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Rwanda plans to issue digital ID cards in three years

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The Rwandan government has set plans in motion to start issuing digital identification cards for its citizens within three years, the Minister of ICT and Innovation, Paula Ingabire
said on Monday while addressing the country’s members of parliament.

Ms Ingabire stressed that the digital cards would allow residents to use such identification documents stored in their phones, and replace the current physical cards.

She told the lawmakers that the government had already signed a financing agreement with the World Bank for the execution of the digital ID system which is estimated at $40 million.

She added, however, that the disbursement of the funds would be done after the law has been enacted to pave the way for the project implementation.

She stated that the World Bank-funded project was for five years, but that one year had elapsed so far, which means that the remaining period amounting to four years must be used to make the project come to fruition.

She said the uniqueness of the digital cards meant that biometrics would be collected even from children from age five years, compared to the 16 years required for the regular means of identification.

“Currently, when a child is born, they are given an identification number, and they are allowed to get an ID card when they turn 16. But, with this move, she/he will get an ID card immediately after birth,” she said.

“If we look at the biometric data, only fingerprints were collected. Now, in order to ease the process, we will be collecting biometrics in different ways in order to facilitate the authentication and verification for people who want to deliver services,” she added.

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Orange Egypt earmarks $52.7m to support African startups

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Orange Egypt has earmarked the sum of $52.7 million to support African startups in what is going to be the largest investment to drive a youth-focused tech revolution.

According to the company, the mammoth investment will see over 40 startups benefitting from the funds, with most of them being Egyptian companies.

‘It’s a boost for Egypt’s growing entrepreneurial ecosystem and a step closer to cementing its spot as a top startup hub in Africa,” the company said in a statement.

The investment is coming on the heels of the telco signing a deal with the Egyptian government to roll out the second phase of its 5G licensing.

The statement noted that with Egypt’s startup game already strong and ranking as the third most funded country in the MENA region, “the numbers speak for themselves.”

“In 2022, Egyptian startups closed 143 funding deals worth nearly $766.7 million, outpacing the $606.79 million raised the year before.

“Plus over 2,100 startups employing more than 50,000 people, the country’s ecosystem is one of the top 10 emerging startup hubs globally.

“The Egyptian government is all in on this. And since launching initiatives like Egypt Ventures in 2017, they’ve been backing startups to drive innovation and growth in the tech space.

Orange Egypt’s latest move only adds fuel to this already blazing fire, paving the way for more opportunities and a stronger startup culture across Africa,” it added.

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10 African startups selected for final of Latitude59 pitch competition

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Ten African startups have been selected for the final round of the Latitude59 pitch competition which will see the winner qualify to pitch at the main event in Tallinn, Estonia, with the chance of winning the grand prize $1.1 million.

The Latitude59 pitch competition which is in 12th edition, is Estonia’s flagship startup and tech event and attracted over 3,500 attendees, including more than 900 startup representatives and nearly 600 investors when it was hosted in Tallinn in May.

According to the organizers,
Latitude59 is seeking early-stage startups from across Africa to compete for the chance to pitch at the next edition of its pitch competition, which will take place at next year’s edition of the event.

The event organizers said a total of 382 applications were received from 37 African countries, with the top 10 now selected and will pitch at an event in Kenya on November 28, where the African winner will be chosen.

Eight of the selected ventures are Kenyan and include Eco Nasi, which transforms pineapple pulp waste into high-quality vegan leather.

Others are Grekkon, a platform which scales up moisture sensors for smallholder farmers; NoMa, a tech platform that digitises school transportation; and Paycloud, which is building a neobank to help MSMEs in Africa to pay, get paid, and access credit through payment aggregation.

The other selected Kenyan ventures are Roadrims, which provides reliable, efficient, and cost-effective logistics; Twiva, a social commerce platform; VunaPay, which provides instant payments to farmers; and Zerobionic, which is developing a human-like robotic arm to help students with hearing impairments.

From Nigeria comes AcemyX, an LMS helping students prepare for exams with personalised learning tools and study materials, with Tanzania’s Afya Mama, which is providing answers to questions pertaining maternal care and reproductive health to women via SMS and web app, completing the list.

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