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2011 Conference – The Tech4Africa Blog http://blog.tech4africa.com Musings, announcements, and collateral damage from Tech4Africa. Thoughts our own. We're looking for contributors from across Africa. Email hello At tech4africa DOT com. Mon, 26 Oct 2015 12:30:48 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.5.32 The most disruptive technology trends I’ve spotted – Jon Gosier Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/the-most-disruptive-technology-trends-ive-spotted-jon-gosier-t4a-2011/ Tue, 18 Sep 2012 18:15:37 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4708

Jon Gosier, someone who has had the pleasure of working with some of the most ambitious African companies such as Ushahidi and Appfrica talk about the newest up and coming disruptive technologies in Africa.

]]> Why And How We Risked It All http://blog.tech4africa.com/why-and-how-we-risked-it-all/ Thu, 13 Sep 2012 09:32:01 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4697 Continue reading Why And How We Risked It All]]> [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKqevnV_39I&w=560&h=315]

Part 2        Part 3

Many of us have worked for companies we didn’t like and did jobs we didn’t enjoy. But have we done anything to turn this around? Gareth Knight and Vinny Lingham shares their journey of starting their own business so they can work on things they were truly passionate about. But this has not been an easy journey for either of them and this talk covers the challenges they faced and sacrifices they had to make to turn their ideas into valuable products. But what is most important is that the speech covers how to go about coping with those challenges learn from their mistakes they made so that younger entrepreneurs can avoid them.

]]> iMaverick: The technology & architecture of freedom – Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/imaverick-the-technology-architecture-of-freedom-t4a-2011/ Wed, 12 Sep 2012 09:21:03 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4693 Continue reading iMaverick: The technology & architecture of freedom – Tech4Africa 2011]]> [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAxmaWVmFSo&w=560&h=315]

 

Access to information shouldn’t just be restricted to insiders, experts and politicians. And the challenge is not how to conceal information but how to make information readily available for everyone. For African technology to prosper we need a political and economical environment that is conducive to business. But none of this is possible without a free and independent media. Core issue being Transparency within the internet age; transparency is critical to promoting democracy and citizen’s right empowering them in particular.  iMaverick, the founders of Africa’s first daily tablet talks about how the current political and economical situation relates to the prosperity and freedom of media & technology within Africa. Is securing the functionality of the net and protecting the integrity of its user alone enough to achieve this?

 

 

]]> Mobile applications for everyone, giving power to the powerless – Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/mobile-applications-for-everyone-giving-power-to-the-powerless-t4a-2011/ Thu, 06 Sep 2012 10:19:54 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4641 Continue reading Mobile applications for everyone, giving power to the powerless – Tech4Africa 2011]]> Constrain breeds innovation – Gustav Praekelt and Sebastien Lacour talks about how mobile tools can give business opportunities and give Africans the access to every day services. With over 600 million active mobile connections in Africa, there is no doubt that there is enough reach. Gustav talks about how to measure mobile phone usage and behaviour within Africa so businesses can create models which will help them manufacture specific services that are actually relevant to the customer. Gustav then talks about Ummeli, the mobile portal which helps Africans find social networks and job finders to help them meet new people, learn new things and better themselves so they can find jobs as, the no.1 problem the African youth is facing now is not illness and poverty, but lack of employment.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_avN_nnhW4I&w=560&h=315]

]]> How we built Motribe for Africa and beyond – Vincent Maher Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/how-we-built-motribe-for-africa-and-beyond-vincent-maher-t4a-2011/ Wed, 05 Sep 2012 10:53:59 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4636 Continue reading How we built Motribe for Africa and beyond – Vincent Maher Tech4Africa 2011]]> Vincent Maher talks about Motribe, a passionate idea converted into one of the most fastest growing mobile plays in Africa. This is special considering it’s built for some of the most basic mobile platforms. Vincent talks about how his idea got converted in to a scalable business and how the business structure was set up and it is also interesting to listen to some of the problems he faced. The talk is equally great for entrepreneurs who want a good insight in to a start-up and notice common challenges start-ups face such as “do you take whatever money that’s comes your way or do you stick to you plan?”.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIW_bLTID3E&w=560&h=315]

