Category: MIL-OSI

Source: APO

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On the sidelines of the 2025 World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund (IMF) Annual Meetings in Washington, D.C., H.E. Ahmed Shide, Minister of Finance of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, held a bilateral meeting with H.E. Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari, Minister of Finance of the State of Qatar, and Mr. Fahad Hamad Al-Sulaiti, Director General of the Qatar Fund for Development.

The meeting focused on forging a strategic partnership between Ethiopia and Qatar, with an emphasis on expanding cooperation in areas of mutual interest, including infrastructure development, private investment, and development assistance.

During the discussions, H.E. Minister Ahmed Shide underscored the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation between the two countries and highlighted the growing opportunities for investment in Ethiopia.

“Ethiopia highly values its partnership with the State of Qatar,” said Minister Shide. “There is significant potential to enhance collaboration, and our Government remains committed to facilitating Qatari investments in key sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, and services.”

For his part, H.E. Minister Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari reaffirmed Qatar’s strong interest in deepening bilateral relations with Ethiopia. He expressed appreciation for Ethiopia’s economic reform efforts and emphasized the immense potential for collaboration on impactful trade and investment projects.

Mr. Fahad Hamad Al-Sulaiti reaffirmed Qatar Fund for Development’s readiness to identify and support projects that promote inclusive development, investment, and trade between the two nations.

Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to establishing a joint technical team to identify concrete projects for implementation and to develop a roadmap for deeper, long-term cooperation between Ethiopia and Qatar.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Finance, Ethiopia.

Source: APO

On October 24th and 25th, 2025, the AFRICA24 Group (https://Africa24TV.com) will provide an exceptional coverage of the investiture and swearing-in ceremony of Dr. George Elombi, elected 4th President of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank).

This ceremony is a major strategic platform to honor the legacy of Professor Benedict Oramah and lay the foundations for a new era of pan-African leadership with Dr. George Elombi. The event marks a historic transition for the institution, with a review of the previous decade and an ambitious vision to accelerate intra-African trade and Africa’s prosperity.

The Investiture: A major event in two phases

● Friday October 24th : Series of thematic conferences on “A decade to build the pillars of future prosperity,” devoted to the achievements and legacy of outgoing President Benedict Oramah

● Saturday October 25th : The official investiture and swearing-in ceremony of Dr. George Elombi, who will present his vision for Afreximbank to a prestigious audience of heads of state, ministers, business leaders, institutional partners, representatives from the Caribbean, and shareholders. A press conference will conclude the ceremony.

The stakes of this event are: securing funding for intra-African trade, strengthening economic integration through the AfCFTA, stimulating international partnerships, and promoting inclusive growth based on innovation, sustainable industry, and entrepreneurship among young people and women.

360° editorial coverage by AFRICA24 and global distribution to 120 million households

The AFRICA24 Group, a leading pan-African media outlet, is rolling out an impressive audiovisual and digital setup to cover the Afreximbank 2025 investiture :

• Live broadcast of thematic conferences, the investiture ceremony, the swearing-in ceremony, and the press conference.
• Exclusive interviews with the new President, the outgoing President, heads of state, economic leaders, financial institutions, and international partners.
• Immersive reports from the event venues, behind the scenes at conferences, profiles of key figures, and the expectations of African economic players.
• In-depth analysis of Afreximbank’s leadership prospects, continental economic transformation, and adding value to intra-African trade.
• Special Afreximbank Days October 24th and 25th n AFRICA24 English

Follow Dr. George Elombi’s investiture with AFRICA24 on all your screens; live, replay, and on-demand formats.

• AFRICA24 (channel 249) et AFRICA24 English (channel 254) on Canal+ Afrique
• On myafrica24 Africa’s first HD streaming platform.
• On https://Africa24TV.com which offers you full access to all programs

With the AFRICA24 Group, Together, let’s transform Africa.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of AFRICA24 Group.

