General News
2go, South African Mobile App Bigger than Facebook

2go, mobile social network and one of African continent¹s quietest tech success stories, has come to dominate the Nigerian market, where it has over nine million active users’ ¬ 7million more than Facebook.
The proudly South African mobile social network is a 7-person business that¹s gone from startup to profitability in just four years without ever marketing itself or taking a cent of outside financing.
Peter Lockhart, director of the company said the secret, has been balancing a tight focus on what 2go¹s users really want a cheap, easy way to chat and socialize using their mobile phones with the deep technical expertise needed to deliver that experience across thousands of different devices.
“Building mobile technology for an African market is tough. Data and SMS are expensive, and our users are price sensitive and savvy. That means we have to deliver an application that uses the absolute minimum of system resources and bandwidth. Our response has been to develop proprietary communications protocols and compression algorithms that minimise the app¹s data usage” said Lockhart.
The 2go team has also cracked the technical challenge of producing an app that works equally well on all of the myriad feature phones that still dominate the African market.
“It¹s much, much harder to develop for feature phones than for smartphones. Partly because there is such a variety of platforms and operating systems. You need deep technical knowledge. This technical knowledge also extends to our ability to scale the back-end in a very resource efficient manner” Lockhart also said.
The fact that 2go works well on many handsets has been critical to the viral spread of the app, said Lockhart, adding “feature phones aren¹t going away any time soon. Projections from Informa indicate that non-smart phones will still comprise 85% of the African handset market in 2015”
2go has resisted the tempation to bloat its app with added features, added Lockhart. “Our users log in and out quickly, several times a day they want things to be quick and simple,² he says. ³We¹ve thought through every menu item; every pixel is there because it serves a purpose”
Alongside this technical focus, 2go has also remained extremely alert and sensitive to the needs of its users. ³Our target market is not some kind of generic ŒAfrica” said Lockhart. “We ask what country are they in, what region, what city? 2go really took off in Nigeria when we noticed that our users wanted to be able to chat within their university communities. So we did the research and created a chat room for each university in the country”
2go also actively solicits and follows up on suggestions from its users, added Lockhart.
“People want to be asked for their opinion. Many of our users are starved for entertainment and engagement. 31% of our Nigerian users tell us they don¹t watch television, but 66% of them spend two or more hours on their phones each day. It¹s a very sociable society, and 2go supports that sociability”
The insights gained in Nigeria have fed back into the South African market, where 2go has 1,5m active users and counting. The app also provides gateways to other popular social networks such as GTalk, MXIT and Facebook.
2go is a mobile social network targeting users in emerging markets, particularly in Africa. The company has over 21 million registered users with more than 10 million active users in Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya.
User adoption is growing rapidly at approximately 50,000 new registrations a day. 2go users message each other for free, meet new people and share updates and photos with friends and family. 2go¹s mobile currency, GoCredits, enables users to buy content, play games and message each other in in chat rooms.
General News
EFCC Declares Tejuosho, City Boys Movement’s Women Leader Wanted over “419”

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC,) has declared Halimat Adenike Tejuosho, a women leader of the City Boys Movement, wanted.

Halimat Adenike Tejuosho,
A notice issued by the EFCC on Monday via X said Tejuosho has been declared wanted over an alleged case of obtaining money by false pretence.
The notice was signed by Dele Oyewale, head of Media and Publicity for the EFCC.
The anti-graft agency called on members of the public with useful information about her whereabouts to contact any of its offices nationwide.
The Commission also urged the members of the public to reach out via its official phone lines or email, or report to the nearest police station or other security agencies.
Recall that the City Boy Movement recently appointed Tejuosho as the South-West Zonal Women Leader.
According to a statement signed by the Movement, Tejuosho is to provide strategic leadership and coordination for women-focused activities in the zone, driving political mobilization, civic engagement, and advocacy.
General News
Afreximbank to Fund 3 New Refineries in Nigeria

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has disclosed plans to finance three additional refineries in Nigeria as part of a broader push to reduce the country’s reliance on imported petroleum products and strengthen local refining capacity.