]]> The anatomy & habits of mobile users, and why business should take note – Nic Haralambous Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/the-anatomy-habits-of-mobile-users-and-why-business-should-take-note-nic-haralambous-t4a-2011/ Thu, 30 Aug 2012 10:33:32 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4634 Continue reading The anatomy & habits of mobile users, and why business should take note – Nic Haralambous Tech4Africa 2011]]> This topic covers how mobile usage has changed over the past decade or so and the changes that have taken place in the market as well as how marketing has been defined previously by brand advertising. Where previous brands sat in the middle and the consumer around it, this has changed now where this has been democratised and almost been switched around to the point where the brand is owned by the consumer rather than the company; the consumer is the centre. This is very similar to marketing from a mobile perspective. Therefore, it is important to understand that marketing from a mobile point of view is very different to the traditional method as a lot of the techniques used mobile marketing such as banner adverts can be irrelevant and sometimes can be intrusive to the consumer. In this speech Nic Haralambous talks about mobile usage from a platform perspective. However, mobile marketing can be a very powerful marketing tool if you look at it from a user’s point of view.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYDG3I8Uj3I&w=560&h=315]

]]> Mapping for Africa – Adam Duvander Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/mapping-for-africa-adam-duvander-t4a-2011/ Wed, 29 Aug 2012 10:31:04 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4626 Continue reading Mapping for Africa – Adam Duvander Tech4Africa 2011]]> Adam Duvander talks about how his company, ProgrammableWeb are going about mapping Africa for users so they have a functional and relevant open street map api. The talk also covers the challenges of acquiring the data and the importance of having the best interface. Finally, Adam explores the challenges competitors face when creating their maps and the correct maps which those in Africa can currently use. Finally, what are the limitations for Africa?

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=III-GnxBB_w&w=560&h=315]

]]> Importance of Big Data – Steve Watt Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/importance-of-big-data-steve-watt-t4a-2011/ Tue, 28 Aug 2012 09:33:55 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4630 Continue reading Importance of Big Data – Steve Watt Tech4Africa 2011]]> Steve Watt from HP, talks about Big data, what it’s all about and how to access vast amount of data for the use in businesses. Big data is about mining information from unstructured data, where you ask your own questions and learn something from everything. The video covers the whole model of retrieving, storing, processing and analysing big data using open source software to benefit your business.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCBN0_GeT0Y&w=560&h=315]

]]> Africa’s Quest to Climb the Tech Pyramid – Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/africas-quest-to-climb-the-tech-pyramid-t4a-2011/ Wed, 22 Aug 2012 10:11:47 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4620 Continue reading Africa’s Quest to Climb the Tech Pyramid – Tech4Africa 2011]]> Most of the fundamental technologies that were used in the past, and in fact some today, are poor because there was a failure to invest in these technologies and the lack of intellectual property made it difficult for investors to buy in. This was a major cause in the stagnant nature of the global GDP and it is also a major factor in the lack of growth in successful technologies within Africa. Ndubuisi talks about a framework which can lead to a very strong system and encourage Africa to continue to invent new intellectual properties and push forward, not just in ICT but all kinds of technologies i.e. mining and agricultural technology. In essence, this talk will share the redesign to close the missing links as Africa overcomes the barriers in participating industries like microelectronics and nanotechnology which remain drivers of global commerce and modern culture.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvV7xLDCMx0&w=560&h=315]

]]> March of the UX Designers – Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/march-of-the-ux-designers-t4a-2011/ Tue, 21 Aug 2012 10:38:14 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4615 Continue reading March of the UX Designers – Tech4Africa 2011]]> “The age of competing simply over features is over”. It has become clear over the years that designing a product around its features has become less important than creating a product based around its customers which provides a superior user experience.

