Anyway aside football, here are some of the topics that interested our editors this week;
#1. Does Uganda Really Lack Local Content?
James Wire, one of Uganda’s IT visionaries took a spin on the local content debate with a blog post in the New Vision. Some still think that local content is still largely lacking, but that’s because they’ve not considered social media tools like Facebook, Whatsapp and Twitter. Low internet costs are making it possible for more people to come online according to James. He compares the state of local content online to programming we had in the early 90’s on radio stations where most of the content broadcasted wasn’t local, but soon changed.
#2. Equity Bank, Safaricom in clash that could affect Mpesa’s future
Equity Bank in Kenya is on the road to disrupt Safaricom’s dominance of the mobile money remittance and transfer service. Equity Bank’s weapon is a technology called Thin SIM. Standard Media writes that the Thin SIM can work alongside all four mobile operators in Kenya — Safaricom, Airtel, yuMobile and Orange — enabling the user to use services of the primary network with added functionality of the secondary network without buying a second phone or using a dual SIM phone. If well implemented, this will be a game changer.
#3. 10 years a Capitalist
Jason Chukwuma Njoku, Founder of iROKO chronicles his 10 year long journey as an internet entrepreneur. There’s something to learn for upcoming entrepreneurs especially with the fact that he too had some serious failures.
#4. 5 Things to consider before buying a Smartphone in Uganda
Roger Bambino has some really useful tips for smartphone shoppers. It’s some good wisdom that will inform your decision making process before you land yourself that shinny Gizmo.
#5. Social Media is SOMETIMES over-rated and is in some cases antisocial
Albert Mucunguzi jots down a few points on the social media craze that’s recently caught like a wild fire all over Africa. He examines social media from a publisher’s point-of-view and also how it’s changing how we interact with ourselves. Albert manages PctechMagazine and also works with UGO both of which are digital platforms, so you might want to read about his experiences.
#6. Africa’s stock market capitalization tripled between 2002 and 2012
This isn’t your conventional “Africa rising” narrative. According to an Infinite Potentials Consulting report posted on Techmoran, from just 5 stock exchanges in 1989, there are now 28 stock exchanges in Africa with an estimated total market capitalization of over US$732 billion representing a 300% jump from US$245 billion in 2002 and US$113 billion in 1992.
#7. Mark Zuckerberg on a Future Where the Internet Is Available to All
With only about about 2.7 billion people online, only one third of the world’s population is connected to the internet. Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg writes in the Wall Street Journal on how connecting Everyone on the Planet to the Web Can Create Opportunity and Reduce Poverty. Zuck writes that a recent study by Deloitte found that expanding Internet access in developing countries would create 140 million jobs and lift 160 million people out of poverty, and that the newfound opportunity would even meaningfully reduce child-mortality rates. These and more are some of the stories that caught our attention. If you have anything interesting during the course of the week, please tweet us, hashtag with #digreplay on Twitter. You can also subscribe to our emailing list for a weekly wrap-up delivered to your inbox.
Image: business2community
