Jess Auerbach Jahajeeah, an associate professor at the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business, is currently writing a book on fibre optic cables and digital connectivity. She spent time in late 2023 aboard the ship whose crew is responsible for maintaining most of Africa’s undersea network. She spoke to The Conversation Africa about the importance of these cables.

1. What’s the geographical extent of Africa’s current undersea network?

Fibre optic cables now literally encircle Africa, though some parts of the continent are far better connected than others. This is because both public and private organisations have made major investments in the past ten years.

Based on an interactive map of fibre optic cables, it’s clear that South Africa is in a relatively good position. When the breakages happened, the network was affected for a few hours before the internet traffic was rerouted; a technical process that depends both on there being alternative routes available and corporate agreements in place to enable the rerouting. It’s the same as driving using a tool like Google Maps. If there’s an accident on the road it finds another way to get you to your destination.

But, in several African countries – including Sierra Leone and Liberia – most of the cables don’t have spurs (the equivalent of off-ramps on the road), so only one fibre optic cable actually comes into the country. Internet traffic from these countries basically stops when the cable breaks.

Naturally that has huge implications for every aspect of life, business and even politics. Whilst some communication can be rerouted via satellites, satellite traffic accounts for only about 1% of digital transmissions globally. Even with interventions such as satellite-internet distribution service Starlink it’s still much slower and much more expensive than the connection provided by undersea cables.

Basically all internet for regular people relies on fibre optic cables. Even landlocked countries rely on the network, because they have agreements with countries with landing stations – highly-secured buildings close to the ocean where the cable comes up from underground and is plugged into terrestrial systems. For example southern Africa’s internet comes largely through connections in Melkbosstrand, just outside Cape Town, and Mtunzini in northern KwaZulu-Natal, both in South Africa. Then it’s routed overland to various neighbours.

Each fibre optic cable is extremely expensive to build and to maintain. Depending on the technical specifications (cables can have more or fewer fibre threads and enable different speeds for digital traffic) there are complex legal agreements in place for who is responsible for which aspects of maintenance.

2. What prompted you to write a book about the social history of fibre optic cables in Africa?

I first visited Angola in 2011 to start work for my PhD project. The internet was all but non-existent – sending an email took several minutes at the time. Then I went back in 2013, after the South Atlantic Cable System went into operation. It made an incredible difference: suddenly Angola’s digital ecosystem was up and running and everybody was online.

At the time I was working on social mobility and how people in Angola were improving their lives after a long war. Unsurprisingly, having digital access made all sorts of things possible that simply weren’t imaginable before. I picked up my interest again once I was professionally established, and am now writing it up as a book, Capricious Connections. The title refers to the fact that the cables wouldn’t do anything if it wasn’t for the infrastructure that they plug into at various points.

Landing centres such as Sangano in Angola are fascinating both because of what they do technically (connecting and routing internet traffic all over the country) and because they often highlight the complexities of the digital divide.

For example, Sangano is a remarkable high-tech facility run by an incredibly competent and socially engaged company, Angola Cables. Yet the school a few hundred metres from the landing station still doesn’t have electricity.

When we think about the digital divide in Africa, that’s often still the reality: you can bring internet everywhere but if there’s no infrastructure, skills or frameworks to make it accessible, it can remain something abstract even for those who live right beside it.

In terms of history, fibre optic cables follow all sorts of fascinating global precedents. The 2012 cable that connected one side of the Atlantic Ocean to the other is laid almost exactly over the route of the transatlantic slave trade, for example. Much of the basic cable map is layered over the routes of the copper telegraph network that was essential for the British empire in the 1800s.

Most of Africa’s cables are maintained at sea by the remarkable crew of the ship Léon Thévenin. I joined them in late 2023 during a repair operation off the coast of Ghana. These are uniquely skilled artisans and technicians who retrieve and repair cables, sometimes from depths of multiple kilometres under the ocean.

When I spent time with the crew last year, they recounted once accidentally retrieving a section of Victorian-era cable when they were trying to “catch” a much more recent fibre optic line. (Cables are retrieved in many ways; one way is with a grapnel-like hook that is dragged along the ocean bed in roughly the right location until it snags the cable.)

There are some very interesting questions emerging now about what is commonly called digital colonialism. In an environment where data is often referred to with terms like “the new oil”, we’re seeing an important change in digital infrastructure.