UX is an umbrella term where there are disciplines within other disciplines i.e. information architecture, usability research etc. Cennydd and James go in to detail about the importance of having the perfect balance in user experience (UX) design, how the successful companies have followed their practises to release a successful product resulting in loyal customers and how smaller companies can adapt these disciplines to be successful themselves.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r34LOmCw99k&w=560&h=315]

]]> The New Information Age – Dr. Barry Devlin Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/the-new-information-age-dr-barry-devlin-t4a-2011/ Thu, 16 Aug 2012 10:00:42 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4611 Continue reading The New Information Age – Dr. Barry Devlin Tech4Africa 2011]]> Dr. Barry Devlin is among the foremost authorities worldwide in business intelligence who is also a widely respected consultant, lecturer and author. Barry puts forward all of his 30 year experience in explaining how to take messy bits and bytes and convert those data in to something useful. He covers the evolution of the use and storage of information within businesses in the last 40 years. A topic he also covers is the role of relational database where they move from a supportive platform to a core platform. Essentially, to have relevant information, Barry talks about the importance of having complete, connected and comprehended data through his new architecture for information in businesses.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3_KMQFMgNg&w=560&h=315]

]]> Watch Gustav Praekelt and Sébastien Lacour talk about mobile applications for everyone & giving power to the powerless, atTech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/watch-gustav-praekelt-and-sebastien-lacour-talk-about-mobile-applications-for-everyone-giving-power-to-the-powerless-att4a-2011/ Fri, 04 May 2012 07:36:24 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4358 Everyone knows that mobile in Africa will surpass desktop PC’s, but what are the practical examples and success stories that give context to the changing landscape?

Gustav Praekelt (Praekelt Digital), Sébastien Lacour (Powertime)

]]> Watch Josh Spear talk about social media at Tech4Africa 2011 http://blog.tech4africa.com/watch-josh-spear-talk-about-social-media-at-t4a-2011/ Thu, 03 May 2012 09:23:08 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4332 Continue reading Watch Josh Spear talk about social media at Tech4Africa 2011]]> Global nomad and digital strategist Josh Spear will explore what inspires him, some of his work and projects, and social media trends from across the globe and Africa.

More about Josh:

As one of the youngest and most influential marketing strategists in the world, Josh is sought out for his intelligent, no-holds-barred insight on everything from design to authenticity and ‘word-of-mouth.’ His own blog, joshspear.com, uses a network of writers across the globe to unearth trends in art, design, mobile and the future of digital media itself.

Josh’s New York-based consultancy applies a digital worldview to the challenges and ambitions of complex corporate organisations. It creates strategies for deeper, lasting online relationships – including new models to measure performance in emerging environments. As well as advising some of the world’s biggest brands, it also works as a think-tank on the influence of technology on all aspects of human behaviour.

A hugely engaging conference speaker, Josh’s presentations set out new ways for organisations to harness the internet. He analyses what it is that makes certain things catch on, and explains how to position products and services to capitalise on fast-moving trends. And with a billion people online at any one moment, he shows how to get the attention of the digital generation.

Josh is frequently featured in Time Magazine and The New York Times. For several years he has been an active participant and keynote speaker at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he was formally nominated a Young Global Leader.

]]> Watch the “Bill Gates of Africa” talk about his vision for innovation and technology in Africa http://blog.tech4africa.com/watch-the-bill-gates-of-africa-talk-about-his-vision-for-innovation-and-technology-in-africa/ Wed, 02 May 2012 08:34:50 +0000 http://t4a.feedmybeta.com/?p=4327 Continue reading Watch the “Bill Gates of Africa” talk about his vision for innovation and technology in Africa]]> Often described as the “Bill Gates of Africa”, Herman Chinery-Hesse embodies his mantra “Only Africans can save Africa“, and believes that if Africa misses the current global IT boat, there may never again be an opportunity for rapid wealth creation on the continent. He will talk candidly about the challenges, potential and opportunity present in African technology today.

In his own words, “if Africa misses the current global IT boat there may never again be an opportunity for rapid wealth creation on the continent“.

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