Happy Midweek Guys!
It’s another brand new edition of the Big 5 Daily, where we bring you the compilation of the biggest news in the tech ecosystem.
Have a fun read!
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology will be hosting the fourth edition of its Inclusive Innovation Challenge ‘IIC’ in Africa for the first time in partnership with Liquid Telecom. The challenge, which is an initiative of MIT Initiative in Digital Economy aims to support entrepreneurs by rewarding their solution driven innovative technology. Entrepreneurs across the world will be awarded at the end of the program, with up to $1.6 million up for grabs. Registration ends on the 9th of May, regional winners will be announced on the 23rd of July and the Global Grand Prize will be awarded on the 21st of November 2019. Interested? Apply here
Moving on, the Katapult Future Fest 2019, a 3-day event that explores how exponential technologies, consciousness and impact investing can build a thriving society for the world, will feature Nigerian Digital Content Company, Publiseer in Oslo, Norway. The event that will run through 14th-16th of May 2019, will grant Publiseer access to; stage time, feature on all KFF’s media channels and networks and partake in investor matchmaking program that will connect them with other entrepreneurs and industry experts.
Have you heard? Samsung has postponed the release of its Galaxy Fold indefinitely. This is due to controversies surrounding its flexible display as the samples that were sent to reviewers suffered broken screens. This was caused by the impact on the top and bottom exposed area of the hinge and also, substances found inside the device were said to be affecting the displayed performance. Samsung has however made a move to retrieve all sample, so as to take active measures in strengthening the display. Our fingers are crossed!
Big news! The World Bank has made move to invest up to $200 million in support of job creation for Youths and Women in Egypt. Tagged ‘Catalyzing Entrepreneurship for Job Creation’ project, the World Bank will grant youths and women led startups access to funds and coaching opportunities. This project will aim at women and youth-led businesses, first-time borrowers, and small business in rural regions in Egypt. $145 million will be channeled by non-bank financial institutions offering loans to small businesses while the remaining $50 million will be invested in privately managed risk capital intermediaries. Great initiative!
Finally, the government of South Africa has finally responded with a bill as regards the call for regulation by the Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa (FEDHASA). By releasing a Tourism Amendment Bill to regulate “short-term home rentals” under the South African Tourism Act. The Minister of Tourism will regulate the number of nights that a guest can stay and how much income an Airbnb host will earn. The department of Tourism will also be in charge of zoning the different local governments and will also determine the location of Airbnb in South Africa.
That’s it for today’s edition of the Big 5 Daily!
Hope you are intrigued?
Thanks for joining!