Previously cables were usually financed by a combination of public and private sector partnerships, but now big private companies such as Alphabet, Meta and Huawei are increasingly financing cable infrastructure. That has serious implications for control and monitoring of digital infrastructure.

Given we all depend so much on digital tools, poorer countries often have little choice but to accept the terms and conditions of wealthy corporate entities. That’s potentially incredibly dangerous for African digital sovereignty, and is something we should be seeing a lot more public conversation about.

• Jess Auerbach Jahajeeah is an Associate Professor, Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town
• This article first appeared in The Conversation

“We are excited and optimistic, because it brings hope to Africa. In health, education, sustainability and more it will help to solve challenges,” she told Microsoft South Africa’s ‘A New Era with AI’ event in Sandton this week.

“We believe this technology can give us an upward trajectory when it comes to the African economy. In fact, analysts predict we can increase the African economy by 50% if we capture just 10% of the global AI market.”

Barnard thinks there is huge potential for AI in Africa.

“AI is changing things every day, and will shape everything we do”, she said. “It is truly the most defining technology of our time.”

AI’s big day in Africa

The continent is at the same “inflexion point” as the rest of the world, as AI technology is “changing fast and large language models [LLMs] are accelerating transformation”.

But, she adds, Africa still has its significant challenges. ‘We have high levels of unemployment but are blessed with a youthful population. We have a lack of connectivity and lack of digital or tech skills.”

To this end, Microsoft SA CEO Kalane Rampai announced an AI skills training program with Youth Employment Service (YES) for 300,000 youngsters.

Barnard, from whom Rampai took over when she was promoted to oversee “all of Africa”, said, “Despite these challenges, we see investment in cloud technology across the continent, and organisations infuse these technologies into their business processes”.

Legal Interact, which provides technology to the legal industry, uses AI to scan agreements and has developed an AI chatbot for a free WhatsApp service called My AI Lawyer. They are “literally using generative AI to democratise legal support,” says Barnard, having handled 50,000 queries in September alone.

The eThikwini municipality is using AI to help minimise “water losses, provide better quality water and ensure the general availability of water”.

Investec has developed its own generative AI service called ZebraGPT for its 9,000 employees, while broadcaster MultiChoice is using it for translating into other languages and producing subtitles, which takes 30% less time but is still 80% accurate.

“We know we are on the cusp of the next revolution that will change and shape the outlook of the continent for everyone,” enthused Barnard. “It’s the opportunity of a lifetime. We know AI transformation, the next wave of innovation, is here.”

Indeed, the AI race is well and truly on.

Money gets the AI ball rolling

Microsoft presciently invested $1 billion in OpenAI and when its ChatGPT exploded a year ago, it put in another $10 billion to raise its stake to 50%. OpenAI’s technology underpins Microsoft’s Copilot.

Left in the marketing dust, Google has rushed to catch up – declaring that the generative AI was a “code red” for its hugely profitable search business. Last year it invested $300 million in AI startup Anthropic, which makes an AI service called Claude. In September, Amazon – whose Alexa voice assistant was an early AI service – also invested $4 billion in Anthropic.

Another AI startup, Inflection AI, raised $1.3 billion from Microsoft and Nvidia amongst others.

Microsoft has masterfully evolved itself into a cloud-focused behemoth, folding its once-dominant Windows business into the Azure cloud division. This alone gives you a sense of how much it has changed in the last decade.

Last month it was given the go-ahead by competition authorities to finalise its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which makes the wildly successful Call of Duty and World of Warcraft games.

Having evolved into a cloud player, second to Amazon Web Services, it is adding its OpenAI technology as a new AI assistant in its software, called Copilot. Baked into all of Microsoft’s offerings, it offers a much more focused service than ChatGPT, which uses LLMs based on the World Wide Web.

With Copilot, a Microsoft user can specify what documents, emails, or contacts to use as sources and get a more focused result.

“We talk about Copilot and not autopilot,” says Barnard. “it is helping build apps much faster, creating presentations, publishing documents. People collaborating literally at the next level.”

To achieve this Microsoft has had to add more and more processing power to its data centres, while also trying to use less fossil fuel-based electricity in a climate-conscious era.

South Africa’s Azure data centres launched in 2019 and are the second fastest-growing in the world, said Mark Chaban, Microsoft’s chief technology officer for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.

