Hope Santé medical care

Hope Santé is a medical service that "enables the complete medical care of patients in Africa. Their main product is delivered in the following manner:

The patient consults a doctor in a hospital or medical clinic of the African Hope Santé network with a simple personalized and magnetized membership card and without any additional fees (outside specific examinations). This can include preventative actions such as a check Hope, actions of responsive care with speed Hope or pharmacy services, and the ability to respond to emergency situations with an evacuation service.

Mobile Money

In the Economist:

Extending mobile money to other poor countries, particularly in Africa and Asia, would have a huge impact. It is a faster, cheaper and safer way to transfer money than the alternatives, such as slow, costly transfers via banks and post offices, or handing an envelope of cash to a bus driver. Rather than spend a day travelling by bus to the nearest bank, recipients in rural areas can spend their time doing more productive things. The incomes of Kenyan households using M-PESA have increased by 5-30% since they started mobile banking, according to a recent study.

More here
via Next Big Future
photo courtesy of the Economist

Sproxil

Sproxil's anti-counterfeiting solution for the pharmaceutical industry works thus:

...consumers purchase a product, they scratch & text a simple numeric code unique to the product, instantly receiving confirmation of authenticity. Brand owners can then:

* Send personalized real-time offers at the point of purchase.
* Lock down supply chains to prevent product diversion.
* Access live market intelligence in cash-based societies.

Aboubakar Fofana

Aboubakar Fofana via DesignAfrica:

Inspired to preserve his cultural heritage and the health of the planet, he creates sublime, limited edition designs on organic fabrics for interior décor and fashion...From the outset, he made the choice of exceptional natural materials, which can accommodate only vegetable dyes and minerals, traditional textile techniques applied to contemporary creations, refined finishes and stitching exclusively handmade, nothing ' is left to chance. Each material provides a unique feeling of comfort and well-being.

The DIY 'Chulha' Stove

Designboom reports:

The chulha creates a safer environment for indoor cooking in several ways:
- this includes trapping smoke and heat inside a locally cast housing in such a way to heat two pot holes with a high rate of efficiency to require less fuel
- it then directs the smoke through a chimney chamber that includes a stack of slotted clay tablets, which capture particles as the smoke moves through, cleaning the exhaust before it leaves the assembly.the overall design has kept with traditional stoves in india.

More here
Watch related video

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The Sun Shines for All-An Electrification Model for Rural Africa?

In Globalenvision:

To appreciate founder Fabio Rosa's Solar Home System, it's essential to pay attention to the details: when you are designing a business to deliver solar energy at low cost to an under-served mass market - as Rosa is doing in rural Brazil - there is no room for human error.
So the batteries must be protected with special boxes and numbered locks. And the plugs all have to be designed to fit one-way - because inadvertent reversal of polarity will damage the system. And finally, in an inspired touch, you may even decide to attach a miniature sculpture of a saint to the battery box to serve as a daily reminder to the customer that the battery -- the energy store -- must be treated as sacred.

More here
Read more about Fabio's umbrella project IDEAAS at here
photo courtesy of Next Billion 

Absolute Furnishings

From the Absolute Furnishings website:

Furniture is produced in wood, wrought iron, rattan, cane, a mixture of rattan or cane with wrought iron and rattan with wood, massive wood and carved massive wood. All these are expertly crafted and finished in exotic, classic and contemporary designs making our range of furniture the ultimate for both indoors and outdoors.

via DesignAfrica

Quick Hits

A start-up weekend for Nigeria
Pepesha Pesa a mobile loan repayment service
Digital Architecture designer Amina Abdallah via African Digital Art
RapidResponse- a mHealth platform
What has the Africa Finance Corporation been doing? Take a peek here
Guinea-Bissau to begin local processing of Cashew nuts...about time!

OpenFarmTech

OpenFarmTech

...are farmer scientists - working to develop a world class research center for decentralization technologies using open source permaculture and technology to work together for providing basic needs and self replicating the entire operation at the cost of scrap metal.

Watch this Biodiesel tutorial:

Open Source Biodiesel Tutorial from Marcin Jakubowski on Vimeo.

The organization is:

...looking for people who are interested in helping build the world's first self replicating open source self-sufficient decentralized high-appropriate-tech resilient permaculture ecovillage - to transcend survival and evolve to freedom.

More here

Solar Powered Cell Phones hit the market,and do well!

Rocketboom reports on the rush for solar powered cellphones in Kenya:

Kenya: Solar Powered Cell Phones from Humanwire on Vimeo.