Contact:
Head of Communication Department – AFRICA24 Group
Gaëlle Stella Oyono
Email: onana@africa24tv.com
Tél.: +237 694 90 99 88
@ africa24tv
https://Africa24TV.com

About Dr. George Elombi:
Dr. George Elombi is a pan-African lawyer and banker with a master’s degree and doctorate in law (international commercial arbitration) from the University of London. A former lecturer at the University of Hull in the United Kingdom, he joined Afreximbank in 1996 as a lawyer. He held several senior positions, including Executive Vice President in charge of Governance, Legal and Corporate Services, before being elected as the 4th President of the Afreximbank Group. With nearly 30 years of experience, he embodies a pan-African vision focused on intra-African trade, regional integration, and African prosperity.

About d’Afreximbank:
The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is a pan-African multilateral financial institution dedicated to financing and promoting intra- and extra-African trade. For 30 years, Afreximbank has been deploying innovative structures to provide financing solutions that facilitate the transformation of Africa’s trade structure and accelerate industrialization and intra-regional trade, thereby supporting economic expansion in Africa. A strong advocate of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement, Afreximbank launched the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), which was adopted by the African Union (AU) as the payment and settlement platform to support the implementation of the AfCFTA. In collaboration with the AfCFTA Secretariat and the AU, the Bank has set up a US$10 billion Adjustment Fund to help countries participate effectively in the AfCFTA. At the end of December 2024, the Bank’s total assets and guarantees amounted to approximately US$40.1 billion, and its shareholders’ funds stood at US$7.2 billion. Afreximbank is rated A by GCR International Scale, Baa2 by Moody’s, AAA by China Chengxin International Credit Rating Co., Ltd (CCXI), A- by Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR), and BBB by Fitch. Over the years, Afreximbank has grown into a group comprising the Bank, its impact financing subsidiary called the African Export Development Fund (AEDF), and its insurance management subsidiary, AfrexInsure (the three entities form “the Group”). The Bank is headquartered in Cairo, Egypt.

About AFRICA24 Group:
Launched in 2009, the AFRICA24 Group is the continent’s leading TV and digital media publisher, with four full HD channels distributed in the largest cable networks. A leader among decision-makers and senior executives on the continent, AFRICA24 in French and AFRICA24 English, the Group is the pioneer and leader in African news channels. AFRICA24 has strengthened this leadership through sports with AFRICA24 Sport, Africa’s first channel dedicated to sports news and competitions, and AFRICA24 Infinity, the first channel dedicated to creative industries that showcase the creative genius of African youth in art, culture, music, fashion, and design…

Leading audiovisual brand on the continent, the AFRICA24 Group has four full HD television channels, each a leader in its segment::

• AFRICA24 TV : Africa’s leading news channel in French, published by AMedia
• AFRICA24 English : Africa’s leading news channel exclusively in English
• AFRICA24 Infinity : The channel for creative talents dedicated to music, art, and culture.
• AFRICA24 Sport : The leading sports news and competition channel

The AFRICA24 Group publishes myafrica24 (Google store and App Store), the world’s first HD streaming platform in Africa, available on all screens (television, tablet, smartphone, computers) … More than 120 million households have access to Africa24 Group channels through major operators such as Canal+, Bouygues, Orange, Bell, etc., and more than 8 million subscribers on various digital platforms and social networks.

Source: APO

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The Congo Basin, home to the world’s second-largest tropical rainforest, holds immense value for not only the six countries it spans, but for the planet. A new World Bank report reveals the region’s forests are not only essential for climate stability and biodiversity, but also a foundation for economic resilience. The value of forest ecosystem services nearly doubled in just two decades, rising from $590 billion in 2000 to $1.15 trillion in 2020. During the same period, the total forest asset value surged from $11.4 trillion to $23.2 trillion.

