With annual demand for mushrooms of 1200 tonnes and local production of only 500, a Kenyan mushroom expert with 35 years of experience is training young growers to become millionaires. SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD AGENCY | In a cosy workshop in Eldoret in western Kenya, Jackton Onyango Otieno, a down-to-earth, …
Read More »Africa eyes greater say, more agency with added IMF, World Bank board seats
Africa is to gain additional seats on the influential boards of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, elevating the region’s clout in global finance governance. This comes as African nations look to carve out space to act with greater agency and self-determination, both in continental and world affairs. …
Read More »LED lighting transforms the biggest market in Uganda
LED lighing is helping marketers make sales during the night-time SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD AGENCY | In St. Balikuddembe Market, Kampala, while the day winds down, Ssemwogerere Andrew digs into a bale of rubber shoes, determined to secure a last-minute sale. The market’s history hasn’t always been this forgiving for …
Read More »Small biscuit factory shows that shifting from wheat to sweet potato flour could be a win for African bakers
In 2022, Adeline Pelage and her husband risked everything to shift their small biscuit factory from baking with wheat flour to locally ourced sweet potato flour. They haven’t looked back. SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD NEWS AGENCY | It’s a six-story climb to get to the rooftop that houses the small …
Read More »Starlink casts a financial lifeline to Jumia in new deal
Starlink to leverage Jumia’s retail network to supercharge its broadband rollout in Africa, extending a vital financial lifeline to the struggling online retailer. SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD AGENCY | The stars may finally be aligning for Jumia after SpaceX’s Starlink tapped the online retailer, once dubbed Africa’s ‘Amazon’ to drive …
Read More »A young mayor ignites a city and youthful dreams
A young mayor taps into the burgeoning power of Africa’s youth in order to bring change – including digitisation – to a city in Eastern Zambia. SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD AGENCY | The sun is casting long shadows over Chipata, a small but busy city in Zambia’s Eastern Province when …
Read More »The Black Book: How Nigeria’s fintech elite fuelled Nollywood’s first Netflix chart topper
The success of the Nollywood thriller proves that the match of movie production with well-heeled Nigerian fintech superstars is a marriage made in heaven. The Black Book has trended at number one on Netflix in countries as diverse as Greece, Israel, Jamaica, Kenya, Luxembourg, South Korea, Sweden and of course, …
Read More »Precious artefacts looted in 1868 war with Britain returned to Ethiopia
Ethiopian artefacts looted after the 1868 battle of Magdala, including a lock of hair and relics linked to the ark of the covenant have been returned to Ethiopia’s Embassy in London, thanks to the efforts of an Afghan-Indian activist foundation. SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD AGENCY | The British government’s return …
Read More »Domestic Travel Boom: African airlines prepare for traffic surge
African carriers are introducing larger aircraft and replacing older fleets to meet rising passenger traffic, largely driven by strengthening domestic post-COVID demand and expanding regional networks, according to an international trade association. SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD AGENCY | Over the next two decades, Africa’s jet fleet is projected to more …
Read More »Price wars drive adoption of cleaner cabs, carpooling in Africa
Stung by price pressure, some cab operators in Africa are pushing to electrify their fleets, while others adopt hybrid and LPG-powered versions SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD AGENCY | Consumers love cheaper rides and there’s always a driver willing to take less per ride. To cushion themselves from losses, many taxi …
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