E-Business
Infobip to Provide Voice, SMS Capability for Jiji Africa

Global cloud communication firm Infobip has integrated voice and SMS capabilities for Jiji Africa, an online marketplace in pan-African countries including Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda and Tanzania.
Aside from the initial project in Nigeria, the voice and SMS channel implementation was recently expanded to Jiji’s operations in Kenya and Ghana as the company’s activities in those markets increased and services were extended.
Jiji Head of Africa, Yuliy Shenfeld says the company needed a solution that would enable it to seamlessly send out vital transactional information to buyers and sellers that use Jiji’s platform to exchange goods.
According to a statement released to the media, the company was established six years ago and acquired OLX’s business in Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda in 2019. It currently has between 12 million and 15 million active buyers and a range of between 200 000 and 250 000 sellers.
“We experienced challenges with our previous SMS service provider in terms of delivery rates. Not all transactional SMSes, relating to registration on our platform and inquiries about advertised items, would reach our customers,” says Shenfeld.
He says the company engaged Infobip as it is a global company with local presence in the markets in which Jiji operates. In addition, Infobip beat its competitors on pricing, enabling Jiji to lower its SMS and voice costs by almost tenfold, while its delivery rates improved to over 90%.
“We have benefitted from a reliable service, because Infobip offers direct connections to carriers, which ensures high delivery rates for our customers. This is obviously very important for our end users in terms of transactional traffic and allows us to ensure that they have a seamless experience,” Shenfeld adds.
Dorotea Vatavuk, Enterprise Sales Lead at Infobip and Jiji’s dedicated Customer Success Manager (CSM), says the online classified platform also benefitted from Infobip’s local presence and support as its business expanded.
“We have a deep understanding of their business, which enables us to serve as advisors and consultants to Jiji as its business and customer needs expand. They also benefitted from 24/7 technical support and a dedicated CSM who is looking after them and their business,” says Vatavuk.
“When it comes to any transactional traffic, reliability and stability of the service is crucial and this is something that Infobip can secure for its clients. It was really important for Jiji to receive support from local experts and also ensure that their subsidiaries – in Kenya and Ghana – also benefitted from a dedicated CSM that takes care of their needs and ensures that local regulations are followed.”
She adds that Jiji currently has no plans to roll out additional channels as its management feels that the SMS and voice solution are adequate to their customers’ current needs. However, Infobip will continue to provide support to the business as its needs evolve.
“As an omni-channel solution provider and a consultant to Jiji, we are able to support them with any new projects and the enablement of communication solutions that may come along on their digital journey as the needs of their customers evolve.
“We will always share new ideas and introduce any new solutions to ensure that they are aware of new possibilities. It’s about having their business in mind and thinking how to support them and add value with our solutions to help their business grow.”
E-Business
FG Mulls Fibre Optic Layout to Bridge Internet Gaps

President Bola Tinubu said that his administration has initiated a project to install fibre optic cables across the country, aimed at enhancing the socio-economic development of Nigeria.
His plans were contained in a speech he delivered at a joint session of the National Assembly in commemoration of Democracy Day on Thursday, June 12.
He said the fibre optic layout is part of other projects being embarked on.
“In addition, we have embarked on an ambitious project to lay fibre optic cables across the nation, a transformative step toward bridging the digital divide and fostering greater connectivity.
“This initiative promises not only to enhance the speed and reliability of internet access but also to revolutionise how businesses operate, how students learn, and how communities stay connected,” Tinubu stated.
He maintained that by extending this critical infrastructure, his government is empowering entrepreneurs, enabling digital education, and providing the tools for our youth to compete in a globalised world.
In a most recent report on Internet connectivity, The ICIR pointed out how Nigeria has faced setbacks in its deployment of fibre optic cables and needs a transformation.
The challenges revolve around vandalism, inadequate coordination between road construction and telecom infrastructure, and varying right-of-way (RoW) charges across states.
Among industry experts, these issues impact network outages, increase repair costs, and hinder broadband expansion efforts.
It has also further threatened the digital economy, leading to slower Internet speeds, dropped calls, and unreliable connectivity among others.
E-Business
African Startups Raised $345m in Funding in May

