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African Mobile Operators can Emerge as Digital Marketing Leaders, Says Upstream, Ahead of AfricaCom

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AfricaCom

The martech specialist will showcase its mobile marketing automation platform Grow and the real results achieved for MNOs

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, October 26, 2022/APO Group/ — 

Upstream (www.Upstreamsystems.com), the global mobile marketing technology specialist has today announced that it will be attending this year’s AfricaCom (https://bit.ly/3f22ajn) event in Cape Town, between November 8th-10th, to highlight the power of its mobile marketing platform Grow (https://bit.ly/3SDXxK3).

Mobile Marketing: The Operator Opportunity

Focusing on connectivity infrastructure and digital inclusion, and with an emphasis on service provider technology, along with mission-critical technologies and 5G, this year’s AfricaCom will highlight the exciting future on offer to mobile network operators (MNOs) in Africa. With the upcoming removal of tracking cookies from most web browsers, and Africa’s development as a mobile-first region, there is a great opportunity for operators, today more than ever, to leverage their networks to their full potential, and via best-in-class mobile marketing, acquire new customers, expand their customer bases’ lifetime value and establish themselves as key players in the digital advertising ecosystem.

“African mobile operators are in the driving seat when it comes to the future of consumer advertising and marketing in the region,” said George Kalyvas, Chief Commercial Officer at Upstream. “Mobile Operators have a unique opportunity that they simply cannot afford to miss. By owning the future of advertising and marketing, they can rise as major players in a market that is set to be worth over $620 billion globally by 2029 [1]. Having already invested in building their networks, operators need to ensure they are reaping the reward for that hard work. Acting now and deploying mobile marketing services will enable operators to get a head start on the future of advertising and grow beyond their core offering.”

Upstream’s proprietary martech platform, Grow, is a one-stop-shop to develop omnichannel marketing campaigns, efficiently orchestrate mobile operators’ channels, optimize their campaigns every step of the way, manage their audience, and easily identify potential customers from the web, via the brand-new Mobile Identity technology (https://bit.ly/3DyOMg4).

African mobile operators are in the driving seat when it comes to the future of consumer advertising and marketing in the region

The Mobile Identity technology takes the personalization tracking cookies used to offer to the next level. It enables operators to deliver personalized advertising to their subscribers by using a subscriber’s unique mobile number (MSISDN) to collect first-party data, with their consent. African MNOs now have the tools needed to take advantage of the prime position they are in and capitalize on the next evolution of advertising and marketing.

Results for Mobile Operators via omnichannel marketing

Upstream has been well placed to observe the evolution of the telecoms and advertising market in Africa having operated across the continent for over 15 years. With operations in 9 countries in Africa, including South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia, the martech expert now covers more than 70 million users through its partnerships, working with 14 major African mobile operators. Powering these partnerships is Grow, its unique mobile marketing automation platform, which can drive five times higher conversions with 30% less effort and a three times ROI compared to “traditional” marketing campaigns.

Partnering with a popular South African food retailer, Upstream was able to use the power of its martech platform to deploy a highly interactive campaign that achieved a 22.2% click-through rate (CTR) and generated over 12,000 clicks in just the first two weeks. Another region that has gone through a similar transition and now sees mobile operators emerging as advertising and marketing leaders is Brazil. Grow has been procured by the two biggest MNOs in the country as their CVM/CRM platform to handle marketing campaigns for a plethora of business objectives: from user acquisition to postpaid plans and affiliated digital banks, to user retention, debt collection and overall management of their RCS campaigns. On top, Upstream’s professional services have helped a top-tier Brazilian operator to secure 785,000 plan upgrades in just six months.

To learn more about the future of mobile marketing in Africa, you can visit Upstream at AfricaCom, at Stand E3. Upstream promises to break down the “black box” of mobile marketing automation for its guests and visitors.


[1] Fortune Business Insights, “With 23.2% CAGR, Mobile Advertising Market Size Worth USD 621.63 Billion in 2029”, May 2022

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Upstream.

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Ministers among hundreds of energy-sector leaders to attend AOW event

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Sinclair

The event kicks off with an invitation-only ministerial symposium focused on the theme of “Fostering innovation, attracting investment, and promoting sustainable growth in the oil, gas, and energy sectors”

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, October 4, 2024/APO Group/ — 

AOW: Investing in African Energy (https://AOWEnergy.com) – Africa’s leading oil, gas and energy event – has confirmed attendance for more than 80 ministers and senior officials, representing African governments, energy departments and regulators at next month’s event.

These influential stakeholders will be among the more than 1 600 senior delegates and industry leaders who will be attending the event to develop policy, share discoveries, secure investment, and shape Africa’s energy future.

The event kicks off with an invitation-only ministerial symposium focused on the theme of “Fostering innovation, attracting investment, and promoting sustainable growth in the oil, gas, and energy sectors.”

Given the recent major oil-and-gas discoveries across Africa, the energy transition and major geopolitical events, it is clear that the energy sector needs positive intervention

Among the officials and government ministers attending will be energy leaders from South Africa, Nigeria, Namibia, Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique, DRC, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Eswatini, Uganda, CAR, Guinea Conakry, Guinea Bissau, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Gabon, Malawi, Morocco, Zanzibar, Liberia, Senegal, Congo Brazzaville and Sierra Leone.