Read More: Microsoft’s AI wants to be your Copilot

Microsoft is one of few so-called hyperscalers, who provide massive networks of data centres with fast connections between them. Chaban says Microsoft will build 120 data centres this year, or a new one every three days. “How do you do this sustainably?” he asks.

Its research division has found sometimes simple concepts (like allowing natural airflow to cool down racks of servers, then adding water for the breeze to pass through to cool it down further) or complex ones like submerging whole data centres under the sea near Scotland.

Another approach is to immerse the motherboard in a non-conductive liquid coolant, which – like the submersed modules which remove all oxygen – also reduces the temperature and increases the servers’ performance.

As Barnard says: “we are in the next wave of AI transformation”.

As global developments in AI, like OpenAI’s DALL-E 2 and conversational agents like ChatGPT, continue to shape the future, our continent stands ready not just to adapt but to lead.

And do not think the concept is high-minded or unattainable. It has immediate potential in the device sitting on your desk or in the palm of your hand.

Gadgets, once considered mere tools, have evolved into intelligent companions, thanks to the infusion of AI. Whether it is smartphones adapting to user habits, smart speakers processing voice commands, or fitness trackers analysing health metrics in real-time, AI is at the heart of these advancements, making gadgets more intuitive and user-centric.

The future beckons

The integration of AI into gadgets has unlocked a realm of possibilities. Modern smartphones, equipped with AI, can recognise scenes, adjust settings in real-time, and even enhance images post-capture, all autonomously. Similarly, in the world of wearables, AI-driven algorithms analyse sleep patterns, heart rate variability, and stress levels, providing insights that were once the domain of specialised medical equipment.

But before I get too carried away, and as gadgets become smarter, concerns about privacy, data security, and over-reliance on technology come to the fore. The onus now lies on tech developers and policymakers alike to ensure the dance, remains in harmony with the best interests of humanity.

But it is those interests that can be best served in Africa. A new McKinsey Global survey says global AI adoption is surging, doubling from its commencement in 2017 and the continent is not just a follower in this narrative.

With its exponentially growing youth demographic, burgeoning middle class, and escalating mobile and internet penetration, there is convincing evidence that the continent could soon be a torchbearer in AI innovation and application.

For instance, AI’s imprint on healthcare in Africa is transformative. Companies like Eden Care from Rwanda, which is streamlining health insurance processes, and Zuri Health in Kenya, which extends healthcare access to remote regions, show how Africa is harnessing AI for the greater good.

And AI’s potential does not merely orbit around healthcare. Pioneering startups across the continent are leveraging AI to tailor-make solutions for unique African challenges.

Forecasts suggest that AI expenditure on the continent will jump from $3bn in 2023 to $6.4bn by 2026.

What to do about AI

So, look, there it is. The bandwagon is ready and waiting for you to climb on. But what do you need?

Companies need to partner with local talent, understand grassroots challenges, and develop solutions in collaboration with communities. Building robust data infrastructure will be paramount.

Then recognise that one-size-fits-all solutions will not suffice. Develop AI models that cater to Africa’s unique socio-economic and cultural landscape.

To my earlier point about ethics, develop AI responsibly and ensure that it does not perpetuate biases or inequalities. Address ethical concerns head-on and ensure transparency in AI processes.

So, to corporations, governments, startups, and individuals—this is the pivotal moment. Engage with AI, funnel investments, stimulate innovation, and in unity, craft an AI-led era where Africa does not just adapt but paves the way.

This guest column was written by Kerushan Govender, founder and CEO of Blacfox. Blacfox is a marketing strategy consultancy focussed primarily on the tech sector serving some of the world’s largest brands like Microsoft, SAP, VMware, and LexisNexis. Kerushan Govender on LinkedIn.

The most famous of these projects is an international research consortium called BioRescue. It was founded in 2019 by a team of scientists and conservationists under the leadership of the Leibniz Institute for Zoo & Wildlife Research in Berlin, Germany.

In one of its research lines, the BioRescue team collects mature eggs – scientifically called oocytes – from one of the only two northern white females. They reside in Kenya’s Ol Pejeta Conservancy, a privately run wildlife sanctuary. These eggs will be fertilised with frozen sperm that were collected from several northern white male rhinos before their death.

The two remaining females, Najin and Fatu, are not capable of delivering offspring anymore. Najin’s back legs are too weak to carry a pregnancy and Fatu has problems with her uterus. Therefore, the resulting embryos from the fertilised eggs will be transferred into surrogate mothers.

