JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, April 10, 2025/APO Group/ –How a small business presents and sells its offerings can be the difference between success and failure. GoDaddy (www.GoDaddy.com) has launched Show in Bio (https://apo-opa.co/4crqmoj) to help small businesses increase sales and stand out on social media.

This affordable tool offers flexibility for small business owners not yet ready to build a website, enabling them to showcase their products or services on social media channels, including Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, X, Pinterest and LinkedIn, and interact with customers through channels like WhatsApp to close sales. Using artificial intelligence (AI) to quickly draft product information, such as name, description, and price, and create a personalized one-page sales catalogue in minutes, no technical skills are required to use the tool.

Entrepreneurs who run their business on social media are more confident using AI
Research from GoDaddy’s 2025 Global Entrepreneurship Survey found over one in four (28%) of small business owners globally primarily run their business on social media. This shift in small business ownership to social-first entrepreneurs heightens the importance of how a small business sells online.

GoDaddy’s research has found these social-first entrepreneurs are younger, more optimistic about business performance and more confident in their ability to leverage AI for their business. This trend reveals not only the growth potential of social-first businesses, but also how technology – specifically AI – is a key enabler to innovate, scale and thrive.

Start a business on social media with low spend and without the need to build a website
Show in Bio allows entrepreneurs to start a business quickly with low spend, even validating a business idea before launching it. While perfect for small business owners who may not have yet built a website, the tool also supports domain integration, allowing those with an established online presence to use their own domain for a seamless branded experience.

Key features and benefits include:

• Centralize Your Links – Put all your important content in one shareable link.
• Drive Engagement – Drive traffic to key offers and updates instantly by sharing your link in bio on social channels.
• Showcase Products – Create a captivating catalogue with images and videos directly on your page.
• Domain Integration – Use your own domain for a seamless and branded experience.
• Save Time with AI – Generate quality product information and profile bios fast, no tech skills required.

“We’re supporting entrepreneurs to start their online business wherever it makes the most sense for them – including on social media,” said Selina Bieber, Vice President of International Markets at GoDaddy. “The rise of social media in the last 20-plus years has captured a significant share of internet activity, but it hasn’t diminished the need for businesses to have their own brand and their own identity.

“Show in Bio is an enhanced link in bio solution built to support small businesses run on social media, directly addressing challenges such as driving traffic, lack of technical skills and setting up a website while simplifying social selling.”

PARIS, France, April 10, 2025/APO Group/ –The Agence française de développement (AFD) has committed an additional €3 million to the African Development Bank (www.AfDB.org) -managed Africa Digital Financial Inclusion Facility (ADFI) (https://apo-opa.co/4iXF6xK) to accelerate financial inclusion in Africa.

The increase brings AFD’s total funding to over €5 million. The resources will support the ADFI partnership in catalyzing digital financial solutions across Africa by expanding investment in scalable and replicable initiatives that enable access to credit and other financial services that support investment and entrepreneurship among underserved communities.

The African Development Bank and AFD co-founded ADFI in 2019 with the Gates Foundation and the Ministry of Finance of the Government of Luxembourg. France’s Ministry for the Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty, the Women’s Enterprise Finance Initiative (We-Fi), and India’s Ministry of Finance joined in 2020, 2022 and 2023 respectively.

AFD Group is strongly committed to accelerating the mobilization of financial and human resources to align the financial systems with the Sustainable Development Goals, ensuring that vulnerable populations—especially in regions most affected by climate change—can access financial tools that help them adapt and thrive.

“Developing digital financial services is a key pathway to reach financially excluded populations in Africa,” said Audrey Brule-Françoise, head of AFD’s Financial Systems Division. “Through our continued collaboration within ADFI, we aim to promote access to digital financial services that are tailored to diverse needs and delivered in a responsible manner. This new contribution will help scale up impactful and inclusive solutions.”

