MIL Africa Engine

Ecobank (www.EcoBank.com), a leading pan-African financial services group, and Google Cloud today announced a groundbreaking collaboration aimed at transforming financial services with advanced analytics and AI and driving digital empowerment across Africa. Through this collaboration, Ecobank plans to leverage Google Cloud’s cutting-edge technology to deliver innovative payment and remittance solutions that are frictionless, secure, and universally accessible, empowering individuals and businesses across the continent and beyond. This collaboration will focus on leveraging Google Cloud’s advanced technologies and AI to enhance Ecobank’s digital offerings to accelerate the digital transformation of the Bank.

The partnership agreement is designed to empower individuals, support the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the region, and contribute to the overall economic development of Africa.

This partnership is intended to deliver substantial benefits:

• Enhancing financial accessibility: The collaboration will strive to simplify and streamline money transfers, both domestically and across borders. This will be supported by Google Cloud’s scalable infrastructure and advanced API solutions, such as Apigee, aiming to make financial transactions faster, more affordable, and more accessible for more people, facilitating crucial support for families and enabling smoother commercial activities for businesses.
• Empowering African businesses: A core objective of the collaboration is to explore ways to bolster the continent’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. By leveraging Google Cloud’s capabilities, including its powerful data analytics platform, BigQuery, for AI-driven insights, Ecobank will aim to develop solutions that improve access to finance for SMEs, simplify payment acceptance, and provide valuable data-driven insights to help businesses scale across more than 33 countries in Africa.
• Envisioning seamless digital banking: The collaboration will explore the creation of more intuitive and user-friendly digital banking platforms, built on Google Cloud’s secure and scalable global infrastructure and enhanced by Google Cloud’s AI technologies. This will empower Ecobank’s developers and customers to easily integrate into Ecobank’s platforms connecting to a unified and advanced API, enabling them to offer innovative financial solutions. For example, fintech partners can readily provide core banking services such as accounts, payments, and lending for seamless transactions.
• Personalising financial solutions responsibly: Utilizing Google’s advanced data analytics, AI, and machine learning, while upholding the highest standards of data privacy and security, Ecobank will aim to better understand and anticipate customer needs. This will enable the development of more relevant and personalized financial products and services, including tailored credit, savings, and insurance options.
• Strategic expert collaboration: Google Cloud’s Professional Services team will aim to provide ongoing expert support to Ecobank, ensuring the effective implementation of technology and the successful realization of the collaboration’s transformative goals over the coming years.

Jeremy Awori, Group CEO, Ecobank said: “Our collaboration with Google Cloud is a leap forward in Ecobank’s digital transformation journey. We look forward to leveraging Google Cloud’s world-class technology to unlock new possibilities for individuals and businesses to grow and scale across Africa. This collaboration signifies our shared intent to explore building a more connected and financially inclusive future for the continent.”

Thomas Kurian, CEO, Google Cloud said: “Google Cloud and Ecobank have a shared vision for using technology to help deliver financial empowerment to more people and businesses in Africa. We look forward to exploring the ways our cutting-edge AI, powerful data analytics, and scalable infrastructure can support Ecobank efforts to fuel the continent’s economic development and digital future.”

This agreement signifies a shared commitment between Ecobank and Google Cloud to explore how the power of technology might unlock new opportunities for Africans and contribute to a digitally empowered and economically vibrant future for the continent.

Ecobank and Google Cloud will actively explore opportunities to further expand their collaboration, tapping into the vast potential of other Google solutions and services.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated.

Media Contact:
For Ecobank Group
Christiane Mbimbe Bossom
Group Communications
Email: groupcorporatecomms@ecobank.com
Tel: +228 22 21 03 03

About Ecobank Group:
The Ecobank Group is the leading pan-African private sector banking group with unparalleled African expertise. It operates in 35 countries across sub-Saharan Africa, as well as in France, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, and China. Its unique pan-African network provides a unified platform for payments, cash management, trade, and investments. The Ecobank Group employs over 14,000 people serving more than 32 million customers and offers a comprehensive range of Personal, Commercial, and Corporate & Investment Banking products, services, and solutions through multiple channels, including digital. For more information, please visit www.EcoBank.com

About Google Cloud:
Google Cloud is the new way to the cloud, providing AI, infrastructure, developer, data, security, and collaboration tools built for today and tomorrow. Google Cloud offers a powerful, fully integrated and optimized AI stack with its own planet-scale infrastructure, custom-built chips, generative AI models and development platform, as well as AI-powered applications, to help organizations transform. Customers in more than 200 countries and territories turn to Google Cloud as their trusted technology partner.

