Welcome to another edition of the Big 5 Daily.
Still in the spirit of celebrating women, tech companies around the world have been bringing up initiatives to empower women in the sector. On that note, we bring to you the first big news on the Big 5.
We have news that, Gebeya and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), through the Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative (We-Fi) signed a $500,000 advisory service agreement to implement the Digital-Gender Program. It aims to grow the number of female software developers in Ethiopia and will train over 250 female software developers. The entrepreneurs will also receive business development and strategic guidance from Gebeya and advisory services from IFC worth $50,000.
There is also news that, the International community of female entrepreneurs Future Females, in partnership with UK-SA Tech Hub is set to train 50 early-stage tech entrepreneurs in the Future Business School Program. The women will be aspiring or current entrepreneurs who reside in South Africa who are working on an innovative idea that has the potential to make an impact. Selected applicants will be invited to a one-on-one consultation with a program team member. Interested? Click here
See also: Visa Opens Up Global Competition for Women Entrepreneurs, MTN Set to Launch Chat Platform and More
Moving on, the Orange Social Venture Prize throws open the door for submission. This prize aims to promote social innovation by supporting development through information and communication technology. In addition to funding of up to £25,000 euros, Orange will provide six months support to the 3 finalists from business and telecom professionals. Apart from funding, the winners will also be provided with customized digital mentoring and advice by Orange experts. Application is open from 4th March – 30th May, 2019. Interested? Apply here
Next on the Big 5, Google has launched “Womenwill”, an initiative aimed at creating economic opportunities for South African, Kenyan and Nigerian women by equipping them with digital literacy, entrepreneurship and leadership skills. The initiative also aims to drive conversations promoting gender equality to benefit everyone. The initiative was announced at Google’s International Women’s Day celebration and we are very excited to hear more!
Finally on the Big 5, One Finance Nigeria has announced that it recently secured a $5million internationally-backed debt facility, for Paylater. This facility from New York and Nairobi-based Lendable, will be used to deploy more loans to Paylater customers through a suite of innovative new products. Lendable is a technology enabled funds provider for African consumers and SME lender.
And that’s it for the Big 5 Daily. Till tomorrow!