The most suitable surrogate mother would be a southern white rhino as it is the closest related species. But, placing a northern white rhino embryo in a southern white female rhino isn’t an easy task. However, there was promising news in May 2023. Next to the addition of five more northern white embryos – which brings the total to 29 – two wild southern white rhinos were identified as suitable surrogates, as they can still get pregnant and are able to carry the pregnancy through.

The goal of producing a new northern white rhino calf now seems more realistic than ever before.

Sometimes people question the funding and effort spent on one species, but the science behind the rhinoceros story is much bigger. Any species going extinct has huge consequences on the ecosystem, and people’s survival depends on resources provided by this same ecosystem. As a recognisable, impressive and majestic animal, rhinos certainly have a role as a flagship of conservation efforts.

Further, joint efforts on one species can provide scientific knowledge that allows for a multi-species conservation approach. These techniques would not only save the northern white rhinoceros, but also other rhino species, related species with a common ancestor, and all other creatures in need.

Different approaches

Despite the great scientific strides made in efforts to save the northern white rhino, the success rate of embryo transplantation followed by pregnancy to term is extremely low. Parallel initiatives focusing on different conservation approaches are indispensable to ensure the future of this species.

While BioRescue is collecting matured eggs after hormonal stimulation, the Rhino Fertility Project at the University of Oxford in the UK is focusing on growing follicles, which are structures found in the ovary containing an immature egg surrounded by a few layers of supporting cells. These supporting cells provide signals and components essential for the development of the eggs. The idea is to make use of the much greater potential of the ovary by collecting the very small follicles and growing them all in a petridish in the lab.

This would bypass atresia, which is the degradation of follicles that occurs during a natural hormonal cycle. As member of this project, one of us, Ruth Appeltant, was hopeful that this method had the potential to quickly provide a vast number of in vitro-grown oocytes, or mature eggs.

Unfortunately, it became clear that the ovarian tissue of older rhinoceroses contained extremely few to no oocytes. These eggs were needed as the starting material for the project. Without eggs, there is nothing to grow. Ongoing efforts are now looking to establish ways to localise and process the few remaining follicles in old ovarian tissue.

This bottleneck led us to the area of stem cell technologies. At the Gamete Research Centre of the University of Antwerp in Belgium, our group is aiming to produce eggs outside the body from stem cells. These could be used to conserve endangered species like the rhinoceros.

The BioRescue project and a research group at the San Diego Zoo in the US are also aiming to produce artificial eggs from body cells present in tissues.

The common thread is turning cells into induced pluripotent stem cells, which are immature cells generated from mature cells, and that can in turn differentiate into eggs. In fact, this process can transform a skin cell into an egg. The procedure has so far been completed successfully in mice and could already provide a kind of precursor to oocytes in the northern white rhino.

Read More: Beyond the hype: How AI could change the game for social science research

The collection of oocytes is a really tricky process due to the technical difficulties in reaching the site of the ovaries in living animals. Advanced artificial reproductive techniques using body cells, such as skin cells, introduce a spectrum of new possibilities. Most biological samples stored to date consist of small skin samples, but not of oocytes.

A downside to this approach is the fact that scientists first need to succeed in producing stem cells in the species of interest.

At the University of Antwerp’s Gamete Research Centre, we’re not only interested in developing stem cell technologies based on induced pluripotent stem cells, but are currently establishing the in vitro gametogenesis – or “in vitro oocyte-creation” technique – based on stem cells present in the ovary. Due to a scarcity of tissues from endangered species, we are using the pig as a large animal model. This will give us more in-depth knowledge on how to approach egg creation from stem cells already present in the animal, termed endogenous stem cells.

What next?

When we do not have eggs, let’s create them. When we have stem cells, let’s use them. Researchers now know that samples of the northern white rhino individuals currently stored in biobanks have enough genetic variability to establish a viable and sustainable population.

A decade ago, we would have never imagined eggs could be produced from other cells. This is becoming a reality that gives us hope, motivation and energy to save the northern white rhino.

• Ruth Appeltant is an Assistant research professor, University of Antwerp
• Rita L. Sousa is a PhD Candidate, University of Antwerp
• This article first appeared on The Conversation

Nnenna Ifeanyi-Ajufo, a technology law expert, explains the current cyber governance situation in Africa.