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Today, I embark on a five-nation visit to Ghana, Trinidad & Tobago, Argentina, Brazil, and Namibia from 2 to 9 July 2025.

At the invitation of President H.E. John Dramani Mahama, I will visit Ghana on 2-3 July. Ghana is a valued partner in the Global South and plays an important role in the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States. I look forward to my exchanges aimed at further deepening our historical ties and opening up new windows of cooperation, including in the areas of investment, energy, health, security, capacity building and development partnership. As fellow democracies, it will be an honour to speak at the Parliament of Ghana.

On 3-4 July, I will be in the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago, a country with which we share deep-rooted historical, cultural and people-to-people connect. I will meet President H.E. Mrs. Christine Carla Kangaloo, who was the Chief Guest at this year’s Pravasi Bhartiya Divas, and Prime Minister H.E. Mrs. Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who has recently assumed office for the second term. Indians first arrived in Trinidad and Tobago 180 years ago. This visit will provide an opportunity to rejuvenate the special bonds of ancestry and kinship that unite us.

From Port of Spain, I will travel to Buenos Aires. This will be the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Argentina in 57 years. Argentina is a key economic partner in Latin America and a close collaborator in the G20. I look forward to my discussions with President H.E. Javier Milei, whom I also had the pleasure of meeting last year. We will focus on advancing our a mutually beneficial cooperation, including in the areas of agriculture, critical minerals, energy, trade, tourism, technology, and investment.

I will attend the BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro on 6-7 July. As a founding member, India is committed to BRICS as a vital platform for cooperation among emerging economies. Together, we strive for a more peaceful, equitable, just, democratic and balanced multipolar world order. On the sidelines of the Summit, I will also meet several world leaders. I will travel to Brasilia for a bilateral State Visit, the first by an Indian Prime Minister in nearly six decades. This visit will provide an opportunity to strengthen our close partnership with Brazil, and work with my friend, President H.E. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, on advancing the priorities of the Global South.

My final destination will be Namibia, a trusted partner with whom we share a common history of struggle against colonialism. I look forward to meeting President H.E. Dr. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah and chart a new roadmap for cooperation for the benefit of our peoples, our regions and the wider Global South. It will be a privilege to also address the Joint Session of Namibian Parliament as we celebrate our enduring solidarity and shared commitment for freedom and development.

I am confident that my visits to the five countries will reinforce our bonds friendship across the Global South, strengthen our partnerships on both sides of the Atlantic, and deepen engagements in the multilateral platforms such as BRICS, the African Union, ECOWAS and the CARICOM.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of External Affairs – Government of India.

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Violence against civilians in South Sudan is escalating to record levels, according to a new report by the United Nations Mission in South Sudan, which documents 1,607 victims in the first quarter of this year, the highest number in any three-month period since 2020.

The report reveals that 739 civilians were killed, 679 injured, 149 abducted, and 40 subjected to conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) between January and March 2025. Compared to the October to December 2024 quarter, this marked an 86 percent increase in victims (866 to 1,607), a 110 percent increase in civilians killed (352 to 739) and a 94 percent increase in those injured (350 to 679). Abductions rose from 129 to 149 and CRSV cases from 35 to 40.

Compared to the same quarter in 2024, this represents a 76 percent increase in victims (913 to 1,607) 58 percent increase in killings (468 to 739) and 107 percent increase in injuries (328 to 679).

Warrap State recorded the highest number of civilians affected, with 428 deaths and 298 injuries, followed by Central Equatoria with a 260 percent increase in victims and the most abductions. The number of child victims increased sharply from 114 to 171. Women and girls continued to be disproportionately affected by CRSV and other acts of sexual and gender-based violence, together accounting for 98 percent of documented victims.

Consistent with the previous quarter, most victims were attributed to community-based militias or civil defense groups (66 percent), while unidentified, opportunistic armed elements were responsible for 22 percent.

Conventional parties to the armed conflict and other armed groups were responsible for 15 percent of victims, marking a concerning increase of 27 percent (from 152 to 193). The escalation of armed confrontations involving these parties and groups severely undermined the protection of civilians and resulted in violations and abuses of human rights and international humanitarian law.

“It is the primary responsibility of the Government to protect civilians and prevent conflicts, which continue to cause immense harm to communities across the country,” said Guang Cong, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General, UNMISS. “Together with regional and international partners, UNMISS calls for concerted, collective efforts at the national, state and local levels to address the underlying causes and drivers, facilitate the resolution of grievances through dialogue and hold perpetrators accountable in order to end the deadly cycle of violence.”