The report shows that forest management, conservation, and data readiness vary widely across the region. Countries such as Gabon and the Republic of Congo stand out, embedding forest sustainability into national planning with relatively low deforestation rates and strong biodiversity indicators. Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea are in transition, strengthening forest governance and piloting policies that integrate ecosystem values. Meanwhile, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Central African Republic face complex pressures — from rapid population growth to informal logging, mining, and agriculture — that threaten the region’s forest resilience.

The Congo Basin Forest Ecosystem Accounts report, alongside the country reports, provides a basin-wide overview of how forests can be fully integrated into macroeconomic planning to support economic diversification and climate finance strategies. The findings show how the forest sector can drive new opportunities from community-based ecotourism, forest monitoring, to value-added processing of non-timber forest products, and results-based climate financing — shifting the development narrative toward long-term sustainability and resilience.

“For the first time, Congo Basin countries have developed a detailed forest ecosystem accounts showing the true value of their natural wealth,” said Ousmane Diagana, World Bank Vice President for Western and Central Africa. “These forests, managed sustainably, can serve as powerful engines for sustainable development contributing to creating jobs, supporting climate-smart growth, and strengthening local economies.”

The report highlights a critical imbalance: Congo forests generate over $1 trillion in global ecosystem services — with over 90% of that value stemming from climate regulation — yet local governments captured only $8 billion in domestic benefits in 2020, primarily from timber, bushmeat, wild foods, and ecotourism.

“We can only manage what we can measure –this is why the forest ecosystem accounts for the Congo Basin will be so key for countries to unlock the power of their forests to drive development and jobs,” said Valerie Hickey, World Bank Global Director for Climate Change, “This accounting can also help Congo Basin countries demonstrate the huge value that their forest conservation efforts bring to the rest of the world.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The World Bank Group.

Source: APO

Up to 84% of organisations globally practise bring your own device (BYOD) in some form, but only half of them officially allow it, according to a recent report (https://apo-opa.co/498rnlG). While the convenience and cost saving of employees’ using their own personal devices for work is undeniable, there are many security risks involved too, particularly in hybrid and remote work environments, asserts Anna Collard from KnowBe4 Africa (www.KnowBe4.com).

It’s becoming increasingly common for organisations to expect employees to use their own personal devices for work, such as smartphones, tablets and laptops, and employees seem to prefer the level of freedom it gives them (https://apo-opa.co/3JfJ8Vx). From an organisational perspective, they stand to save an average of R5 000 per employee every year (https://apo-opa.co/47cbQPa) if their employees use just their own mobile devices, with two-thirds reporting that it boosts their productivity (https://apo-opa.co/47wWjL7).

In South Africa, this trend has also become ubiquitous. “BYOD, particularly with smartphones having access to corporate email accounts, has become the norm for a lot of South African organisations for many years already,” asserts Anna Collard, SVP Content Strategy and Evangelist at KnowBe4 Africa.

“While organisations in the financial services sector will have stricter policies, many start-ups, SMEs and even some larger organisations often allow, or even expect, employees to use their own phones and laptops, sometimes without formal policies in place.”

While flexible and convenient, she believes this informal approach introduces significant cyber and compliance risks. The new KnowBe4 Africa Human Risk Management Report 2025 (https://apo-opa.co/3WzbdKR) highlights that up to 80% of employees in Africa use personal devices for work, with broader studies finding 70% of these devices are unmanaged – a critical blind spot for many organisations.

BYOD blind spots

The most notable cybersecurity risk associated with BYOD is data leakage. “Personal devices can easily leak sensitive data through unsecured apps, cloud storage or public Wi-Fi,” she explains. “Without proper controls, even a misplaced phone can become a breach vector (https://apo-opa.co/3Wzbeyp).”

Another security blind spot is employees downloading malicious apps. “Employees may unknowingly install apps that contain malware,” Collard comments. “Some apps mimic legitimate ones (https://apo-opa.co/48zCF2b), but secretly harvest data or open backdoors into corporate systems.” This also extends to “shadow IT” – the use of unapproved applications or services – which can proliferate via personal devices, creating unmonitored entry points for attackers.

