General News
Google Announces First Investment in SafeBoda via its Africa Investment Fund
Google has announced the release of its first investment from the Africa Investment Fund which was launched by Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet, at Google for Africa in October.
This first investment is in SafeBoda, a venture-backed company with investors that include GoVentures (GoJek), Allianz X, Unbound, Beenext and Justin Kan, and will help drive SafeBoda’s growth in Uganda and Nigeria, scaling its transportation-led app to offer new payment and financial services solutions for its expanding set of customers: passengers, drivers and merchants.
Ricky Rapa Thomson, one of the co-founders said: “SafeBoda welcomes Google to their community and are excited to continue to drive innovation in informal transportation and payments in the boda boda (motorcycle taxi driver in East Africa) or okada (West Africa) industry.
“As a former boda driver in Kampala, I know that we are the lifeblood of Africa’s cities and we power economic development.
“SafeBoda is thrilled that leading global companies such as Google see the importance of backing start-ups working towards these goals.”
SafeBoda app was launched in 2017 to connect passengers to their community of safer and trusted drivers and since then SafeBoda has grown to serve over 1 million customers, expanding its transportation-led super app offering rides, parcel delivery, food and shop, payments, savings and other financial services.
Nitin Gajria, Managing Director for Google in Africa added: “I am thrilled about our first investment from the $50M Africa Investment Fund that we announced two months ago . This is part of our ongoing commitment to tech startups in Africa.
“I am of the firm belief that no one is better placed to solve Africa’s biggest problems than Africa’s young developers and entrepreneurs. We look forward to announcing subsequent investments in other startups.”
The Africa Investment Fund is part of a broader plan to invest $1 billion over 5 years to support digital transformation in Africa. Through this fund, Google will invest $50M in startups and provide them with access to Google’s employees, network, and technologies to help them build impactful products for their communities.
Currently, Africa is home to 700,000 developers and venture capital funding for startups has decreased in 2020 compared to 2019, with a record $4 billion in equity funding raised in 2021, according to Partech Ventures Africa. Digital startups in Africa are driving innovation in fast-growing sectors, including fintech, healthtech, media and entertainment, e-commerce, e-mobility, and e-logistics, contributing to Africa’s growing Internet gross domestic product (iGDP) — defined as the Internet’s contribution to the GDP.
The Senate ad hoc committee investigating persistent crude oil theft in the Niger Delta has disclosed that a forensic audit conducted by independent consultants revealed that suspected oil thieves stole more than $300 billion worth of oil, which ought to have been Nigeria’s proceeds from crude oil sales.
Senator Ned Nwoko, chairman of the committee made the disclosure this while presenting an interim report of the committee during Wednesday’s plenary, adding that the findings were based on a forensic review conducted by consultants engaged by the committee.
The Senator representing Delta North Senatorial District explained that the stolen funds were traced to both local and international transactions, however, requested that the committee should be given the mandate to track, trace, and recover all proceeds of stolen crude oil both locally and internationally
“The ad hoc committee should be given the mandate to track, trace, and recover all proceeds of stolen crude oil both locally and internationally, as forensic review by the consultant shows over $22 billion, $81 billion, and $200 billion remains unaccounted,” he said.
Nwoko who did not disclosed identity of the consultants, stated that the period covered by the forensic report, the identities of the suspected perpetrators and the companies allegedly involved.
The federal lawmaker, however, pointed out that the report was interim, suggesting that more findings would be made public in the committee’s final submission, adding that the committee recommended that the Nigerian government establish a special court dedicated to prosecuting oil-related offences and offenders appropriately.
Rack Centre, a Nigerian data centre, and EdgeNext, a global edge cloud provider, have announced new Content Delivery Network (CDN) and cloud hosting services, in response to the country’s growing demand for high-performance digital infrastructure.
The services, which are hosted at Rack centre’s Tier III cloud-neutral data centre in Lagos, are intended to improve content delivery, reduce latency, and boost cloud hosting efficiency for Nigerian companies and users.
EdgeNext’s global acceleration network will enable faster and more dependable performance for video streaming, social media, e-commerce, and gaming platforms.