As an impartial partner, UNMISS supports efforts to protect civilians and deter violence by conducting thousands of peacekeeping patrols by land, air, and river each year, facilitating locally led reconciliation and peacebuilding initiatives, strengthening rule of law institutions and extending their reach through mobile courts to far flung areas and helping to advance broader political and peace processes in the country, while emphasizing on the need for accountability and justice for abuses and violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

By De Wet Joubert, Operations & Strategic Projects Director, RS South Africa (https://Africa.RSDelivers.com)

South Africa’s discrete manufacturing sector, which includes industries such as automotive, electronics, rail, and aerospace, faces mounting pressure from global competition, fragmented supply chains, and outdated infrastructure. In this complex environment, digitalisation is emerging not as a future consideration, but as a critical lever for survival, resilience, and growth.

Manufacturers are grappling with inconsistent supply chains, where limited visibility can halt entire operations. In discrete environments where the failure to procure even a single component can delay or derail entire production runs, real-time supply chain data is is no longer a luxury, it is a necessity.

By integrating Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) sensors, smart data loggers, and blockchain-enabled tracking platforms, manufacturers can transform disjointed supply chains into agile ecosystems. This transition can be supported with industrial communication modules, IIoT gateways, and advanced inventory management tools, all available through RS South Africa’s extensive digital platform.

Modernising infrastructure doesn’t require a full-scale overhaul. Legacy equipment such as traditional PLCs and Human Machine Interfaces (HMIs) are not obstacles, but opportunities for optimisation. With retrofit solutions like programmable logic controllers (e.g. Siemens LOGO! 8, Allen-Bradley Micro800), signal converters, and edge computing devices, manufacturers can equip existing machinery with smart capabilities. These upgrades extend equipment lifecycles and build toward fully connected environments without requiring massive capital expenditure.

Yet, alongside this technology imperative, there is an urgent need to address the African skills gap. National research shows that many African manufacturers remain at the early stages of Industry 4.0 readiness, with a particular deficit in digital and systems integration skills.

To meaningfully close South Africa’s industrial skills gap, we must strengthen collaboration between higher education and industry. Universities are making great strides in incorporating real-world scenarios and advanced technologies into their programmes, but industry must also play a more active role in embedding its requirements at grassroots level. At RS South Africa, we support this through technical enablement and educational outreach, from providing Arduino and automation kits to funding student-led projects. Combined with STEM engagement and soft skills development, these efforts help bridge the gap between academic learning and industry expectations, equipping future engineers with the tools and confidence to lead.

A cornerstone of effective digital transformation is real-time decision-making, which is enabled by robust Manufacturing Operations Management (MOM) systems as a framework. Its implementation can be supported by offering plant monitoring hardware, data acquisition systems, and panel PCs capable of displaying live dashboards. These systems streamline operations and reduce waste, while also enabling quality control, predictive maintenance, and compliance tracking.

Digitalisation is also a powerful tool for building resilience and sustainability. With South Africa facing ongoing energy constraints and growing Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) expectations, manufacturers are under pressure to operate leaner and smarter. The role of predictive analytics and IIoT-enabled systems in monitoring energy usage, scheduling maintenance, and automating efficiency improvements needs to be emphasised. Products such as power meters, energy monitoring kits, smart relays, and sensor-driven HVAC systems support manufacturers in meeting these efficiency and compliance goals.

One of the standout examples of local transformation is the Gibela rail manufacturing facility in Gauteng. Through automation, local supplier development, and workforce training, the site has achieved high levels of local content and productivity. Such projects are proof that digitalisation, combined with long-term investment in people and technology, can drive inclusive and competitive industrial growth. Components essential to such advanced environments include control panels, terminal blocks, protective relays, and advanced safety switches.

For example, RS South Africa’s framework for enabling digital transformation in discrete manufacturing is grounded in five key pillars: retrofitting legacy equipment with intelligent controls; delivering experiential, industry-aligned training; integrating MOM systems for real-time operational insight; deploying IIoT solutions across plant and supply chains; and ensuring executive-level commitment to sustained innovation.

In a time of global industrial acceleration, African manufacturers that fail to adopt digital tools risk being outpaced by more connected and agile competitors. Digitalisation is no longer optional, it is essential. It offers the tools to improve productivity, build resilience, drive sustainability, and unlock new economic opportunities for the country’s industrial sector. 

By partnering with manufacturers and suppliers on this journey, we remain committed to shaping the future of African manufacturing, supporting a shift from isolated to integrated systems, from reactive to predictive operations, and from traditional labour-driven methods to data-led intelligence. 

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Distributed by APO Group on behalf of RS South Africa.