'Splash' - mobile payments service

Splash is Sierra Leone’s first mobile payment system, allowing you to send money to other mobile users using just your phone. To send money you must register with an agent and load money into your Splash account. You can then send that money to another mobile phone user, using just text messages-company website

Africa's New Mobile Developers

In Mobile Active:

In a classroom in Thies in Senegal, two teachers master an educational game on their mobile phones. Ten minutes later, their pre-school group is using the game to recognize number and count to 10. Noumounthi, Tamsir, Khady Coly and Mamadou, computer science students at the University of Thies, designed and developed the game following a recent Mobile Camp in Senegal. The excitement in the classroom helps the team of students understand the power of their new skills in mobile application programming, and what it means to be a mobile entrepreneur in Africa.

More here
via the TED Fellows Blog
photo courtesy of Jessica Colaco

Ebony Capital Enterprise

Kiva partner's Ebony Foundation's Dep Credit product:

...provides technical and funding support to growth oriented micro enterprises to attain self sustainability as they evolve from micro to small and medium enterprises. Target Enterprises The programme targets Entrepreneurs operating viable, market driven and prudently managed enterprises with the focus being on enterprises demonstrating ability to grow and create employment.

Locally made Dual SIM-card phones

Michael Malakata reporting in Computerworld:

Zambia's Mmobile Telecommunication has begun manufacturing Africa's first locally produced dual SIM-card mobile phones that will allow customers to be connected to two networks using one handset..."We will be offloading a new brand of handsets, Mtech dual SIM cards on the market next month. This is a new model that will mainly assist those who are connected to two networks," said company Chairman Mohammed Seedat.

More here

Glo-1 Lands

Subsaharska on lighting of Glo-1 a Globacom project:

Throughput is going to start out at 640 Gbs and eventually be cranked up to 2.5 Tbs. There's been a bit of coverage on it which you can read at 27 Months, TechMasai, Vanguard, ITNewsAfrica, and This Day. I'm probably missing a lot of others as cable landings are a pretty big deal and this one is made even more so as it's being deployed primarily by Globacom a Nigerian company...[continue reading]

Image courtesy of Shuttleworth foundation

Zara Solar

Ashden awards profiles prize winner Zara Solar:

Several customers of Zara Solar are earning extra income from their solar PV systems, due in part to the UNDP having provided 60% grants to people buying the equipment to set up or support a small business. A number of bars and cafes use their solar PV to operate lights and a TV, attracting more customers and increasing their trade. A novel example is a business producing small fish for use as bait, where the pump to aerate the pond water in the hatching tanks is operated by the solar PV system.
The main limitation on future growth is the availability of consumer finance. Zara Solar is hoping to address this by exploring various micro-finance packages which will give the rural poor the chance to pay back the cost of the system over time.

More here
Image: solar home system northern Tanzania

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TED India Fellows Announced!

From the TED Website:

TED is thrilled to announce the 103 TEDIndia Fellows! This diverse group of artists, entrepreneurs, scientists, musicians, activists, doctors, researchers, filmmakers and teachers provides a snapshot of the creativity and innovation emerging from South Asia.

The list includes notable individuals working within Africa such as:

Olatunbosun Obayomi (Nigeria) – Biotechnologist focusing on the production of alternative energy from organic wastes
Chelsea Strayer (US/Ghana) – PhD candidate at Boston University in biological and cultural anthropology studying Asante indigenous healing rituals in Ghana
Andy Okoroafor (France) – Founder of Clam, a creative studio that includes Clam Magazine and Clam Films
Peace Anyiam-Osigwe (Nigeria/UK) – Lawyer, filmmaker and founder and CEO of Africa Movie Academy Awards
Leila Chirayath Janah (US/Kenya) – Founder of Samasource, a social business enabling marginalized people to receive life-changing work opportunities via the Internet

More here
Apply for TED2010 Fellowships here

Legwork

Legwork is a Mobile and Internet advertising technology company, providing consumers with free text messaging and internet services supported by targeted, high-quality advertising opportunities through its social networking portal...services include Twitter, SMS Channels, Mobile Meetup, Mobile Clubs, 150 Blogging that allows members to network socially, research opportunities, find businesses and receive informative, interesting and entertaining content via their mobile phone-culled from the company website

soleRebels

Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu discusses the inspiration behind soleRebels a footwear manufacturer that he founded:

...the creation of shoes could be a platform for inspiration + hope...combining the expertise of several traditional ethiopian artisan areas - from hand spinning + hand looming organic cotton to artisan crafted footwear , we continue to marry these arts with a unique sensibility to create very fresh footwear pieces. in the process we always strive to fulfill our simple, yet vitally important mission: deliver the finest artisan crafted footwear

Read related coverage here

African Micro-Grids

Will the continent out of necessity become a distributed Micro-Grid Power? Off-Grid reports:

Lacking the billions of dollars necessary to expand creaky national electricity grids and build large power plants, Africa’s political and economic leaders are experimenting with alternatives. Electricity is increasingly being generated by microdams, solar cells, and microturbines. “Off-grid electricity could be the next great technological leap forward in Africa,” says Mark Hankins, a consultant in Nairobi who specializes in alternative power supplies.
In Kenya, one million households use car batteries as their main source of electricity. From Lagos to Nairobi, even the poorest slum dwellers are driven to purchase fuel that can create power to charge cell-phone batteries and provide light.