The company also intends to launch specialised gaming cloud solutions designed specifically for Nigeria’s burgeoning gaming community, with low latency and high concurrency capabilities for mobile and PC gamers.
Terence Wang, CEO of EdgeNext, commented that the launch represents a significant milestone in the company’s growth, and that the relationship with Rack Centre would ensure “secure, reliable, and low-latency services” for Nigerian organisations and developers.
Rack Centre CEO Lars Johannisson noted that the arrival of EdgeNext demonstrates the robustness of Nigeria’s digital infrastructure ecosystem.
General News
Countdown to AfriTECH 5.0: Meet the Speakers Driving Conversations on Africa’s Digital Independence in the AI Era
The stage is set for the fifth edition of the Africa Tech Alliance Forum (AfriTECH 5.0), scheduled to hold on Thursday, November 13, 2025, at the Oriental Hotel, Lekki Road, Lagos.
The conference will commence at 9:00 AM (WAT), bringing together Africa’s foremost technology leaders, innovators, regulators, and investors to discuss the theme:
“AI and Sovereign Tech: Building Africa’s Digital Independence.”
As Africa continues to deepen its digital transformation agenda, AfriTECH 5.0 will explore how artificial intelligence (AI), indigenous innovation, and sovereign technologies can accelerate the continent’s quest for digital autonomy, security, and sustainable growth.
Distinguished Speakers and Thought Leaders
This year’s edition will feature a lineup of prominent industry leaders, policymakers, and innovators including: Dr. Aminu Maida, Executive Vice Chairman/CEO, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC); Dr. Vincent Olatunji, National Commissioner, Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC); Prof. Obadare Peter Adewale, Founder/Chief Visionary Officer, Digital Encode Ltd; George Agu, MD/CEO, ActivEdge Technologies Ltd., Prof. Ibrahim Adeyanju, MD/CEO, Galaxy Backbone Limited; Tokunboh George-Taylor, CEO, SKOT Communications; Muhammed Rudman, CEO, Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN); Engr. Ikechukwu Nnamani, CEO, Digital Realty Nigeria, and Dr. (Mrs.) Ebehijie Momoh, CEO, Afrorgy Financial Services Ltd.
Other speakers are; Happiness Obohia, CEO, Tizeti Cybersecurity; Chukwuemeka Enoch Mbabaie, Convener, Lagos Blockchain Week; Mr. Chidi Okpala, Personal Branding Coach; John Itodo, AI & Tech Innovator for Emerging Markets, amongst others.
These speakers will provide insights on how Africa can leverage homegrown technologies and AI-driven systems to strengthen its digital sovereignty and competitiveness.
“AfriTECH 5.0 promises a robust and interactive agenda featuring, Keynote Presentations from industry regulators and global tech leaders; Goodwill Messages from government representatives and policy influencers; a Fireside Chat hosted by Lagos Blockchain Week, focused on decentralized systems and blockchain innovation; Panel Discussions addressing data governance, fintech inclusion, cybersecurity, and the AI economy; a Tech Exhibition, showcasing innovative digital products and solutions from leading companies, and the prestigious Africa Tech Alliance Excellence (ATAEx) Awards, celebrating organizations and individuals driving excellence in Africa’s digital ecosystem”, said Mr. Chike Onwuegbuchi, the co-convener of AfriTECH 5.0.
AfriTECH 5.0 is supported by a coalition of technology enablers and sponsors including; Platinum sponsor: Digital Encode Limited.
Others are Gold Sponsors; itel, SKOT Communications, Tecom, Afrigo Payment Financial Services Limited, Tizel Cybersecurity ActivEdge Technologies, Galaxy Backbone Ltd, while the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) is a supporting partner.
Africa Tech Alliance Forum (AfriTECH) is a premier annual event dedicated to driving conversations and collaborations around Africa’s digital transformation.
The platform connects stakeholders across policy, technology, and business to shape the continent’s tech-driven future.
Participation at AfriTECH 5.0 is free, but registration is required and can be done via the link: www.africatechallianceforum.africa.
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