Village Telco: Rural Voice Services Business Model

Village Telco: Rural Voice Services Business Model

Published on: Oct 15 2009 by Wayan Vota - Comments Off on Village Telco: Rural Voice Services Business Model
tweetmeme_source = 'ICT_works'; Mobile phones seem to be ubiquitous in the developing world, until you leave the main population centers. Then service drops off fast, and rural residents are left to walk miles to get...
Will Silicon Cape Create African Entrepreneurship?

Will Silicon Cape Create African Entrepreneurship?

Published on: Oct 13 2009 by Wayan Vota - Comments Off on Will Silicon Cape Create African Entrepreneurship?
At the beginning of 2009, Vinny Lingham put forth the idea of a Silicon Cape – an effort to recreate the success of Silicon Valley by removing the barriers major barriers to South African technology companies: Silicon...
Google & Paypal Leaving Cash on the Table: ePayment Business Opportunity in Africa

Google & Paypal Leaving Cash on the Table: ePayment Business Opportunity in Africa

Published on: Oct 07 2009 by Wayan Vota - 5 Comments
tweetmeme_source = 'ICT_works'; Were you excited to hear that Google now has location-aware AdWords for Kenya and South Africa? I was overjoyed that Google is paying closer attention to African consumers and content producers,...
Broadband Beats Mobile Phones in Boosting GDP

Broadband Beats Mobile Phones in Boosting GDP

Published on: Oct 06 2009 by Wayan Vota - 2 Comments
Mobile phones are a ticket out of poverty for millions. No argument there. But check out this global ICT study by Christine Zhen-Wei Qiang, an economist at the World Bank for a surprising comparison with broadband Internet. She...
What Low-Cost ICT Devices Exist for Africa?

What Low-Cost ICT Devices Exist for Africa?

Published on: Oct 03 2009 by Wayan Vota - Comments Off on What Low-Cost ICT Devices Exist for Africa?
tweetmeme_source = 'ICT_works'; Back before there was One Laptop Per Child and the netbooks it spawned, we had to hunt for information on ICT projects. Finding low-cost devices or the initiatives behind them was a challenge...
Are ICTs an Effective Alternative to Aid?

Are ICTs an Effective Alternative to Aid?

Published on: Oct 01 2009 by Wayan Vota - 1 Comment
With Dambisa Moyo sounding off in Wired magazine that we should Cut Off Aid to Africa, that is favor investment over grants to government, its time we ask ourselves if information and communication technologies are a help...
Ubuntu on Asus Eeetop

Ubuntu on Asus Eeetop

Published on: Sep 29 2009 by Wayan Vota - Comments Off on Ubuntu on Asus Eeetop
Summary We are always looking for the latest in low-powered devices and one that caught our eye recently was a touchscreen from Asus, the EeeTop.
In Economic Downturn, African ICT Heats Up

In Economic Downturn, African ICT Heats Up

Published on: Sep 28 2009 by Wayan Vota - Comments Off on In Economic Downturn, African ICT Heats Up
While the Great Recession may be shrinking the appetite for business risk in the developed world, I was struck by the long list of African technology startups compiled by TechMasai. Even better are the comments, where readers...
Zap and M-PESA: Kenyan eCommerce Advantage

Zap and M-PESA: Kenyan eCommerce Advantage

Published on: Sep 25 2009 by Wayan Vota - Comments Off on Zap and M-PESA: Kenyan eCommerce Advantage
In my interview with Rachel Essendi, founder of the eCommerce marketplace, Rachel’s Bargain Corner, she mentioned an interesting advantage that she felt differenced her site in Kenya. None of the other shopping sites...