A further risk is outdated software. “Personal devices may run outdated operating systems or apps, making them vulnerable to known exploits,” she says. “IT teams often lack visibility to patch non-managed devices, and a large percentage of people have ‘an update is ready to be installed on your device’-notifications that have been hanging around for ages; unactioned.”

In addition, many employees may have a false sense of security about their phone or laptop, especially since almost half of Gen Z respondents (48%) take cybersecurity protection on their personal devices more seriously than on their work devices, according to an Ernst & Young survey in the US (https://apo-opa.co/48FeM9o). “Just because it’s my device doesn’t mean it’s secure for sensitive work data,” stresses Collard. “A weak BYOD policy opens the door to data leaks, shadow IT and insider risk.”

What organisations should do

In order to mitigate these risks, organisations need to come up with a robust BYOD policy. “It starts with policy and awareness (https://apo-opa.co/4ooJBnf),” she states. “Organisations must have a clear, communicated BYOD policy – what’s allowed, what’s not and what minimum protection is expected.”

Some useful technical controls include employees having strong passwords, multifactor authentication (MFA), encryption, endpoint security and patching. Organisations can also segment their networks to isolate personal devices from critical corporate assets. “Mobile Device Management (MDM) tools can enforce some controls,” concedes Collard, “but they can’t replace human vigilance.”

She is a firm advocate of security awareness training to heighten awareness of cybersecurity risks, especially among younger employees who are more likely to use the same passwords for their personal and professional accounts (https://apo-opa.co/48FeM9o). “Organisations need to educate employees on the specific risks of BYOD, beyond  ‘don’t click links’,” she says. This is crucial, as 96% of organisations believe (https://apo-opa.co/48FeM9o) their employees might fall for more attacks in the future due to AI use by bad actors. The KnowBe4 Africa Human Risk Management Report 2025 (https://apo-opa.co/3WzbdKR) further highlights that AI policy remains a governance blind spot in many organisations, with 46% still developing formal AI policies – making employee education on AI-related BYOD risks even more critical.

“Organisations can simulate attacks (https://apo-opa.co/4oy3AQO) that leverage BYOD vulnerabilities, such as phishing specific to mobile apps, while fostering a culture where employees feel comfortable reporting potential incidents on personal devices without fear of reprisal.”

Alongside security training, Collard is an advocate of digital mindfulness, which she describes as an important  weapon against cybersecurity threats. “Being digitally mindful helps employees slow down, become aware of risky moments and question suspicious behaviour, especially on personal devices,” she says.

Managing the human element

Even though privately-owned devices may appear to be the problem, managing the human element is absolutely key in mitigating BYOD security risks. “A device is just a tool; what matters is how we use it,” Collard emphasises. “You can have the most secure set-up, but if someone is rushed, tired or emotionally triggered, they’re more likely to click on a malicious link or fall for a scam.”

She is adamant that organisations need to train their employees’ attention and awareness to build resilience, not just rely on tools. “Ultimately, it’s a combination of the right technology and human vigilance,” she concludes.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of KnowBe4.

Contact details:
KnowBe4
Anne Dolinschek
anned@knowbe4.com

Red Ribbon
TJ Coenraad
tayla@redribboncommunications.co.za

Source: APO

Recent Kaspersky (www.Kaspersky.co.za) research entitled “Cybersecurity in the workplace: Employee knowledge and behaviour” has found that 81,7% of professionals surveyed in the Middle East, Turkiye and Africa (META) region say that they utilise Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools for work tasks. However, only 38% have received training on the cybersecurity aspects of using neural networks, which is one of the critical elements of protection against AI-related risks ranging from data leaks to prompt injections. The research included participants from South Africa, Kenya and Egypt, where the trends were similar to that of the META region.