PR Contact Person – RS South Africa: 
Princess Tlou 
Communications & Content Specialist  
RS South Africa  
Princess.Tlou@rsgroup.com 
+27 11 691 9366 

Media Contact Person – NGAGE:  
Thobile Ndlovu 
Senior PR Account Executive 
thobile@ngage.co.za  
+27 11 867 7763  

Further information is available via these links: 

• Twitter: https://apo-opa.co/4l9BM3C
• LinkedIn: https://apo-opa.co/4nAqnf8
• Facebook: https://apo-opa.co/4lfvnnQ

RS South Africa (https://apo-opa.co/4le3jB6)
RS Africa Exports (https://Africa.RSDelivers.com)
DesignSpark (https://apo-opa.co/4l6wqWR)
RS Group plc (https://apo-opa.co/45RSWye)

About RS:
RS is a global product and service solutions provider for industrial customers, enabling them to operate efficiently and sustainably.  

We operate in 36 markets, stock over 800,000 industrial and specialist products and list an additional five million relevant for our industrial customers, sourced from over 2,500 suppliers. This extensive range supports our customers across the industrial lifecycle of designing, building, and maintaining equipment and operations.  

We enhance their experience through a tailored service model, leveraging our efficient physical, digital and process infrastructure sustainably. We combine a technically led and digitally enabled approach with an exceptional team of experts; ultimately, it’s our people that make the difference. 

Our purpose, making amazing happen for a better world, reflects our focus on delivering results for people planet and profit.  

RS Group plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange with stock ticker RS1 and in the year ended 31 March 2024 reported revenue of £2,942 million. 

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From a mother seeking antibiotics for her child at a clinic, to a cancer patient in need of lifesaving therapy, medicines are no ordinary commodities. They are lifelines. They manage pain, control chronic illness, treat infections, and save lives.

Mauritius is embarking in the development of a national medicine policy with the support of WHO: 

“The national medicine policy will ensure the population of Mauritius has access to good quality medicines,” said the Senior Chief Executive of the Ministry of Health and Wellness, Mr Sarwansingh Purmessur at the opening of the workshop. It shows the commitment of the country in achieving Universal Health Coverage, added Mr S. Purmessur.

“Mauritius relies heavily on imported medicines; A strong National Medicine Policy is the backbone of a well-functioning pharmaceutical system. It will bring transparency, accountability, and resilience in a world of increasing health threats and economic volatility. said the WHO Representative, Dr Anne Ancia. “Today’s landmark workshop marks the commitment of Mauritius in ensuring safe, effective, quality and affordable medicines for all citizens”

This initiative unites various health professionals including clinicians, pharmacists, regulators, academics, wholesalers, member of pharmacy council and other health professionals to contribute to the development of a policy that will meet the specificities of the country and the local context.  

WHO has mobilized two internationally renowned experts—Professor Fatima Suleman and Dr Andy Gray, leading the WHO Collaborating Centre for Pharmaceutical Policy and Evidence-Based Practice at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa—to provide the greatest technical input and guidance throughout the process.

This participatory and inclusive approach underscores the Ministry of Health and Wellness’s commitment to transparency and collaboration, laying the foundation for a policy owned by all and ensuring engagement and accountability for its implementation. 

WHO is not only here to assist in developing this policy — we want to work with you in ensuring its long-term impact and success; when the right medicine will reach the right person at the right time, every time; when medicines will always do what they are meant to do: heal, protect, and give every Mauritian the chance to live a full, healthy life.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO) – Mauritius.

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As Malawi celebrates its first anniversary after officially closing its reimported wild poliovirus (WPV1) outbreak, the country is taking strategic steps to sustain hard-won gains and strengthen its broader health system. On 24 April 2025, health leaders, partners, and stakeholders gathered for the National Polio Transition Planning meeting, an important milestone in ensuring that the infrastructure built to eradicate polio continues to serve Malawi’s communities for years to come.

From Polio Response to Long-Term Resilience

Polio resources – from trained personnel to disease surveillance systems-have played a key role in emergency health responses across Malawi. The transition planning process aims to protect these assets and ensure their integration into the national health system. In line with the Polio Transition Strategic Framework, Malawi’s plan supports national ownership of essential polio functions, including surveillance, immunization, and outbreak response.

“Transitioning from GPEI support means we must strengthen our ability to manage core functions nationally. This is vital to keep Malawi polio-free and improve our capacity to detect and respond to other vaccine-preventable diseases,” said Dr. Patrick Wataya Chirwa, Chair of the National Certification Committee.

