Ufahamu Africa is excited to launch its fourth season with a roundtable discussion about mobile money in Africa, its challenges, opportunities, and potential for social and political transformation. Co-host Rachel Beatty Riedl moderates the conversation with three Mandela Washington Fellows who participated in the Young African Leaders Initiative at Northwestern University earlier this year: Patton Kalunga of Zambia, Amadou Abdoulaye Sylla of Senegal, and Ngah Tse Ngah Benoit of Cameroon. Rachel and co-host Kim Dionne open the episode catching up on news in southern Africa, including protests in Malawi, xenophobic attacks in South Africa, and the death of former Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe. They also talk about new research that listeners should check out and they share congratulatory messages for some of Ufahamu Africa’s earlier guests.
Ufahamu Africa is grateful to the Mandela Washington Fellows for sharing their insights.
Patton Kalunga is the managing director and co-founder of a micro lending company in Zambia and is also working on insurance products to support the unbanked population. He has a degree in Economics from the University of Cavendish, Zambia. Upon completion of the Mandela Washington Fellowship, Patton plans to continue to work on launching a finance company that offers credit, insurance, saving, and investment products.
Amadou Abdoulaye Mare Sylla has over five years of experience in small and medium enterprise project management. Currently, he is a consultant for multiple non-governmental organizations, and a co-founder of Cotizel, a web platform for billing and claims recovery. Abdoulaye holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Management from Dakar University and a master’s degree in Project Management from Centre Africain d’Etude Supérieur en Gestion. Upon completion of the Mandela Washington Fellowship, Abdoulaye plans to expand Cotizel across the continent, and connect all the local based organizations to their clients/donators all over the world.
Ngah Tse Ngah Benoit is a software engineer and entrepreneur with over six years’ experience in the field of Information and Communication Technology. He is the founder and chief executive officer of CleBea Group Inc., a holding company with subsidiary companies that cut across software, media, electronic commerce and animation. His companies create opportunities for employment and capacity development for young people in information technology. Ngah holds a Bachelor of Technology in Computer Engineering from the University of Buea, Cameroon.
Books, Links, & Articles
- “What’s behind South Africa’s xenophobic violence last week?” Analysis by Carolyn Holmes
- “The Ideology of Xenophobia in South Africa.” by Carolyn Holmes
- Migration and National Identity in South Africa, 1860–2010 by Audie Klotz
- “African nations are among those most vulnerable to climate change. A new survey suggests they are also the least prepared.” Analysis by Edem E. Selormey and Carolyn Logan
- “Who gets what – and how efficiently? Assessing the spatial allocation of public goods.” by Ruth Carlitz
- “Comparative continuismo: Presidential term limit contravention across developing democracies.” by Kristin McKie
- Electoral Politics in Africa since 1990 by Jaimie Bleck and Nicolas van de Walle
- “Ghana is now the fastest-growing mobile money market in Africa.” by Selin Ozyurt
- How The Mighty Fall: And Why Some Companies Never Give In by Jim Collins
- Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
- Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell