Contador Harrison

Tanzania’s deployment of 4G,  combined with increasing demand for advanced IT services, is set to drive growth East Africa’s largest country’s telecoms sector .In simple definition, 4G is the fourth generation of mobile wireless technology standards, with the generation denoting the standards of network coverage and speeds, along with services provided. No doubt 4G offers smoother and quicker data transfers. Much of the demand is predicted to come from Tanzania’s rising middle-income segment. It is estimated that at least 40m people in the country, approximately two third of the population will fall within the middle and affluent earnings brackets by 2025, according to a study,  deepening the potential client pool . New products and services are also expected to pave the way for increasing opportunities for foreign investors in a market where mobile phone subscription levels are already at near saturation point. Currently, Tanzania has more than 40m mobile subscriptions, with ...

In a research extensively conducted in  Africa on the impact on employment of advances in technologies  between January to August 2016 covering 30 countries points to a possible scenario where half of the existing jobs could be wiped out in the next eight years.Industries that will be most affected will see 3D Printing, automation, robotics and artificial intelligence take over. The findings reveals that technology will displace types of work but current trend shows advances are not going to be net creators of jobs in Africa, that entirely new types of work will require uniquely human capabilities and technology will redefine Africans relationship to work going forward. Few if at all any African country have the capacity to shape the future  through their choices and most will be shaped by it.Some of the detrimental impacts African countries have seen so far is in blue collar industries which will soon knock on the doors of white collar workers. While highly skilled work...

In countries like Kenya, Nigeria, there has been new security laws that have been enacted in the last few years  in what those countries governments said were a way to getting bad guys out of circulation and nipping in the bud terror actors .But I can confidently reveal the metadata retention is currently being misused to harm ordinary Africans than catch criminals or terrorists. Debate over a data retention scheme can seem abstruse, given the technical aspects of the debate and the complex legal and philosophical issues around freedom of speech, a free press and privacy. The powerful security agencies across Africa are demanding that a mandatory data retention scheme be implemented with little debate and less information,  there is no settled definition of what data is to be retained , and the telephone and ISP companies that will be forced to implement the scheme don’t know the costs they will face. Some security agencies heads claims it is a national security priority, but...

Uganda’s oil and gas industry has faced challenges since the discovery of commercially viable deposits were made public ten years ago this year. Since then, not only have crude prices been volatile, but there have also been dramatic changes in the regulatory landscape. Despite the increase of prices in the last few months and several new incentives for the private sector, upstream oil companies are looking for ways to better manage their operations in Albertine region in Western Uganda. Digital technologies provide them the opportunity not only to cut costs but also to redesign their businesses to thrive in volatile market conditions. However, time and money are short, so the pressure to act decisively is growing as the current downturn lingers.Most oil companies have already taken dramatic cost-cutting measures and canceled or delayed capital projects with most notable one being UK’s Tullow Oil company. Yet many still feel the weight of managing their businesses under the constraints...

African Cup of Nations kicked off last night in Libreville, Gabon after a colourful opening ceremony. In the opening match Guinea Bissau’s Juary Soares grabbed a leveller for debutants west African country after Borussia Dortmund's striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had put hosts Gabon ahead. In second match, with both teams playing attractive football, Burkina Faso secured a 1-1 draw with Cameroon which had taken on 35 minutes after Benjamin Moukandjo superb free-kick into the left corner hit the net when Issoufou Dayo nodded in the equaliser. CAF, Africa’s football’s governing body, is not a perfect multinational corporation. It would be quite naïve to envisage that the African Cup of Nations should have the capacity to bring Africa peace, fix inequality, stamp out corruption and overcome other issues espoused by various media and public commentators in recent days. On balance,  however, the African Cup of Nations as an institution is a force for Africa good in my view and for a ...

Yesterday, I shared what makes Kenya and South Africa are the most attractive to cyber criminals . Industry experts say Kenya is a sitting duck for cyber attacks, with defence capabilities that are years behind other African countries and not enough talented people willing join its cyber defence team. Some of the reasons researchers have noted are poor pay, tribalism and under investments.Kenya, just like many other African countries rely with expatriates from the west to manage their cyber defence capabilities. There were more than 4,000 organisations significantly hacked in 2016 largely due to lack of talented people willing to join Kenya’s cyber defence teams.Kenya has been in the sights of global cyber-attackers in recent months, with some estimating more than 4,000 organisations have had their data stolenThe President office, 13 commercial banks, two media houses and three tele operators are just a few of the high-profile entities to have fallen victim to attack. Many of the inci...

Yesterday I wrote about the future of television in Africa and how current business models will have to be shredded. The value proposition of traditional television has been to cater for a very diverse audience, produce unique content and provide high-quality journalism. This has all been paid for by TV license fees in UK or advertising revenues in other parts for the world. However, this business model seems to be broken, for a number of reasons.The internet and online streaming as a common technology platform allows content providers to focus on what they are really good at, be it sports, drama, shows or news coverage. This is a clear opportunity for TV broadcasters both mainstream and online content creators. It definitely minimises the pressure of that suffocating everything for everybody idea and opens the door for increased specialisation. The fading of traditional television starts to be a potential source of exciting and innovative programmes and formats. Going forward, the su...