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Google Expands its AI-powered Flood Alerts to 80 Countries
Google on Monday announced the expansion of its Flood Hub platform to cover 80 countries worldwide, including the addition of 8 new countries in Africa. To date, 23 African countries are on the Flood Hub.
This expansion comes as part of AI-enabled efforts to address the devastating impacts of floods and provide critical support to vulnerable communities.
The Flood Hub platform now offers forecasts up to 7 days in advance, benefitting a population of 460 million people globally.
This expansion extends the reach of Flood Hub’s valuable services to countries such as Brazil, Nigeria, Pakistan and Thailand.
The Flood Hub platform has been available in several African countries prior to this expansion, including Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, South Africa, and now, with the expansion, it encompasses 60 additional countries.
These new countries include Burundi, Eswatini, Guinea Bissau, Lesotho, Madagascar, Rwanda, Senegal, and Zimbabwe. The inclusion of these countries ensures that a broader range of African communities facing high flood risk and extreme weather conditions can benefit from Flood Hub’s accurate and timely flood forecasting services.
Floods claim tens of thousands of lives and cause billions of dollars in damages each year across the world. Their impacts are particularly severe in low-resource regions that often lack effective early warning systems.
By equipping governments, aid organisations, and individuals with advanced flood forecasting tools, Flood Hub empowers communities to take proactive measures and make informed decisions to reduce the devastating effects of floods.
To further enhance flood preparedness, Google is expanding flood alerts through Search and Maps notifications, ensuring that individuals have convenient access to timely and critical flood information. This expansion aims to empower more people to take necessary precautions and safeguard lives and property.
“We recognise the significant impact that floods have on communities worldwide, especially in regions with limited resources and vulnerable populations,” said Yossi Mattias, VP Engineering & Research and Crisis Response Lead.
“We are committed to expanding the reach of the Flood Hub platform to support these communities and provide accurate flood forecasting that can help save lives and protect livelihoods.”
Since 2019, nonprofit organisations have been working with Google.org to establish offline alerting networks, acknowledging the limited access to cell phones or the internet in some communities. These networks are designed to leverage trained and trusted community volunteers who play a crucial role in amplifying the reach of Flood Hub’s warnings.
As a result, even individuals without digital connectivity are able to receive life-saving flood alerts, ensuring their safety during times of crisis.
For more information on the Flood Hub check out this video and please visit the Google Keyword blog.
Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) and United Nations Women (UN Women) will partner on the integration of gender bonds and other gender-themed sustainable financing mechanisms as strategic instruments to drive gender equality and sustainable development in Nigeria.
This was deliberated at a high-level engagement between NGX and UN Women officials during the visit of the Regional Director for East and Southern Africa Region (ESARO) and interim Regional Director for West and Central Africa Region (WCARO), Dr. Maxime Houinato, to the Exchange.
During the engagement, the parties spoke on the need to galvanize public and private sector stakeholders to the development and adoption of gender responsive instruments in Nigeria’s capital market and the mobilisation of public and private capital towards investments that promote gender equality outcomes, among other focus areas.
“UN Women has been on the forefront of female advocacy which is a major priority of the work we have been doing with International Finance Corporation on the Nigeria2Equal project. “We are committed to this collaboration with UN Women to further deepen impact in the capital market and broader private sector, ” said Divisional Head, Business Support Services and General Counsel, NGX, Irene Robinson-Ayanwale.
Speaking, Chidinma Chukwueke-Okolo, Head, Product Development, NGX said, said “Our collaboration with UN Women will primarily border on capacity building for issuers and investors, specifically for the development of a framework for gender bonds issuance in the Nigerian capital market.”
Houinato, during his remarks stressed the importance of female participation in the leadership in the private and public sectors. He emphasized the necessity of more men in the private sector driving the advocacy for women and also touched on UN Women’s work on female advocacy.