More here
Read related papers here & here
Watch related video on Micro-grids by Chris Marnay here:

Diagram courtesy of Toshiba

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Kua

Harriets Alter Ego introduces Kua Designs founded by Kua which "...focuses on showcasing the beauty of African fabric in the form of statement-making clutch purses..."

The Naseni Centres

Nigeria's underutilized fabbing Naseni Centres intend to:

Promote interactive actions and participatory programs that will generate the emergence and industrialization of a pool of relevant technologies and engineering infrastructure for SMEs in a core sub-sector.

'Gettin By' in the Micro-Informal Economy

A peek at the 'informal economy' from Esteyonage, the 'Gettin By' series:

Profession: Moneychanger and Phonecard Vendor
Location: Street Corners, Storefronts, Money Booths
How it Works: The existence of money changers hinges on two basic realities: a dual-currency economy and a banking system that is so slow, its not worth waiting every day to get the better rates. A small niche,but an important one.

More here
via Texas in Africa

Apply to become a TED Fellow @ TED2010!

Apply to become a TED Fellow @ TED2010!

Ever dreamed of attending a TED Conference...of being around some of the world's greatest minds and discussing the best technology, art, architecture, music, film, science, literature, etc? Are you innovative and want to meet with other people like you from around the world? Then apply to the TED Fellows program!

Apply online here: www.ted.com/fellows/apply.

Organizers of the TED Conference are searching for 25 promising Fellows from around the world to participate in TED2010. The TED Fellows program will accept applications for fellowships from through September 25, 2009.

MORE INFO:
About the TED Fellows Program
The TED Fellows program is a new international fellowship program designed to nurture great ideas and help them spread around the world. This year, organizers will select 25 individuals from around the world to attend TED2010. At the end of the year, organizers will select 15 individuals from a pool of the TED and TEDGlobal Fellows to participate in an extended three-year Senior Fellowship, bringing them to six consecutive conferences. The principal goal of the program is to empower the Fellows to effectively communicate their work to the world.

Benefits
Benefits of the Fellowship include conference admission, round-trip transportation, housing and all meals. Fellows will also participate in a pre-conference with the opportunity to present a short talk for consideration for TED.com, elite skills-building courses taught by world experts, social opportunities and surprise extras. This is not a monetary Fellowship; the benefits are in-kind only.

Who we are looking for:
The program seeks remarkable thinkers and doers who have shown unusual accomplishment, exceptional courage, moral imagination and the potential to increase positive change in their respective fields. The program focuses on innovators in technology, entertainment, design, science, film, art, music, entrepreneurship and the NGO community, among other pursuits. The program targets individuals from the Asia/Pacific region, Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, and the Middle east, though anyone from anywhere in the world is welcome to apply. Applicants are generally between 21-40 years of age, though anyone over 18 and over 40 may apply. They must also be fluent in English.

Application process and more information:
All applicants must apply online at http://www.ted.com/fellows/apply. Information about TED is available at http://www.ted.com; and information about TED2010 is available at http://conferences.ted.com/TED2010/.

Please email fellows@ted.com if you have any questions, would like more information, if you'd like to nominate an extraordinary individual!

About TED:

TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design. It started out in 1984 as a conference bringing together people from those three worlds. Since then its scope has become ever broader to include science, business, the arts and the global issues facing our world. The annual conference now brings together the world's most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives (in 18 minutes). Attendees have called it "the ultimate brain spa" and "a four-day journey into the future." The diverse audience -- CEOs, scientists, creatives, and philanthropists -- is almost as extraordinary as the speakers, who have included Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Nandan Nilekani, Ashraf Ghani, Jane Goodall, Vilayanur Ramachandran, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Sir Richard Branson, Stephen Hawking and Bono.

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Song Fund's for Africa?-Building SME's

Reuben Abraham in Alliance Magazine

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are traditionally an economy's largest job creator, so any developing country aiming for rapid and inclusive growth requires a robust SME sector. Contrary to popular opinion in venture capital circles, real investment opportunities may well lie in ‘bread and butter’ industries with a high or exponential correlation to GDP growth and huge social impact (waste management, for instance, or logistics and warehousing). The first true exit for a venture capital firm in India is likely to come next year in a business with a high social impact: microfinance. The bottom line in these businesses is that social and financial returns are not mutually exclusive.
There are several factors that retard the growth of SMEs, including lack of policy, limited knowledge networks and poor management skills, but availability of finance is key. Realizing this, the Soros Economic Development Fund, Omidyar Network and Google.org have set up the SONG[1] Fund at the Indian School of Business to invest in early-stage companies that will generate financial and social returns without compromising on either. There is enormous scope for long-term 'patient' capital to be deployed effectively. For instance, with 80 per cent of India's healthcare system in the private sector, our research reveals an opportunity to help build an asset management business around low-cost healthcare services.

via Zoo Station

The Acacia-Soil Quality booster?

