Telecom
Google Reinforces Commitment to Women & Girls in Africa with $25m Grant
In commemoration of International Women’s Day, Google.org’s has opened call for applications for grant funding from its new global Impact Challenge (GIC) for Women and Girls, reinforces its commitment to the empowerment of women and girls on the African continent.
The GIC for Women and Girls, which will provide $25 million in overall cash grants to nonprofits and social enterprises creating pathways to prosperity for women and girls, follows initiatives like the 2019 Africa launch of Women Will, Google’s initiative to create opportunities for women, and Google’s #IamRemarkable workshop series, which works to counteract conditioning that women shouldn’t celebrate their achievements.
Empowering women and girls in Africa to reach their full economic potential, and to thrive, is more critical now than ever before as they bear the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic, says Juliet Ehimuan, Country Director, Google Nigeria, quoting the Foresight Africa report 2021.
“It confirms that the coronavirus has “exacerbated already-existing gender inequalities, laying bare serious fault lines in safety, physical and mental health, education, domestic responsibilities, and employment opportunities”.
”Despite decades of work aimed at achieving gender equality, the disparity between men and women not only remains – it is growing alarmingly, largely thanks to the global pandemic,” the report warns
The (GIC) for Women and Girls is focused on changing the status quo, with Ehimuan stressing that job cuts, income losses and lack of education aren’t simply side-effects of the pandemic, but ‘will negatively impact the economic strides made by women and girls for many years to come’.
“As economies and societies rebuild, we need bold new ideas that will propel us forward.
“We can’t afford to go back to the way things were, and we certainly can’t do it alone.”
Organisations have until Friday, 2 April at 11:59pm GMT to submit their applications at g.co/womenandgirlschallenge.
An all-female panel of expert Google executives and world / business leaders, including Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of UN Women; Victoria Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, Senior Special Assistant to the President of Nigeria on SDGs; Graça Machel, Founder, Graça Machel Trust; and Juliana Rotich, Kenyan information technology entrepreneur, will preside over the application review and selection process once applications close.
Grantees, who will be announced later this year, are eligible to receive funding ranging from $300,000 to $2 million.
Selected organisations will also receive capacity building support and mentoring from Googlers.
Over the past five years, Google.org has given over $55 million in cash grants to non-profit organisations that support gender equity and access to opportunity for women and girls around the world.
Building on their previous work in gender equity—with grantees like the National Domestic Workers Alliance, Laboratoria and GiveDirectly—Google.org is seeking applications from organisations in Africa and around the world.
“We have a collective responsibility to ensure that generations of women and girls from all walks of life—no matter their race, sexual orientation, religion or socioeconomic status—live in a world where they are treated equally and can realise their full potential.
“When women and girls have the tools, resources and opportunities to turn their potential into power, it not only changes the trajectory of their individual lives, but also strengthens entire communities. If we lift up women and girls, the rest of the world will rise, too,” Ehimuan concludes
MTN Uganda is seeking input from stakeholders on a plan to structurally separate its mobile money service, MoMo, from its core telecoms business.
According to the company, the proposed change will be discussed at the upcoming extraordinary general meeting on July 2.
If approved, the telco’s fintech business will be run by a new company controlled by MTN Group Fintech Holdings B.V. and a trust benefiting minority shareholders following a merger.
Additionally, the restructuring also aligns with MTN Group’s ambition 2025 strategy which aims to unlock value, attract new investors, and strengthen regulatory compliance by creating standalone fintech entities in Uganda, Ghana, and Nigeria.
The company’s fintech division has over 13 million customers, with an 18.4% revenue increase in the first quarter of 2025, driven by 19.0% growth in mobile money services, 19.8% growth in transaction volumes, and a 31.4% increase in transaction value.
Reports say the decision is part of the telco’s compliance with the National Payment Systems Act 2020, which mandates mobile money businesses to operate as standalone entities, and to align with MTN Group’s regional fintech strategy.
MTN Uganda, which is led by CEO Sylvia Mulinge, highlighted that the implementation of the proposed transaction will be subjected to a number of conditions and regulatory procedures.
“The implementation of the proposed transaction shall be subject to a number of conditions, including the company and MTN MoMo receiving all required regulatory approvals and no-objections and complying with any regulatory conditions,” said MTN Uganda in notice.
Netflix has announced plans to invest more than €1 billion in Spanish film and television productions over the next four years, reinforcing its commitment to Spain as a key creative hub in Europe.
The announcement was made by co-chief executive Ted Sarandos at an event held at Netflix’s production studios near Madrid, celebrating the company’s 10-year presence in the country.
Sarandos emphasized that the investment would contribute significantly to Spain’s economy, create jobs, and enable the streaming platform to produce more local content. He was joined by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in unveiling the initiative.
Netflix first established its international production studios in Madrid in 2019, following the success of the Spanish-language hit series Money Heist.
Since then, its 22,000-square-meter facility has become one of Netflix’s major production centers within the European Union.
The company currently supports over 20,000 jobs in Spain, highlighting the nation’s growing influence in global entertainment.
The investment reflects Netflix’s ongoing strategy to expand its presence in European markets through original content and local talent.
Nigeria Computer Emergency Response Team (ngCERT) has raised alarms over a new wave of advanced cyberattacks targeting Android mobile phones through a malware campaign dubbed Tria Stealer.
The malicious software is designed to infiltrate Android devices, hijack messaging accounts, intercept One-Time Passwords (OTPs), to steal sensitive personal and financial data.
According to ngCERT, Tria Stealer spreads primarily through deceptive tactics, such as fake event invitations distributed via popular messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram.
Unsuspecting users are enticed to download an infected (APK) file, often disguised as a harmless system application, to evade detection.
Once installed, Tria Stealer requests extensive permissions, including access to SMS, call logs, and app notifications.
It immediately commences data harvesting activities, sending stolen information to a Command and Control (C2) server operated via Telegram bots.
This trojan spreads through fake links, usually disguised as wedding or event invites, and tricks users into downloading malicious APK files
“Account takeover of messaging platforms. Impersonation of victim for fraudulent money transfer requests. Compromise of banking and financial applications. Identity theft and credential harvesting.”
In plain terms, if your phone is compromised, the consequences could be catastrophic.
Your financial apps are vulnerable, your reputation could be ruined by impersonation and even simple personal messages could be twisted into tools for scams.
Here’s what users should be doing now:
Don’t download apps outside the official Play Store.
Be suspicious of random invites or links, even from people you know.
Turn on 2FA for everything—banking, emails, social platforms.
Get a reputable antivirus and keep it updated.
If you run an organisation, you should already be taking this seriously.
ngCERT’s guidance says you should raise awareness, monitor mobile devices, and not let your team click on unverified links.
“Deploy network monitoring for suspicious outbound connections to known C2 domains,” it said, meaning, keep an eye on every digital door in and out.
This isn’t one of those cases where you wait to see if it affects you. By the time you realise it, it may already be too late.
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