Denys Denya, senior executive vice president of the bank, made the disclosure on Monday during a virtual media briefing focused on the institution’s 2025 financial performance, crisis response initiatives, and long-term industrialisation strategy.
“We are also financing refining on the continent, which will alleviate the importation of refined products. We are not only supporting Dangote; we’re supporting three other refineries in Nigeria,” Denya said.
The briefing, which focused on the bank’s 2025 financial performance, crisis response initiatives, and industrialisation strategy, also featured a question-and-answer session with journalists across Africa.
Denya explained that the push into refining is driven by recent disruptions in global supply chains, particularly linked to tensions in the Middle East, which have raised the cost and complexity of fuel imports for African economies.
According to him, Afreximbank has adopted a dual approach of supporting immediate trade finance needs while investing in long-term productive capacity to reduce structural import dependence.
He said, “For import-dependent economies, the cost of import is very high… so we have taken a proactive approach of engaging with financial institutions on the continent to increase their facilities so they can issue high-value letters of credit.”
The bank’s intervention is backed by a $10bn Gulf Crisis Response Programme, designed to stabilise access to essential imports such as fuel, food, fertilisers, and pharmaceuticals, while also supporting sectors exposed to global shocks.
Denya noted that the facility is already seeing uptake from countries including Kenya, Ethiopia, and Tanzania, warning that demand could accelerate if geopolitical tensions persist.
Beyond short-term interventions, the Afreximbank executive stressed that financing refining projects across Nigeria and other African countries remains central to the bank’s long-term strategy of industrialisation and export development.
He said the bank’s support for large-scale industrial projects, including the Dangote Group refinery, reflects its commitment to reducing Africa’s reliance on imported refined products and strengthening regional value chains.
“Our support for industrialists who are making a difference on the continent is testimony to this approach. We will continue to champion projects that reduce Africa’s reliance on imported refined products,” he added.
Denya further disclosed that the bank is financing similar refining projects in Angola as part of a continent-wide push to achieve self-sufficiency in petroleum products.
The shift towards local refining, he explained, is also expected to improve macroeconomic stability by reducing foreign exchange pressures associated with fuel imports.
General News
MTN Powers the Ultimate Youth Link-Up with the Launch of Live It 100 Youth Campaign

The Gathering on 100 has officially concluded its pilot edition, closing out 100 continuous hours of culture, creativity, and community engagement at the National Stadium, Surulere. At the climax of the five-day immersive youth experience, MTN Nigeria and the gatherers of the event unveiled the defining message of the movement: “Live It 100.”

The event brought together thousands of young Nigerians in a massive convergence of music, sports, gaming, and creative sessions. From watching the sunrise for four consecutive mornings to actively shaping culture in real-time, attendees experienced a shared journey rooted in endurance and expression.
Operating under a partnership model rather than a traditional corporate sponsorship, MTN stepped back to let the youth lead. The techo embraced the primary narrative that “The Gathering is the fire; MTN is the oxygen”.
Karl Toriola, Chief Executive Officer, MTN Nigeria, said: “The energy we have witnessed here in Surulere over the past 100 hours is proof of the unstoppable spirit of the Nigerian youth. Our strategic intent was to position MTN as the critical engine behind this vibrant youth movement, ensuring the brand is seen as an enabler, not an intruder. The Gathering is the fire; MTN is the oxygen. ‘Live It 100’ is our commitment to powering the platform where the conversation happens. We are giving them the autonomy to lead, while we listen.”
A focal point of the event was the high-stakes Pitchathon segment, which provided a structured arena for startups to showcase working products. Rather than a traditional, heavily branded corporate event, the space felt authentic, unscripted, and transparent, allowing founders to interact directly with expert judges, potential investors, and a live audience.
Onyinye Ikenna-Emeka, Chief Marketing Officer, MTN Nigeria, shared: “The ideas and partnerships formed over these 100 hours show exactly what happens when corporate Nigeria is finally listening to young Nigerians. We recognise that traditional business engagement doesn’t always work for this generation, which is why we empowered the youth to lead. By supporting The Gathering, we are not just celebrating culture; we are fueling the young Nigerian through youth-led innovation and actively investing in their economic potential.”
Beyond business activity, the event recorded consistent engagement across its programming, providing deep insight into the evolving role of youth within Nigeria’s economy. The sustained 100-hour activity highlighted a growing, resilient base of digitally engaged participants who own their lanes and actively create their own opportunities.
As the event closed, MTN reaffirmed their commitment to expanding the platform, ensuring that The Gathering on 100 will continue to evolve as a vital space for both cultural expression and youth-led economic opportunity.
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