African startups raised more than $345 million across 65 deals in May, more than double the amount raised in the same period of last year, according to a report by Briter, a research and business intelligence firm.
The report disclosed that both the number of deals and participating companies declined, confirming a growing trend of fewer companies raising funds in larger sizes.
It said fintech attracted the highest share of funding in May, accounting for 34 percent of the total, while cleantech followed closely, driven by a debt deal from Sun King. The company raised $80 million (in local currency) to expand clean energy access in Nigeria.
“Equity remains the primary instrument in terms of total value. There’s no doubt about it; in fact, equity deals with disclosed amounts captured more than half of the total funding volume in May.
“However, debt financing is increasingly proving its weight. Although it accounted for only 8 percent of all deals, it represented 32 percent of the total funding, highlighting the typically larger size of debt transactions. With the rise of specialised vehicles targeting early-stage businesses, debt is becoming an increasingly important part of Africa’s innovation funding landscape,” it said.
Briter’s report added that grants continued to play a vital role in early-stage support, especially in the education technology (EdTech) sector. The Mastercard Foundation led the pack in grant activity, funding a new cohort of EdTech innovators in Nigeria and Kenya. Each selected startup is set to receive $100,000 in grant funding, in addition to mentorship and business development support.
Multilaterals also made a strong showing in May, it said. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), a World Bank Group member, issued a $179.6 million guarantee to CleanTech firm KOKO Networks. The support will help scale its clean energy solutions across Kenya.
“This deal not only demonstrates growing international confidence in African climate ventures but also signals a promising pathway for other asset-intensive startups in clean cooking, agriculture, and renewable energy,” the report said.
From a geographic perspective, Egypt emerged as the continent’s fundraising powerhouse for the month, contributing 51 percent of all funding raised. The country recorded 12 deals across equity, debt, and bond instruments. Notably, FinTech platform MNT-Halan raised $50 million through a bond issuance, further illustrating the diversification of capital-raising mechanisms in the region.
Outside Egypt, funding was distributed across Africa’s three other key markets, which are Egypt, Nigeria, and Kenya, with limited activity recorded in countries such as Ghana, Tunisia, Morocco, and Uganda, each registering between one and three deals.
In terms of exits, the African tech landscape continues to mature. Three companies—Baobab+, Qardy, and Shopa—were acquired in May, bringing the total number of exits this year to 22. This already surpasses last year’s count for the same period. Qardy was acquired by Catalyst Partners Middle East (CPME) in a disclosed deal valued at $23 million, the report added.
E-Business
Human Hacking: When Cyber Criminals Target You

By Nancy Werteen
When you get anti-hacking advice, you’ve probably heard “Don’t use a simple password,” or “Don’t plug in that USB you found on the ground.”
But there’s one form of hacking that doesn’t always require a computer, and it costs businesses about 4.88 million dollars a year.
Modern hackers aren’t trying to get into your computer; they’re trying to get into you.
“They’ll try to learn about you a little bit, and they’ll try to use that information against you to try to get you to complete some action, maybe to send somebody some money,” said Kevin Moran, PhD, Assistant Professor of Computer Science, Cyber Security and Privacy Cluster, University of Central Florida.
IBM calls this human hacking, because it exploits human error instead of system error.
“With people just being busy and maybe not very carefully checking some of the emails or the phone calls that they get, can be something unfortunately that people can fall victim to,” said Moran.
Also known as social engineering, this often takes the form of phishing, where the hacker tries to “fish” the information out of you by impersonating family, friends, or even your bank.
There’s also baiting, where the hacker baits you with something of value. Remember the Nigerian prince scam?
That’s a famous example of baiting. There’s also pretexting, where the hacker will claim the victim has already been hacked, and that the hacker can fix it if you just send over your passwords. So, what can you do?
“Just as a rule of thumb, instead of clicking on links and emails, just go to the website yourself. And that will prevent, a lot of these types of attacks from happening,” explained Moran.
Phishing can take many forms.
Spear phishing targets people with access to confidential information, often to get access into an entire business, and whale phishing targets CEOs or political figures.
Search engine phishing is when hackers create fake websites promising services or goods you’ll never receive.
Angler phishing is when hackers create fake social media accounts impersonating famous people or companies.
Finally, vishing and smishing is phishing done through phone calls and texts respectively.
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