Africa – Karma https://karmaimpact.com Advancing people, planet and profit. Thu, 30 Jul 2020 02:10:41 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.3.2 Actis Profits From Building Green While Bringing Power to Millions /actis-profits-from-building-green-while-bringing-power-to-millions/ /actis-profits-from-building-green-while-bringing-power-to-millions/#respond Thu, 30 Jul 2020 10:00:00 +0000 /?p=17299 Actis is finding profits developing a green shopping mall and bringing power to millions in Cameroon, something it’s repeating throughout Africa, Asia and Latin America. Actis has invested in renewable energy projects — in countries including Mexico, India, Senegal and South Africa — that provide clean, low-cost power to millions of people. Spun off from […]

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]]> /actis-profits-from-building-green-while-bringing-power-to-millions/feed/ 0 Africa Needs to Regain Momentum on Electrification Effort, Says IEA /africa-needs-to-regain-momentum-on-electrification-effort-says-iea/ /africa-needs-to-regain-momentum-on-electrification-effort-says-iea/#respond Wed, 01 Jul 2020 10:00:00 +0000 /?p=16784 Faith Birol, the executive director for the International Energy Agency, said Africa needs to find ways to battle the COVID-19 pandemic while continuing to extend access to energy to its population.  About 600 million people on the continent lack access to reliable power, according to the World Bank, and the outbreak has delayed new infrastructure, […]

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]]> /africa-needs-to-regain-momentum-on-electrification-effort-says-iea/feed/ 0 Mastercard Foundation Aids COVID-19 Relief Effort, Bolsters African Businesses /mastercard-foundation-aids-covid-19-relief-effort-bolsters-african-businesses/ /mastercard-foundation-aids-covid-19-relief-effort-bolsters-african-businesses/#respond Thu, 25 Jun 2020 10:00:00 +0000 /?p=16562 Mastercard Foundation is aiding the medical effort against COVID-19 in Africa and elsewhere, while supporting entrepreneurs that have been hammered by the lockdowns during the pandemic. The foundation, started in 2006 with a gift of shares from MasterCard Inc. shareholders, aims to inject up to $1 billion into Africa’s agriculture sector. Africa is home to […]

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]]> /mastercard-foundation-aids-covid-19-relief-effort-bolsters-african-businesses/feed/ 0 COVID-19 May Wipe Out Decades of African Economic Progress /covid-19-may-wipe-out-decades-of-progress-in-africa/ /covid-19-may-wipe-out-decades-of-progress-in-africa/#respond Fri, 03 Apr 2020 10:00:02 +0000 /?p=15453 COVID-19 may reverse economic progress made by African nations. Investments in Africa are likely to suffer as economies plunge into recession. Early-stage startups are particularly vulnerable as funding dries up. Africa may suffer long-term consequences due to undeveloped health systems, poor access to medical supplies, underdeveloped infrastructure and high unemployment. While COVID-19’s spread has been relatively […]

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]]> /covid-19-may-wipe-out-decades-of-progress-in-africa/feed/ 0 Dark Side of Microloans: Poor Kenyans Defaulting Under Sky-High Rates, Report Says /dark-side-of-microloans-poor-kenyans-defaulting-under-sky-high-rates-report-says/ /dark-side-of-microloans-poor-kenyans-defaulting-under-sky-high-rates-report-says/#respond Thu, 13 Feb 2020 23:12:16 +0000 /?p=14894 The dark side of making microloans to the poor is on display in Kenya, where small borrowers are defaulting on loans from Tala, a U.S. fintech firm that claims to lift customers with a dream out of poverty, Bloomberg Businessweek reported. Tala makes loans of $10 to $500 using a smartphone app that instantly offers […]