In Treehugger:

Dennis Garrity of ICRAF states "Growing the right tree -the Acacia- in the right place on farms in sub-Saharan Africa—and worldwide— has the potential to slow climate change, feed more people, and protect the environment. This tree, as a source of free, organic nitrogen, is an example of that. There are many other examples of solutions to African farming that exist here already."

More here

Isis Models

Joan Okorodudu discusses the beginnings of her company Isis Models in an interview with Ladybrille:

Believe it or not ISIS was conceived out of desperation. I wanted an agency my models could be signed to after Nigeria’s Next Super Model just like it is done in other model competitions around the world. I was interested in having my models signed to a particular agency that has a lot of black models. We went back and forth on email, I went to South Africa and had meetings, and made so many calls and it was like I was begging them to take a good product.

More here.

JCS Investments

Founded by Patricia Safo JCS Investments operates as a fund manager and financial advisor which specializes in direct foreign investment.In an interview she stated "...An important part of the strategy of JCS Investments Ltd is to establish itself as a reliable and efficient avenue to distribute Microfinance to MFIs in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone within the West Africa sub region..."

Solar Storage Oven

Gemni profiles Habtamu Bayera Madessa's "oven that both collects and stores heat":

The oven does not look at all like an oven. It is a silver-coloured barrel that is waist-high. The silver barrel has a stone core and is insulated with many layers of rock wool. On the top is a cooking plate. The oven is connected to an aluminium pipe that has a moveable aluminium parabolic dish on the other end.
”We’re capturing the sun here,” says Habtamu, pointing to the one-and-a-half metre parabolic dish covered with small mirrors. It works like this: the dish reflects the suns rays and focuses them on a fibre mat of polished steel wool. The mat is attached to the end of the pipe that connects the parabolic dish to the oven.

More here

Bushpunk

Bunmi Oloruntoba writes:

While steampunk today is more or less a realm that holds our fascination because of its aesthetic possibilities and has a subculture of sorts, bushpunk sounds, to me, like so much more. In "bushpunk" we unhitch our imagination from steam power and, instead, have it revolve around a cannibalizing and re-purposing/solar and battery-powered/SMS/low-tech/low-bandwidth/velcro world which spits out of necessity things like bicycles made out of bamboo...[continue reading]

Image:furniture made out of empty plastic bottles at Maker Faire Africa 2009

Poodle Pusher

Bella Naija profiles Poodle Pusher:

...a wardrobe and fashion stylist company that allows the founders sisters Ogo and Chi Chi. to explore their interest and be creatively self- expressive. Surprisingly, fashion seems to be a realm where a bit of distinction lies with these two; and it is in this distinction, their many similarities, shared experiences and ideals that their business continues to thrive!...[continue reading]

via Spectrum Women

Rain Harvesting and the Lack Thereof

An ancient and modern technology Rain Harvesting has the potential to provide a considerable portion of the African continent's water needs. A report contends that the:

Overall the quantity of rain falling across the continent is equivalent to the needs of 9 billion people, one and half times the current global population. About a third of Africa is deemed suitable for rainwater harvesting if a threshold of 200 millimetres of arrival rainfall, considered to be at the lower end of the scale, is used...“Africa is not water scarce,” the report concludes. “The rainfall contribution is more than adequate to meet the needs of the current population several times over. For example Kenya would not be categorized as a ‘water stressed country’ if rainwater harvesting is considered. The water crisis in Africa is more of an economic problem from lack of investment, and not a matter of physical scarcity.”

Rain Water Harvesting has the potential to supplement conventional ground and surface water sources in a manner that is distributive. Non-hierarchical.Organizations like the Global Rain Water Harvesting Collective (an affiliate of the Barefoot College) are at the forefront of this movement towards providing easy access to clean drinking,they state that:

Rainwater harvesting using rooftops and underground tanks is a traditional approach established over hundreds of years. Rainfall on rooftops is collected and channeled into underground tanks or small reservoirs that can store and provide enough safe drinking water to meet daily needs for months. This is a viable and sustainable solution to providing safe drinking water for the poorest of the poor around the world.

Image via broken city lab

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Main One Cable

Led by Funke Opeke Main One Cable is building:

...an open access submarine cable system(mirroring east Africa's EASSy), which when completed will span 14,000 kilometres and will provide international and Internet connectivity to countries between Portugal and South Africa on the West coast of Africa. MainOne will interconnect countries on the Atlantic Coast from Morocco through to Angola with each other, and through Portugal to the rest of the world.

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