The vast majority of survey respondents in the META region (94,5%) said that they understand what the term “generative artificial intelligence” means, and for many employees this knowledge is no longer just theoretical: AI tools have become part of their every workday. Overall, 81,7% of respondents use AI tools for work: most often – to write or edit texts (63,2%) and work e-mails (51,5%), to create images or videos with the help of neural networks (45,2%), and for data analytics (50,1%).

The survey uncovered a serious gap in employee preparedness for AI risks. A third (33%) of professionals reported receiving no AI-related training. Among those who had courses, 48% said the focus was on how to effectively use AI tools and create prompts; while only 38% received guidance on the cybersecurity aspect of AI use.

While AI tools, which help automate everyday tasks, are becoming ubiquitous in many organisations, they often remain part of ‘shadow IT’, when employees use them without corporate guidance. 72,4% of respondents said generative artificial intelligence tools are permitted at their work, 21,3% acknowledged these tools are not allowed, while 6,3% were unsure.

To make employee use of AI more clear and secure, organisations should implement a company-wide policy regarding this aspect. This policy can prohibit AI use in specific functions and for certain types of data, regulate which AI tools are provided to employees, and allow only tools from the approved list. The policy should be formally documented, and employees should receive proper training. After setting a list of hygiene measures and restrictions, companies should monitor AI usage, identify popular services, and use this information to plan future actions and refine their security measures.

“For successful AI implementation, companies should avoid the extremes of a total ban as well as a free-for-all. Instead, the most effective strategy is a tiered access model, where the level of AI use is calibrated to the data sensitivity of each department. Backed by comprehensive training on cybersecurity aspects of AI, this balanced approach fosters innovation and efficiency while rigorously upholding security standards,” says Chris Norton, General Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa at Kaspersky.

To secure corporate AI use Kaspersky recommends organisations to:

• Train employees on responsible AI usage. Courses on AI security from Kaspersky Automated Security Awareness Platform (http://apo-opa.co/4hsPKwI) can help with adding specialised training to companies’ educational programmes.
• Provide IT specialists with relevant knowledge on exploitation techniques and practical defence strategies. The ‘Large Language Models Security’ training (http://apo-opa.co/4hj7gDn), part of the Kaspersky Cybersecurity Training portfolio, can enhance both the professional development and the overall cybersecurity of an organisation.
• Ensure all employees have a cybersecurity solution installed on all their work and personal devices used to access business data. Kaspersky Next products protect against a range of threats including phishing or installing a fake AI tool, particularly given the growing trend of scammers embedding infostealers in deceptive AI applications.
• Conduct regular surveys to monitor how frequently AI is being used and for which tasks. Using this information, assess both the benefits and risks of AI use to adjust company policy.
• Use a specialised AI proxy that cleans queries on-the-fly by removing specific types of sensitive data (such as names or customer IDs), and uses role-based access control to block inappropriate use cases.
• Create a full-fledged policy that addresses the spectrum of relevant risks. Kaspersky’s guidelines for securely implementing AI systems (http://apo-opa.co/4qBNUhh) can be of help.

*The survey was conducted by Toluna research agency at the request of Kaspersky in 2025. The study sample included 2800 online interviews with employees and business owners using computers for work in seven countries: Türkiye, South Africa, Kenya, Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Kaspersky.

For further information please contact:
Nicole Allman
nicole@inkandco.co.za

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About Kaspersky:
Kaspersky is a global cybersecurity and digital privacy company founded in 1997. With over a billion devices protected to date from emerging cyberthreats and targeted attacks, Kaspersky’s deep threat intelligence and security expertise is constantly transforming into innovative solutions and services to protect individuals, businesses, critical infrastructure, and governments around the globe. The company’s comprehensive security portfolio includes leading digital life protection for personal devices, specialized security products and services for companies, as well as Cyber Immune solutions to fight sophisticated and evolving digital threats. We help millions of individuals and nearly 200,000 corporate clients protect what matters most to them. Learn more at www.Kaspersky.co.za.