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]]> /dark-side-of-microloans-poor-kenyans-defaulting-under-sky-high-rates-report-says/feed/ 0 African Startups Raise Record Amounts as Fintech Draws More Investors /african-startups-raise-record-amounts-as-fintech-draws-more-investors/ /african-startups-raise-record-amounts-as-fintech-draws-more-investors/#respond Thu, 09 Jan 2020 21:44:20 +0000 /?p=14515 Africa’s swift adoption of new technologies is making it one of the world’s fastest-growing tech hubs.  Venture capitalists spent a record $1.3 billion in the continent last year, more than six-fold from five years ago, WeeTracker’s annual funding report shows.  African startups also broke fundraising records, registering ever higher capital amounts. Nineteen startups raised more […]

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]]> /african-startups-raise-record-amounts-as-fintech-draws-more-investors/feed/ 0 ‘Crucible for Innovation’: Why Jack Dorsey Is Planning on Spending Quality Time in Africa in 2020 /crucible-for-innovation-why-jack-dorsey-is-planning-on-spending-quality-time-in-africa-in-2020/ /crucible-for-innovation-why-jack-dorsey-is-planning-on-spending-quality-time-in-africa-in-2020/#respond Mon, 09 Dec 2019 16:54:00 +0000 /?p=14174 When Jack Dorsey, CEO of social media giant Twitter and mobile payments company Square, announced he’ll be spending up to half a year in Africa on Nov. 27, a chorus of criticism erupted calling his move “ill-advised.”  Scott Galloway, Twitter shareholder and New York University marketing professor, even wrote a letter to the board calling […]

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]]> /crucible-for-innovation-why-jack-dorsey-is-planning-on-spending-quality-time-in-africa-in-2020/feed/ 0 Nigeria’s Central Bank, in Bid to Help Nation’s Underbanked, Takes Measure to Boost Payment Firms /nigerias-central-bank-in-bid-to-help-nations-underbanked-takes-measure-to-boost-payment-firms/ /nigerias-central-bank-in-bid-to-help-nations-underbanked-takes-measure-to-boost-payment-firms/#respond Tue, 03 Dec 2019 21:26:22 +0000 /?p=14006 Nigeria’s central bank is planning to issue licenses to more payment providers, aiming to “improve the country’s financial-inclusion rate to 80% by the end of next year from about 60%,” Bloomberg reports. Central Bank of Nigeria Governor Godwin Emefiele spoke in Abuja last week, promising the new licenses “will help support innovation and competition as […]

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]]> /nigerias-central-bank-in-bid-to-help-nations-underbanked-takes-measure-to-boost-payment-firms/feed/ 0 Nigeria’s OPay Raised $120M: Chinese Investors Entering Africa’s Budding Fintech Sector /nigerias-opay-raised-120m-chinese-investors-entering-africas-budding-fintech-sector/ /nigerias-opay-raised-120m-chinese-investors-entering-africas-budding-fintech-sector/#respond Tue, 19 Nov 2019 13:00:01 +0000 /?p=13797 Nigerian fintech company OPay, provider of micro-loans and investment services on mobile phones, raised $120 million in series B Monday, aiming to deliver financial inclusion to Africa’s unbanked and expand into other African countries.  Founded in 2018, the Lago-based company aspires to be a one-stop mobile platform for payment, transportation and food delivery for Africa’s […]

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]]> /nigerias-opay-raised-120m-chinese-investors-entering-africas-budding-fintech-sector/feed/ 0 Electrifying Africa: Is the $450 Billion Challenge Too Big For Startups to Tackle? /electrifying-africa-is-the-450-billion-challenge-too-big-for-startups-to-tackle/ /electrifying-africa-is-the-450-billion-challenge-too-big-for-startups-to-tackle/#respond Fri, 15 Nov 2019 20:27:55 +0000 /?p=13767 Even as startup investment in Africa continues to grow — more than $700 million in venture capital is expected to flow in this year— the continent’s energy needs remain a $450 billion challenge. Nearly 600 million Africans, most of them in Sub-Saharan Africa, lack access to electricity, according to a report released this week by […]

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