Internet – Africa Tech Digest

20Jan

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

Southern Africa

Zimbabweans Are Calling For Help, But No One Can Hear Them

NAIROBI — WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube have been blocked in Zimbabwe amid huge anti-government protests and a brutal police crackdown. Zimbabweans have been unable to access nearly all social media platforms since Tuesday, when the government issued a total internet shutdown. Doctors say they have treated nearly 70 people for gunshot wounds, with reports of random arrests by the police and military, and demonstrators being beaten in the streets. The internet blackout caused thousands of Zimbabweans to rely on location-masking virtual private networks (VPNs) in order to stay connected. Those who managed to get online made desperate calls for help. Continue reading photo Jekesai Njikizana / AFP / Getty Images

19Jan

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

Central Africa, East Africa, Nigeria, Southern Africa, Tech Policy, West Africa

Zimbabwe’s internet blackout shows how powerless major telcos are against governments

Internet access was restored in Zimbabwe late on Wednesday, but on Thursday WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter remained inaccessible. More than 600 people were arrested this week as police armed with AK-47 rifles rounded up protestors, according to the Associated Press. At least six people were killed when the military was deployed to quell protests against high fuel prices on Monday. Amnesty International reported eight deaths, while the Association of Doctors for Human Rights reported treated 68 cases of gunshot wounds and more than 100 other cases of assaults. A tense calm returned on Thursday. Zimbabweans were protesting a fuel hike that would see the price of petrol and diesel rise by 150%in a country that already had fuel shortages. Amid the violent crackdown on prot...

18Jan

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Central Africa, East Africa, Nigeria, Southern Africa, Tech Policy, West Africa

Internet Switched Back On Again In Zimbabwe After A Total Blackout For The Second Time In A Week

The Zimbabwean story continues to be crazier at every turn. Around mid day on Tuesday the government ordered internet service providers to block all citizens from the internet. The nation was switched back on yesterday after 30 hours of darkness. When we thought that it was all done, the government issued another directive at Nicodemus time last night around 10 pm instructing total shut down again. Zimbabwe woke up to no internet today and Econet subscribers had the following message in their SMS inbox: At 22:05 17/01/19, we were served with another directive for total shutdown of the internet until further notice. Our lawyers advised we are required to comply with the directive pending the Courts decision on its legality. The earlier directives are already the subject of a pending ...

DR Congo election: Internet shut down after presidential vote

2Jan

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Central Africa

DR Congo election: Internet shut down after presidential vote

The internet has been shut down in key cities in the Democratic Republic of Congo a day after the much-delayed presidential election. Opposition candidate Martin Fayulu's campaign team accused the government of ordering the shut down to avoid broadcasting his "overwhelming victory" in Sunday's poll. Telecoms minister Emery Okundji said he was unaware of the situation. Observers have complained of widespread irregularities during the poll. Counting is under way, but provisional results are not expected until 6 January. President Joseph Kabila is stepping down after 17 years in office. He has promised DR Congo's first orderly transfer of power since it gained independence from Belgium in 1960. Mr Kabila is backing his former interior minister Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, who ...

31Dec

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

Africans in Tech, East Africa

Inside the world of a Kenyan cryptocurrency miner

Eugene Mutai is well aware of the risks of mining virtual money. "Sometimes I ask myself: will the bubble pop? "He's right to be, cryptocurrencies are volatile. That hasn't stopped him from operating in this shadowy and controversial corner of the global financial system. A few years ago Mutai was working odd jobs on farms in rural Kenya. Now he's a cryptocurrency miner in Nairobi. His apartment where he mines, is dimly lit blue and drowned with the low drone of a self-made cryptocurrency computer rig. Mutai began researching cryptocurrencies last year. "I was curious about what was making these alternative coins drive. "Bitcoin was hard to mine by that point in time," Mutai tells CNN. There were already many Bitcoin miners. Instead, Mutai started mining Ethereum, a similar but less we...