Simba Solar is thrilled to announce the launch of its newest product, the Simba Talegent solar hybrid inverters. This state-of-the-art innovation was launched at the Nigeria Energy Exhibition and presented to the Honourable Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu.
Ravi Srivastava, Business Head at Simba Power, shared his excitement about the Simba Talegent, emphasising its unmatched quality and the brand’s dedication to resolving Nigeria’s power issues.
“Simba has consistently led the charge in delivering exceptional power backup solutions. The Simba Solar Talegent is a testament to our commitment, setting a new benchmark in the Nigerian solar market,” remarked Srivastava.
The Simba Talegent inverters have features, including pure sine wave solar inverter compatibility with AC mains or generator power, battery-independent operation flexibility, multi-unit linkage capability, and robust lithium battery support.
“What truly differentiates us is our unwavering focus on product quality and our unparalleled after-sales service, which boasts the largest network in Nigeria,” Srivastava emphasised.
With a legacy spanning 35 years in the Nigerian market, Simba’s allegiance to quality and service remains steadfast. The company continues its journey, driven by a mission to elevate the lives of Nigerians through pioneering innovations.
Transnational Corporation Plc (Transcorp Group), Nigeria’s conglomerate with investments in Power, Hospitality and Energy sectors has announced reported its financial results for the first half of the year ended June 30, 2023, recording commendable growth across all its major indices.
The Group achieved an impressive revenue of N82.1 billion in H1 2023, compared to N62.9 billion in H1 2022, marking a substantial 31% growth year-on-year while operating income also grew by 46% to close at N29.9 billion as of June 2023, compared to N20.5 billion in June 2022.
The Group’s total revenue for the half year ended June 30, 2023, was N82.1 billion, compared to N62.9 billion in June 30 2022, signifying a 31% increase.
Operating Income grew by 46% from N20.5 billion in June 2022 to N29.9 billion in June 2023. Operating expenses for the period ended June 30, were N15.9 billion, an increase of 40% compared to N11.3 billion of the corresponding previous year.
In its financial report filed with the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), Transcorp reported an 39% growth in profit before tax to N18.5 billion in H1 2023, from N13.4 billion in H1 2022. Interest Cost declined by 9% to N6.6 billion in June 2023 from N6.1 billion in the same period under review.
Transcorp continues to maintain a strong balance sheet, with Total Assets rising to N495.3 billion, representing a 12% increase over the N442.7 billion recorded at the end of June 2022, due to the increase in Debt and equity securities (+61%) and Trade and Other Receivables (+40%) which cushioned the effect of the decline in Inventories (+68%).
Transcorp shareholders’ funds remained very strong at N176.3 billion up from N154.8 billion recorded in the same period in 2022, further reinforcing the company’s commitment to delivering long-term value to its shareholders.
Commenting on the result, Transcorp’s President/Group Chief Executive Officer, Dr. (Mrs) Owen D. Omogiafo OON, mentioned that the Group continues to sustain growth and improvement, showing resilience despite, a challenging operating environment, characterised by foreign exchange volatility, gas supply constraints, and rising inflation, amongst others.
She said, “The first-half financial results affirm our dedication to driving innovation and seizing opportunities for sustainable growth, positioning Transcorp as a trailblazer in the Nigerian business realm.
In spite, of the challenging environment, our power businesses (Transcorp Power Limited & Transafam Power Limited) have sustained revenue growth increase by 32% and 30% respectively while our hospitality continues to outperform across all indices.
“We remain focused on efficiency, cost leadership, and meeting market demand to consistently deliver profitability and value to all our shareholders,” asserted Dr Omogiafo
Transnational Corporation Plc (Transcorp Group) is a publicly quoted Conglomerate with a shareholder base of approximately 300,000. The Group’s diverse portfolio comprises strategic investments in the Power, Hospitality, and Energy sectors. Among its notable businesses are Transcorp Hilton Abuja, Transcorp Hotels Calabar, Transcorp Power, Transafam Power, and Transcorp Energy.
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