Category: 3-SometimeTechTalk

Posted on

African Tech Roundup - The Sunday Times’ Pearl Boshomane Tsotetsi on lifestyle journalism politics & travelling while black

Pearl Boshomane Tsotetsi is the Lifestyle Editor at the Sunday Times (South Africa). Pearl was voted one of Mail and Guardian's Top 200 Young South Africans in 2015 and assumed her current role in 2017. She previously served as Editor of Daily Planet, an intersectional pop culture and social commentary website covering the arts, feminism, racism, social media and digital consumer trends. In addition to working at the Sunday Times, the self-proclaimed "Blonde Bombshell" writes and curates for her blog, FeministMakoti.co.za— a platform for black female voices to convey perspectives on love, sex, marriage, relationships and everything in between. In this conversation with Andile Masuku - taped at Africa Travel Summit 2018 (http://africatravelsummit.com) - Pearl unpacks her aspirational editorial approach to crafting an “intelligent lifestyle product” that is both representative and market-relevant. Listen in for some straight-talk about the sociopolitical and economic importance of profiling black excellence in top-tier lifestyle reporting, and for candid views on the highlights and hazards of travelling while black. Editorial Disclaimer: Airbnb (https://airbnb.com) is the presenting sponsor of this podcast, which is part of an African Tech Roundup (https://africantechroundup.com) miniseries focused on inclusive travel and tourism— recorded at the Africa Travel Summit 2018. African Tech Roundup retains full editorial control over all published content. Opinions expressed by the host, Andile Masuku, and his guest/s do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the presenting sponsor, Airbnb.
Posted on

African Tech Roundup - Airbnb’s Chris Lehane on growing the sharing economy and democratising travel and tourism

Chris Lehane is Airbnb’s Head of Global Policy, Public Affairs and Communications. Chris engages with policymakers around the world to safeguard the rights of people who have bought into the travel industry giant's home sharing proposition. He also frequently contributes to public discourse around the societal hazards, economic benefits and democratisation potential of the new "experience economy" Airbnb is propagating. In the 1990's, Chris served in various positions in the Clinton Administration, including Press Secretary to Vice-President Al Gore and Special Assistant Counsel to President Bill Clinton. Today, he is easily one of the world’s most high profile sharing economy proponents and in this conversation with Andile Masuku - taped at Africa Travel Summit 2018 (http://africatravelsummit.com) - Chris unpacks some of the idealistic values influencing Airbnb’s strategy and fuelling their growth. He also tackles some of the very real challenges that society will need to confront as the world navigates towards a more inclusive future of global travel and tourism. Editorial Disclaimer: Airbnb (https://airbnb.com) is the presenting sponsor of this podcast, which is part of an African Tech Roundup (https://africantechroundup.com) miniseries focused on inclusive travel and tourism— recorded at the Africa Travel Summit 2018. African Tech Roundup retains full editorial control over all published content.
Posted on

African Tech Roundup - Pesapal’s Mark Mwongela talks fintech’s impact on Africa’s travel and tourism industry

Mark Mwongela is the Co-founder and CEO of Pesapal, a leading Kenyan mobile, online and point-of-sale (POS) payment platform operating in seven African countries including Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Kenya. Previously, Mark served as Technical Director at Pesapal— overseeing the firm's product development efforts, and prior to that, he was Managing Director of Variant Technology Management Consultancy. In this conversation with Andile Masuku - taped at Africa Travel Summit 2018 (http://africatravelsummit.com) - Mark shares the rationale for Pesapal's Pan-African hospitality business focus and factors in on how home-grown fintech innovation is contributing to the growth of the continent's travel and tourism industry at large. Listen in to hear how a travel blog targeting Kenyans living abroad led to the development of what is now one of Kenya’s leading mobile, online and point of sale platforms servicing hundreds of hotels, tour companies and travel operators. Editorial Disclaimer: Airbnb (https://airbnb.com) is the presenting sponsor of this podcast, which is part of an African Tech Roundup (https://africantechroundup.com) miniseries focused on inclusive travel and tourism— recorded at the Africa Travel Summit 2018. African Tech Roundup retains full editorial control over all published content. Opinions expressed by the host, Andile Masuku, and his guest/s do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the presenting sponsor, Airbnb.
Posted on

PHPUgly - 121: You know nothing John Congdon

This month the team discusses Safe PHP: throwing exceptions instead of returning false

Other topics include

Posted on

African Tech Roundup - Hacking Remittances and Other Stories feat. Herbert Banhire of AMA.ZING (Zing Holdings)

According to a recent World Bank report, it's more costly to send money to Africa than to anywhere else in the world. On average, a 12% remittance fee is charged for every USD200 sent to the continent. Just last year (2017), African Diasporans reportedly sent home USD38 billion, and doubtless, a solid chunk of that sum served to line the pockets of financial incumbents who are only too happy to promote the status quo. In this episode of the African Tech Roundup, Herbert Banhire, AMA.ZING's Head of Zimbabwean Diaspora SA, joins Andile Masuku and guest co-host, Tapsnapp Founder, Vije Vijendranath, to chat about some leading tech and innovation ecosystem trends and to talk about the Zing Holdings' (http://ama.zing.world) ambitions to disrupt Africa's remittance industry via their first B2C virtual coin-based remittance offering, AMA.ZING. The Mauritius-registered Zing Holdings was founded by South Africans Jason Perthel (CEO) and Warren Venter. AMA.ZING is poised to help Zimbabweans living in South Africa - banked or not - conduct free mobile transactions and access basic insurance services. Listen in to hear Andile, Vije and Herbert unpack Zing's Sure Remit-esque platform aspirations against the backdrop of the unprecedented early-stage investment goldrush currently happening within Africa's fintech scene. Music Credits: Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com) Music licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 Image Credit: https://rawpixel.com
Posted on

PHPUgly - 120: Hype Driven Development

This month the team discusses the loss of a good friend and talented developer William Cahill-Manley. Please consider helping out William's family with their GoFundMe goal give Willam a final send-off.

Other topics include