture with M-Farm in Kenya
M-Farm is a startup which connects and empowers agriculture farmers with financial information. There are three reasons why we are showcasing them. Firstly, we’re not focusing only on web technologies during our world tour of innovation. We’ve tried to showcase stories about universities in the UK and healthcare in Iran to cover a diverse array of exciting innovations. Secondly, we’re in Kenya, a country […]
A exploration of startups and innovation in Kenya with Mbwana Alliy
As you may know, we were in Kenya to attend Afrikoin, a conference on mobile money, and to continue our exploration of innovation ecosystems. How are countries and cities pivoting towards entrepreneurship? What are the fundamentals and best local practices used as they try to build and nurture communities of innovations? After Afrikoin, we had […]
Malaysia as a Startup Hub! What are the next steps?
For a young country, Malaysia has quite an extensive history of building its own innovation ecosystem. It opened its Multimedia Super Corridor back in 1997. The time has now arrived – and it also has for neighboring Singapore – to scale to greater heights. The aim: to have significant and successful startups so that people can associate a global brand with […]
What MPesa has done right and where it is headed
During Afrikoin, the first mobile money and digital currency conference held in Nairobi, I met with Brian Muthiora. Brian joined the local branch of GSMA, the global association for mobile operators, after 5 years at Safaricom handling the regulation issues for MPesa, the mobile money system designed by the Kenyan telco. Over an hour, I had the chance to hear about […]
Cultural awareness and innovation: the challenges facing startups as they go global
To continue our exploration of Kenya as an innovation ecosystem on the fringes of Afrikoin, I met with Samuel Gichuru from the Nailab incubator. A fast-paced and energetic conversation proved helpful in pinpointing a key challenge entrepreneurs face: the management of cultural differences. Kenya is the kingdom of mobile money (the MPesa system), but it is an isolated one. No other country is using mobile money […]
Bitcoins explained at Afrikoin, Nairobi
While the hype around Bitcoin grows stronger everyday, the conference on mobile money at Afrikoin in Nairobi and a discussion with a few startups in the crypto-currency business has helped to debunk what Bitcoin is, and isn’t. In our exploration we’ve listened to and chatted with: Pelle Braendgaard, who has worked in cryptography related businesses for 9 years and is now heading Kipochi, an […]
Somali diaspora and mobile money: a research on hawala presented at Afrikoin
After a few panels and talks on mobile money at Afrikoin, we had the opportunity to listen to Gianluca Iazzolino, a researcher from the University of Edinburgh. Gianluca studies the way Somali people deal with mobile money, particular as a people who are constantly moving – whether as refugees or traders of gold and other goods that can be exchanged […]
How will technology and Bitcoins disrupt the remittance market? Discussion with African startups at Afrikoin
Talking about mobile money at the Afrikoin conference in Nairobi cannot be done without tackling the hot topic of remittances. The African diaspora sends $60bn/year back to their families and friends back in their respective countries, with Kenya accounting for $1.1bn. Remittances are a hot topic for four reasons: Remittance fees (12%) are higher in Africa than in any other continent (the global average is 8% and […]
Helping African merchants to accept mobile money: an Afrikoin discussion on education to new currencies for businesses
Several online payment providers from East Africa attending Afrikoin discussed another hurdle/opportunity in the mobile money field. If customers seem to enjoy MPesa as way to send and receive money, merchants need another approach to be educated and convinced to join the mobile money movement. Customer considerations when adopting mobile money Another great panel at Afrikoin gathered entrepreneurs […]
Big data in Africa: how an insurance company provides an optimized cover for farmers in Kenya
If you don’t have data on your business, how are you going to run it? Well, more likely than not, you’re going to use HIPPO, says Joel Macharia, founder of Abacus, a provider of data solutions for businesses. HIPPO stands for the « HIghest Paid Person’s Opinion », and this is not the lead you want to follow. Joel showed us […]