What is cyber governance and why is it so important?

Cyber governance is an important aspect of the international cybersecurity strategy for preventing and mitigating cyber threats. It features oversight processes, decision-making hierarchies and international cooperation. It also includes systems for accountability and responsible state behaviour in cyberspace. In recent years, cyber governance has been prominent in diplomatic and political agendas when regions or countries need to work together.

To promote digital transformation, cyberspace must be made secure and stable, using appropriate governance standards.

Digital transformation offers Africa tremendous opportunities. These include the economic empowerment of citizens, transparent governance and less corruption. But digital transformation can only happen on the continent if its digital spaces are trusted, secure and resilient.

Read More: Five things South Africa must do to combat cybercrime

How are African governments doing on this front?

Not very well. In 2014, the African Union Commission adopted the African Union Convention on Cybersecurity and Personal Data Protection. It is also known as the Malabo Convention. It is supposed to provide principles and guidelines to ensure cybersecurity and stability in the region.

Only 15 out of the 55 AU member states have ratified the convention. These include Ghana, Mauritius, Togo and Rwanda.

Cyber governance has political dimensions. African countries are rooted in historical and cultural contexts that have an impact on politics and governance. Governance mechanisms in the region are further affected by political instability and conflicts.

The borderless nature of cyberspace presents particular challenges. This is especially so for African states that are accustomed to controlling activities in their territory.

The result of this has been a misunderstanding of cyber governance. This has manifested in internet shutdowns and restrictions of online activities for citizens. We have seen recent examples of this in Senegal, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia and Nigeria.

African leaders’ views on regulating the digital space vary. This is clear from their reluctance to ratify the Malabo Convention.

Often, international standards collide with the realities of developing states. This is true for states in Africa that are on the wrong side of the digital divide. This means they lack the capacity, skills and infrastructure to govern cyberspace to international standards. Overall, this limited institutional and technical capacity implies that effective cyber governance may not exist in practice for Africa.

There are some good stories, though. Ghana has ratified the Malabo Convention and the Convention on Cybercrime of 2001. It also passed a Cybercrime Act into law in 2020 and has developed a robust cybersecurity strategy.

What needs to happen to bring all countries in line?

Preserving cyber stability is a collaborative effort. African countries need to find ways to work together to foster appropriate policies or strategies. Adopting the Malabo Convention would show that countries see the importance of cooperation in governing the digital environment.

Greater coordination is also necessary at a regional level. For example, the Southern African Development Community has adopted a model law on cybercrime. The Economic Community of West African States has developed a directive on fighting cybercrime. Regional organisations have a key role to play in formulating policies and delivering outcomes.

Beyond ratifying the Malabo Convention, African states must also rethink best practices and the value of strategic regional partnerships. These partnerships are important because they create shared responsibility in a borderless space.

Africa must approach diplomacy strategically in this space and seek increased representation at global dialogues. The African Union remains largely absent from the evolving UN processes on cyber governance development. This implies that African interests, realities and domestic capabilities won’t get enough attention in the processes. There is also a need to bridge the institutional and technical gaps that have prevented African states from participating fully.

Committing to the Malabo Convention would provide a framework for united cyber governance norms and standards across the continent. As the international community continues to define these standards, Africa should be included.

• Nnenna Ifeanyi-Ajufo is a Professor of Technology Law, University of Bradford
• This article first appeared on The Conversation

But she has also noticed changes around her farm. There are fewer bees and – most worrying for her – fewer caterpillars, which used to make a delightful dish.

Precious Banda’s story is a perfect example of the situation millions of African farmers face.

Agricultural development is high on the policy agenda of African countries, as seen in the Agenda 2063 of the African Union. But while it’s needed to reduce poverty and hunger, agricultural development often clashes with biodiversity, which is declining at an alarming rate. Losing biodiversity could reduce food security by undermining ecosystem services like pollination, nutrient cycling and maintenance of water supplies. Wild food sources could also be lost.

In a new paper, we as researchers in economics, agronomy and ecology emphasise the importance of biodiversity-smart agricultural strategies. With Precious Banda’s story in our minds, we argue that such strategies need to pay much more attention to agricultural labour dynamics.