In May 2020, Malawi (alongside the rest of the African Region) was certified free of indigenous wild poliovirus. However, the detection of a reimported case from Southern Asia in 2022 served as a powerful reminder that polio remains a global threat. Malawi’s health authorities responded swiftly and decisively, successfully interrupting transmission by May 2024.

By January 2025, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) had classified the country as low-risk on its global polio watchlist—a testament to Malawi’s strong response and surveillance systems.

However, maintaining that status means planning for the future. As external polio funding declines, Malawi must close gaps in workforce and financing. The Polio Transition Plan will help secure critical capacities and align them with the Ministry of Health-led Immunization Programme, reinforcing the country’s ability to prevent and respond to outbreaks.

Sarah Wanyoike, from WHO AFRO’s Eastern and Southern Africa inter-country support team, highlighted how lessons from Malawi’s recent outbreak response can shape a stronger, more resilient health system. “We must integrate service delivery and strengthen surveillance across the board—not just for polio, but for all vaccine-preventable diseases,” she said.

The plan focuses on optimizing existing systems, integrating surveillance efforts, and building multisectoral collaboration, linking immunization, emergency preparedness, One Health approaches, and community engagement.

At the meeting, Dr. Neema Kimambo, WHO Representative to Malawi, emphasized that the transition is not just a health sector responsibility. It requires cross-cutting collaboration among government agencies, local health authorities, partners, and civil society.

“Malawi’s success will depend on strong coordination between the Ministry of Health, EPI, the Public Health Institute of Malawi, district councils, health partners, NGOs, and communities themselves,” Dr. Kimambo noted.

These efforts aim to ensure that the systems and knowledge built through the polio programme continue to benefit Malawians, supporting everything from emergency response to routine immunization and disease surveillance.

Malawi’s National Polio Transition Plan is a blueprint not only for sustaining polio eradication efforts but also for advancing universal health coverage and equity. As the country moves from emergency response to long-term resilience, WHO and partners remain committed to supporting a smooth and sustainable transition—helping Malawi stay polio-free and healthier for generations to come.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO) – Malawi.

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A cholera outbreak in Abyei Special Administrative Area risks spreading further if water and sanitation (WASH) conditions are not urgently improved, warns Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Health authorities in Abyei officially declared a cholera outbreak on 11 June 2025, following a continued rise in reported cases.

South Sudan has been grappling with a widespread cholera outbreak since September 2024, with cases reported across multiple states, including Unity, Jonglei, Upper Nile, and Central Equatoria, which hosts the capital, Juba. Abyei Special Administrative Area in the north western part of South Sudan is one of the latest areas to be affected. People in Abyei, whether displaced people, or host communities, are living in overcrowded areas with limited access to basic services. The situation is particularly concerning in informal settlements like Amiet market, where over 50,000 people who fled the war in Sudan live with limited access to safe drinking water and sanitation infrastructure such as latrines. Many are forced to defecate in the open due to a lack of latrines, posing further risks of the spread of diseases.

“The situation in Amiet is critical. The patients admitted with cholera to Ameth Bek Hospital in Abyei Town confirm an active outbreak. The risk of spread to Abyei town is high, especially with the return of the rains, extremely poor hygiene conditions, and the continued increase in the number of people arriving from Sudan coming into an already overcrowded space,” says Stéphanie Dongmo, MSF Project Coordinator in Abyei.

MSF has been responding to the crisis, treating patients with symptoms consistent with cholera such as acute watery diarrhoea at its 20-bed cholera treatment unit (CTU) set up at Ameth Bek Hospital since 11 April. Between 2 and 28 June, a total of 333 suspected cholera cases were treated at the MSF CTU. The last three weeks have seen a significant surge, with 80 patients received between 9 and 15 June; 77 between 16 and 22 June; and 94 between 23 and 28 June being treated at the MSF CTU in Abyei.

While there are ongoing medical response efforts, the onset of the rainy season poses an immediate and severe threat. Ensuing floods are likely to cut off access, complicate logistical movements for aid, and accelerate the spread of waterborne diseases like cholera.

“MSF calls for the urgent rollout of cholera vaccines and vastly improved water, sanitation, and hygiene programs by all relevant actors in affected areas. Immediate and comprehensive actions, including deploying water trucks to provide clean water, soap, constructing more latrines, and improving the drainage systems are critical to mitigate the crisis. These immediate actions are crucial to save lives and prevent further escalation of this critical public health emergency in Abyei,” Stephanie adds.

Since the start of the outbreak in September 2024, more than 75,000 cases and over 1,300 deaths from cholera had been reported nationwide according to the World Health Organisation by 27 June 2025.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Médecins sans frontières (MSF).