Mohamadou Ba, head of the African Development Bank’s Financial Intermediation and Inclusion Division, said, “Digital financial solutions are key to improving the quality of life of people in Africa and reducing the gender access to finance gap. We welcome the Agence française de développement’s renewed support of the catalytic role ADFI has been playing in accelerating greater access and usage of digital financial solutions and financial inclusion across the continent. We look forward to working together to scale our efforts to enhance the impact on greater economic empowerment, resilience, and growth across Africa.”

Recent data shows that nearly half the continent’s adult population does not benefit from digital financial solutions, particularly women, youth, farmers, small businesses, and rural communities.

ADFI works to expand digital financial solutions across Africa through strategic investments in digital infrastructure, policy and regulation, and product innovation, with a special focus on reducing gender gaps and building capacity.

ADFI aligns with the African Development Bank’s Ten-Year Strategy for inclusive growth and its priority to improve the quality of life for the people of Africa. It also advances the mandate of the Bank’s financial sector development department to improve access to finance for the underserved. ADFI works to scale innovative digital financial solutions under the three broad strategic pillars of infrastructure, policies, regulations, and product innovation. Capacity building and gender inclusion cut across all interventions.

ACCRA, Ghana, April 10, 2025/APO Group/ –Afetsi Awoonor, Managing Director of Ghanaian state agency Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation (BOST), has joined the Invest in African Energies: Accra Investor Briefing to discuss strategies for boosting the country’s oil and gas value chain. Taking place on April 14 at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra, the event provides insight into the country’s investment opportunities, supporting dealmaking ahead of the African Energy Week (AEW): Invest in African Energies conference this September.

With a mandate to sustain strategic reserve stocks in Ghana while strengthening storage and transportation infrastructure, BOST is rapidly expanding its infrastructure development across the country. The company currently has a total storage capacity of 415,000 cubic meters, including 215,000 at the Accra Plains depot; 87,000 at the Kumasi depot; 50,000 at the Buipe depot; 46,500 at the Bolga depot; 12,000 at the Akosombo depot; and 17,000 at the Mami Water depot.

To support distribution among the depots and to consumers, the company is developing a network of storage facilities and pipelines across the country. In addition to the depots, the company has developed pipelines linking the Tema Oil Refinery to the Accra Plains depot as well as an 8-inch multi-product pipeline linking the Trafigura Conventional Check Buoy Mooring to the Accra Plains depot. A series of pipelines connect the respective depots, thereby ensuring a strong system of distribution infrastructure.

Meanwhile, to support the import of petroleum products in the country, BOST – under the authority of the government – played an instrumental part in implementing the country’s Gold-for-Oil initiative. The program, which enables BOST to pay for imported petroleum products with gold, leverages the country’s abundant mineral resources to support fuel security. The country increased its gold reserves from 19.5 tons in 2023 to 30.5 tons in 2024, highlighting the value of the commodity in Ghana.

Beyond its border, BOST is supporting regional fuel distribution. In March 2025, the company renewed a partnership with Burkina Faso’s National Hydrocarbons Company (SONABHY) to enhance cross-border petroleum trade. Under the terms of the agreement, SONABHY will utilize BOST’s supply chain infrastructure to streamline the movement of petroleum products from Ghana to Burkina Faso. The company will utilize infrastructure such as logistics networks, pipelines, river transport, bulk road vehicles and storage terminals. A joint technical team established by the companies will assess BOST’s operational capacity, thereby ensuring smoother petroleum chain and eliminating supply chain disruptions.

“To make energy poverty history by 2030, African countries need to significantly scale-up their domestic storage and distribution capacity. Companies like BOST are making strides in this area, targeting major investments across the downstream sector to strengthen fuel security in Ghana. As the country drives 17 new oil and gas projects by 2027, efforts by BOST will ensure that local populations benefit from the country’s upstream expansion,” stated NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman of the African Energy Chamber.

Serving as a prelude to the AEW: Invest in African Energies 2025 conference – taking place September 29 to October 3 in Cape Town – the Invest in African Energies: Accra Investor Briefing will provide a comprehensive overview of Ghana’s oil and gas opportunities. From upstream blocks to downstream infrastructure to capacity building and storage, the event will support decision-making by investors by offering greater clarity into the country’s hydrocarbon market.