Biodiversity and agricultural labour

Biodiversity is lost when agricultural land expands and when farming is more intense. In Africa, 75% of agricultural growth comes from farmland expansion into forests and savannas. This leads to habitat loss and fragmentation. Farming more intensely curtails expansion, but may make the landscape less biodiverse and often leads to the use of more chemicals such as pesticides.

The importance of biodiversity-friendly agriculture is starting to be recognised more widely. But efforts to encourage it often neglect trade-offs with farm labour needs. We argue that neglecting these needs will undermine the success of biodiversity conservation efforts.

Farmers can reduce heavy labour by adopting technologies such as mechanisation and herbicides. For example, our previous research in Zambia showed tractors cut land preparation time from 226 to 10 hours per hectare. And in Burkina Faso, herbicides are referred to as “mothers’ little helpers” because they reduce women’s work in the fields.

But labour-saving technologies can negatively affect biodiversity through farmland expansion, farmland simplification, land degradation and spillover effects. For example, in an earlier study in Benin, Kenya, Nigeria, and Mali, we found that mechanisation sometimes led to the removal of trees and hedges from farms, and changed plot sizes and shapes. This resulted in a loss of farm diversity and of a healthy “patchwork” of habitats. Pesticides can harm soil life, water systems and insect populations if badly regulated and managed, as is often the case.

Read More: South Africa is famous for its biodiversity: a new network will store and manage its plant and animal samples

Biodiversity-enhancing technologies have the opposite problem: farmers often don’t adopt them because they add to the labour burden. Examples include inter-cropping (growing different crops close to each other) and planting basins (shallow indentations in the soil to provide a suitable environment for crops and place inputs). In Zimbabwe, a study noted that planting basins could be labour-intensive without always increasing yields.

Farmers typically adopt technologies and practices that use the least labour and provide high and stable yields, but those can be bad for biodiversity conservation.

What’s needed instead are biodiversity-smart technologies that enable farming with low labour, high yields and high biodiversity.

Biodiversity-smart agriculture

One potential solution is to adapt machines to farm size – and not the other way around. Smaller machinery can easily manoeuvre around trees, hedges and other landscape features that are key for biodiversity.

Combining smart biological solutions (like crop rotation) and mechanical ones (like precision spraying) is a path to lower pesticide use. In our paper, we discuss many other options, too.

For example, in plantation agriculture, tree-islands can improve biodiversity without reducing yields, as shown in a recent study.

Biodiversity-smart technologies reduce the costs (in terms of yield and labour) of biodiversity conservation for individual farmers. That increases the likelihood of adoption. Where conservation comes with higher costs than benefits, financial compensation may also be needed. This could, for example, be in the form of certification schemes or payment for ecosystem services.

Farm-level solutions have to be accompanied by efforts at the landscape level. These might be careful land-use planning and monitoring to preserve biodiversity hotspots and keep habitats connected. Our case study from Ethiopia shows that multi-functional landscapes can be planned to “work for biodiversity and people”.

We argue that biodiversity-smart agricultural development requires a shift in both policy making and research and development. Conservation ecologists must pay more attention to economic and social sustainability. Without accounting for labour issues, conservation efforts are unlikely to succeed. At the same time, agricultural scientists have to embrace multiple goals beyond yields.

Our paper shows that technological, agronomic and institutional innovations for biodiversity-smart agriculture exist. But more needs to be done to scale them. If successful, they can help to feed the growing population, improve the livelihoods of farmers, and conserve biodiversity before it is too late.

• Thomas Daum is a Senior Research Fellow, University of Hohenheim
• Frédéric Baudron is a Systems Agronomist, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT)
• Ingo Grass is a Professor, Department of Ecology of Tropical Agricultural Systems, University of Hohenheim
• Matin Qaim is a Director, Center for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn
• Regina Birner, University of Hohenheim
• This article first appeared on The Conversation
  

Supa Team 4? 

It’s created and written by Zambian writer Malenga Mulendema and South Africa’s own Triggerfish animation studio, though Netflix credits France-based studio Superprod for the show’s animation. Mulendema made a name for herself back in 2015 as one of the eight winners of Triggerfish Story Lab, Variety reports.

When the show was initially picked up in 2019, then known as ‘Mama K’s Team 4’, Mulendema told Animation Magazine “In creating a superhero show set in Lusaka, I hope to introduce the world to four strong African girls who save the day in their own fun and crazy way. Most importantly, I want to illustrate that anyone from anywhere can be a superhero.”

