TECH NEWS

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Major African tech start-up Andela sacked hundreds of its staff this week — the majority from Nigeria — in one of the largest layoffs in the continent’s budding tech industry. The start-up, backed by hundreds of millions of dollars from investors including Facebook and tennis …

Berlin, Germany | AFP | Chinese tech giant Huawei launches its latest high-end smartphone in Munich on Thursday, the first that could be void of popular Google apps because of US sanctions. Observers are asking whether a phone without the Silicon Valley software that users have come to depend on can …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The United States (US) Mission has appealed to parliament to uphold internal best practices and allow the use of cameras and phones at polling stations during the 2021 general elections. In a brief statement issued on the US Mission Uganda official twitter handle Wednesday, …

Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia and Uganda have agreed to work together in the field of nuclear energy, the Russian nuclear agency Rosatom said Wednesday, as Moscow seeks to strengthen its influence in Africa. Russia’s state-owned companies have been at a key part of the strategy to bolster Moscow’s presence …

Washington, United States | AFP |  The head of Amnesty International warned Monday that a US military intervention in response to the attack on Saudi oil facilities blamed on Iran would only aggravate suffering in the Middle East. The rights group’s secretary general, Kumi Naidoo, said the world instead should …

Bugiri, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Centenary Bank has summoned its legion of CenteAgents to its Bugiri branch to continue serving customers as they work to restore normal service after a truck crashed into their offices. “The incident did not cause harm to any of our customers, or staff as the …

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | AFP | When Robel Wolde bought a beat-up 1967 Volkswagen Beetle from a friend for 50,000 Ethiopian birr (about 1,540 euros, $1,700), it marked the start of an extensive restoration he’d plotted for years. The 25-year-old Ethiopian painter quickly went to work. He installed new grey leather …

Bouaké, Ivory Coast | AFP |  Every time Catherine Coulibaly’s 19-year-old son had to make a routine appointment with the cardiologist for his heart condition, she gritted her teeth as she silently counted the financial cost. It wasn’t just the hospital fee — there was the transport, food and accommodation, too, …

San Francisco, United States | AFP | Apple on Tuesday played to its strengths with powerful new iPhone and iPad models able to serve as stages for its new game and television services. The Silicon Valley titan added into the mix a new-generation Apple Watch that can tell when a place …

San Francisco, United States | AFP | Along with its new iPhones, Apple is stepping up on content and services for its devices for its big media event Tuesday. Apple was expected to introduce three upgraded iPhones and a successor to its more affordable iPhone XR as it looks to hold …