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Egypt wants 20% of the electricity it consumes by 2022 produced from clean sources. To actualize this goal, the government is putting in place structures and policies to guide private investment in the renewables energy sector development.

Telkom plans to switch off its legacy 2G network in South Africa within the next 12 to 18 months and will likely become the first mobile operator in the country to do so. With only a tiny fraction of its mobile base still using its 2G network. The company says it will henceforth focus on 4G/LTE and is keen to launch a next-generation 5G network, but unlikely to do so until after a spectrum auction likely to take place later this year.

On July 11, we convened the TC Townhall: Renewable Energy bringing together regulators, investors, development agencies, multinationals and entrepreneurs to discuss The Future of Africa’s Energy. In case you missed it (how could you?), we’ve put together an event wrap up which you can find here.

Applications are open till July 31 for the six-month fully funded 2019 Westerwelle Young Founders Programme. 25 entrepreneurs will be selected to join the Westerwelle Foundation for International Understanding programme and have the opportunity to connect with other young founders from developing and emerging economies and the German startup scene.  Here’s a link to apply. 

IROKOtv’s film studio, ROK, has been acquired by French television company Canal+ for an undisclosed fee. ROK film studios was incubated to create original content for IROKOtv, a streaming platform with an extensive offering of Nollywood movies founded in 2010 by Jason Njoku. ROK film studio founder and actress/producer, Mary Njoku, will stay on as Director-General. Launched in 2013, ROK has since produced over 540 movies and 25 original television series.

Canal+ wants to replicate the productivity that the Nigerian movie industry has become synonymous with, even with low to average budgets, in French-speaking regions across Africa. Under the deal, ROK will continue to create unique content for IROKOtv, ROK’s four existing channels—three on DSTV and ROK Sky in the UK—as well as Canal+’s Africa and global channels.

South Africa’s Ministry of Small Business Development is converting former teachers training colleges into digital hubs. An already existing partnership between Vodacom and the Department of Basic Education is turning these colleges into youth centres which the ministry aims to expand into digital hubs where young entrepreneurs have access to technology tools for ideation, experimentation, testing, and end-user computing. Eight more hubs will come from the Small Enterprise Development Agency this year in addition to 52 existing hubs across the country. The Department of Small Business Development is looking to ramp up its support for small businesses in the country with these initiatives.

From The Cabal

+ Access to funding and a shortage of technical-know-how are two challenges that need to be solved for the Nigerian solar industry to shine, writes Olanrewaju Odunowo.

What We’re Reading

+ Why would a self-driving vehicle that uses cameras, lasers and sensors to get around need headlights or mirrors? In this article, Bloomberg takes a look at the fate of some automobile parts and their suppliers as the autonomous car industry continues to grow.