Read More: Netflix drops its Basic plan in Canada, replaces it with Basic with Ads

Netflix’s official synopsis for Supa Team 4 looks a little something like this;

A retired secret agent recruits four teen girls living in the neo-futuristic African city of Lusaka. Their assignment? Save the world…even if it’s on a budget. In their journey from school girls tackling homework to undercover superheroes fending off supervillains, they’re transformed from a motley crew of friends into Supa Team 4!

The cast, too, includes several African stars such as John Kani (Black Panther, The Lion King), Pamela Nomvete (Andor), Nancy Sekhokoane (The Woman King) and filling the role of Mama K for the isiZulu dub; Linda Sokhulu (Ubizo: The Calling). As for the series’ theme song, that’s been left in the hands of Sampa the Great, a Zambian rapper and singer/songwriter.

Supa Team 4 hits Netflix on 20 July 2023.

On the menu for the Middle East and Africa are a Mini LED set, the C845, and a pair of QLED screens, the C745 and C645. The brand also announced a new football partnership with Arsenal FC, acting as a sponsor for the European club in addition to expanding its ties with various cricket teams.

Needs a little TCL

Sporting news is cool and all but generally we’re all about consumer technology. Starting with the C845, viewers can expect to secure the Mini LED TV in one of several sizes. It’ll ship in 55in, 65in, 75in, and 85in flavours and will bring along Dolby Vision IQ and Dolby Atmos support. The 4K display is powered by the company’s AiPQ Processor 3.0, has a peak brightness of 2,000 nits, and supports HDR10+ and a 120Hz refresh rate (up to 144Hz variable refresh). It might sound gaming-capable but that’s actually what the other two models are for.

TCL’s C745 and C645 and both QLED sets, with the TV with the large model number being the better option in terms of performance. Obviously.

The C745 will be available in sizes from 55in to 85in and features the same 144Hz variable refresh rate as the C845. There’s something more, though — a feature called Game Master 2.0 that offers improved visual and audio performance, lower latency, and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro support. Since AMD makes the chips for most consoles, this is a very good thing. Finally, the C745 offers a Game Accelerator mode of up to 240Hz. Because why the hell not?

The C645 is a little less capable, but only a little. It’ll launch in the same sizes as its better-skilled brethren, as well as two others — 50in and 43in. It includes Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos support, a 120Hz Game Accelerator mode, and AMD FreeSync support. Premium Pro, sadly, is not included. This is more of a general-purpose television but we’re sure that TCL won’t object to you using it as a gaming centrepiece.

When will these land in South Africa? We have an answer to that. TCL’s new television hardware is set to turn up in South Africa from August this year. Pricing, exact availability, and specific models will be made known at a later stage, like at a local launch event, perhaps.

These diseases do not respect human-made or porous borders. So it’s essential that scientists in Africa are able to generate and share critical data on the pathogens in time to inform public-health decisions.

Genomic sequencing technologies are powerful tools in this kind of work. They enable scientists to decode the genetic material of diseases and create biological “fingerprints” to investigate and track the pathogens that cause those diseases. This information aids in developing diagnostics, treatments and vaccines. It also helps public health authorities to guide and prepare their public health systems for effective outbreak detection and response.

Tackling infectious diseases across countries and continents requires many complex, overlapping and broad interventions. One of those is a common repository where countries, public health authorities and their scientists can share information about diseases and the pathogens that cause them. They can then collaborate around the shared data. These kinds of platforms exist in many high-income countries. But the African region lags behind.

This is set to change. In a new publication in Nature Medicine we outline the work that’s being done to create such a repository for the African continent.

Human and economic costs

Africa accounts for most of the estimated 10 million deaths caused globally every year by infectious diseases.

Those diseases also stomp the brakes on the continent’s development ambitions: according to a World Health Organisation (WHO) report they account for an annual estimated productivity loss of US$800 billion.

These figures highlight the urgency of improving the scientific response to infectious diseases.

There are some green shoots. The COVID pandemic showed what African institutions are capable of. The Africa Centres for Disease Control (Africa CDC), through the Africa Pathogen Genomics Initiative, oversaw the training of hundreds of laboratory staff.

DNA sequencing machines and essential laboratory consumables – like reagents, the chemical cocktails that make testing possible – have been put in place. Today, public health laboratories in many African countries, with varying levels of capacity, can generate their own genomic sequences of pathogens.