In addition, the event will feature high-level delegations from numerous national oil companies, as well as multilateral bodies including the African Union, (AU), African Energy Commission (AFREC), African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO) and the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).

AOW will see these energy leaders networking with C-suite executives and decision-makers from more than 760 top energy companies at daily networking events, to discuss insights, forge new relationships, and negotiate major energy deals.

“We are so excited to see the calibre of delegates at this year’s AOW event,” says Chief Executive Officer of Sankofa Events, Paul Sinclair. “Given the recent major oil-and-gas discoveries across Africa, the energy transition and major geopolitical events, it is clear that the energy sector needs positive intervention. The high-powered attendance proves AOW is a key platform to enable this intervention.”

Key themes to be discussed at this year’s AOW will be sustainable upstream development; expanding gas value chains; renewables and new energies; adoption of best-in-class technologies; and access to finance.

AOW: Investing in African Energy will culminate in a special anniversary party at Groot Constantia Vineyard to celebrate 30 years of the AOW event.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of AOW: Investing in African Energy.

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Afreximbank approves US$20.8 million for Starlink Global’s cashew factory project in Lagos

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PAPSS

The facility is expected to promote value addition which will guarantee increased earnings to the company while also fostering the creation of about 400 new jobs

CAIRO, Egypt, October 4, 2024/APO Group/ — 

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) (www.Afreximbank.com) has approved a US$20.8 million financing facility for Nigeria-based Starlink Global & Ideal Limited to enable the company construct and operate a 30,000-metric tonne per annum cashew processing factory in Lagos.

We are delighted at this partnership which promises to deliver significant impact on employment in Nigeria

According to the facility agreement signed in on July 22, 2024, Afreximbank will provide the funds in two tranches with the first tranche of US$7.48M going toward capital expenditure for the construction of the factory and the second, totalling US$13.25M to be deployed as working capital for the operations of the factory.

The facility is expected to promote value addition which will guarantee increased earnings to the company while also fostering the creation of about 400 new jobs once the factory becomes operational. It is also expected to support about 40 small and medium-sized enterprises.

Commenting on the transaction, Mrs. Kanayo Awani, Executive Vice President, Intra Africa Trade and Export Development, Afreximbank, said that by supporting Starlink Global to establish a modern processing facility, Afreximbank is making it possible for Africa to add value to its agro-commodities, thereby facilitating exports and subsequent inflow of much-needed foreign exchange into the continent.

“We are delighted at this partnership which promises to deliver significant impact on employment in Nigeria. It will contribute to value creation and to the development of the local community while also improving the lots of smallholder farmers and small business suppliers that will work with Starlink across the value chain,” Mrs. Awani added.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Afreximbank.

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Sonangol to Lead Decarbonized Oil & Gas (O&G) Development, Says Angolan National Oil Company (NOC) Head

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Sonangol

Participating in an on-stage interview at Angola Oil & Gas 2024, Sonangol CEO Sebastião Gaspar Martins emphasized that oil and gas remains a core focus for the national oil company

LUANDA, Angola, October 3, 2024/APO Group/ — 

Angola’s national oil company Sonangol reiterated its commitment to driving sustainable hydrocarbon development during the Angola Oil & Gas (AOG) conference this week. Speaking during an “In-Conversation with” session, Sonangol CEO Sebastião Gaspar Martins stated that the company will not abandon oil and gas, but rather advance decarbonized oil and gas development.

We are looking at opportunities in the gas sector and have identified the right partner to develop non-associated gas

By investing in upstream oil and gas production while prioritizing low-carbon projects, Sonangol aims to boost national crude output, while diversifying and decarbonizing the industry. The NOC is focusing efforts on non-associated gas development, as well as alternative energy sources such as solar.

“We are looking at opportunities in the gas sector and have identified the right partner to develop non-associated gas. Gas produced from Angola LNG will be used for the production of fertilizer and we are evaluating the utilization of gas in the south of the country, linking gas with steel industries. We also have a blue carbon project, linked to the reduction of carbon through the plantation of mangroves. We have one area in Luanda and have identified four additional areas for this,” stated Gaspar Martins.

Sonangol has undergone transformation in recent years: following the creation of the National Oil, Gas & Biofuels Agency (ANPG) in 2019, Sonangol transferred its role as national concessionaire and regulator. This transformation has aimed to make Sonangol more competitive and strengthen its capacity as an upstream operator. Concurrently, the government is partially privatizing the NOC, with privatization set to be complete in 2026. This process will enhance financial capacity, allowing Sonangol to drive new upstream projects forward.

“The transformation of Sonangol started several years ago, when we passed the regulatory, concessionaire role to the ANPG. At the time, we transferred almost 600 employees to the ANPG. After that, Sonangol underwent a restructuring program where we created five core business units from 36 different entities – starting with exploration and production. We want to go public, but we want to do it properly. So, we are currently going through all the processes to do this,” stated Gaspar Martins.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital & Power.

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