Read More: African scientists and technology could drive future black hole discoveries

So, the data is not the problem. The questions are: what is going to happen to and with it? How and where is it going to be secured, and by whom? Will it be, as has been the custom up to now, “exported” and the intellectual property moved offshore?

Global data sharing platforms have played a significant role in sharing of data. However, transparency and governance issues are currently being raised by the global community.

Since 2020, the Africa CDC in collaboration with the African Society for Laboratory Medicine, the South African National Bioinformatics Institute and several public health institutions across Africa are working to develop a continental platform for pathogen genomic data management and sharing. The technology innovation and development involves industry and other partners.

The development of such a platform is not merely a technical exercise, though. An ecosystem must be created for its adoption. So it is being built in parallel with a consultation led by the Africa CDC with its member states, to refine data sharing agreements between countries and support national data governance frameworks.

The platform rests on six pillars.

Collaboration and consistency

The first pillar is adoption and change management. Regional organisations – those that drove training and infrastructure investment during the COVID-19 pandemic – must drive the development of the necessary policies, processes and system changes across the continent.

Second, the platform must offer a good user experience that will allow for seamless, cost-effective data collection and the timely sharing and use of data across Africa.

Third, we need data services and products to facilitate the sharing of data and information with decision-makers who are not scientists or geneticists.

Fourth, standardised and consistent data management processes, practices, tools and controls for how data is processed, stored, shared and deployed are needed across countries and contexts.

Core infrastructure is the fifth pillar: the technical side of the platform must be composed of application and infrastructure components that can be rapidly reconfigured for contexts and diseases.

And, finally, good programme management and sustainable resources will be key.

A global imperative

As we argue in our journal article, data management and analytics to support data-driven decision making in public health is a global imperative. It requires continuous engagement with international disease surveillance stakeholders and technology platform developers.

The human and resource costs of unchecked diseases in Africa have been pointed out. If there is going to be a collective response to Africa’s burden of diseases – and it is a massive task – a shared pathogen genomics data platform would be a crucial step in underpinning those efforts.

An African owned and African led data sharing platform will be critical for timely sharing of locally produced data to inform rapid response to outbreaks. It will also be a critical step towards an equitable mechanism to maximise the value and utility of pathogen genetic data for national, regional and global health security.

• Alan Christoffels is a Director South African National Bioinformatics Institute, University of the Western Cape
• Sofonias Kifle Tessema is a Program Lead for Pathogen Genomics at the Africa CDC
• This article first appeared on The Conversation

Camp worth attending?

In short, the Xbox Game Studios Game Camp is a “two-day conference to recognise and celebrate all game creators across more than 50 diverse countries and regions.” The larger point is to inspire an entirely new generation to enter the world of game development and content creation and grow their passions in an environment surrounded by like-minded folk.

According to Microsoft’s Phil Spencer:

“At Xbox, we’re on a mission to bring the joy and community of gaming to the world’s 3 billion gamers and we recognise that Africa is home to the largest population of youth in the world, many who love to play. Through the inaugural Xbox Game Studios Camp Africa, in collaboration with Microsoft’s Africa Transformation Office, we have an opportunity to continue to deepen our relationships with talented developers in region and help African games studios realise their vision and role in the global gaming industry.”

More specifically, the two-day conference includes viewing parties, on-site panel sessions, and “opportunities to meet with Microsoft and Xbox personnel.” Better yet, Xbox is encouraging anyone with an idea they’d like to pursue to pitch them at the conference. To whom, we can’t be sure. Just be sure to have those pitches down-pat before rocking up.

Read More: Xbox’s Remix Special Edition controller is as environmentally friendly as it gets

Getting involved is simple

It’s not as easy as just pitching up. Not just anyone can attend the Xbox Game Studios Game Camp. For one, you need to be studying or working part- or full-time in the field of software development, visual arts, 3D, music and audio, web design, narrative design, or professional project management.

Secondly, if you’re hoping to attend in person, you’ll need to be situated in Johannesburg, Cairo, Lagos, or Nairobi where there’ll be open-house centres consisting of all those things we mentioned earlier. Can’t make it? That’s okay – participants can also join the Microsoft Teams livestream of the event, as long as they’re residents of any African country and are over eighteen years of age.

Whew. Now that you’re aware of what it is you’re signing up for, you can do so right here.