Gambling with your future?🙅

Issue #146: In Kenya, policymakers step up to curb the menace of gambling.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 [Open in app]( or [online]() [Gambling with your future?🙅]( Issue #146: In Kenya, policymakers step up to curb the menace of gambling. [VENTURES AFRICA]( Apr 7   [Save](   Sports Betting in Africa. Photo credit: GHANAsoccernet Hello Venturer, I am yet to see a person who hates to make quick cash in Africa. In a continent with rising inflation, rising unemployment and poor-paying jobs, who would not love to make quick cash?  Africa has the world’s youngest population, many of whom are industrious and innovative. But while some are creating jobs in various sectors of the economy, many unable to find economic footing have fallen into webs of gambling and Ponzi schemes. For instance, in 2016, many Nigerian youths fell into the vicious hands of MMM, a popular Ponzi scheme by Sergei Mavrodi, a Russian financial investor, or fraudster, if I may say so. Back then, people gambled with live savings and funds for capital projects and were left with regrets.  Worse than Ponzi schemes is sports betting. Across Africa, sports betting companies are cashing out big at the expense of addicted young people. This is why since mid-2019, Kenya has pursued a tax policy that has kept gambling companies at bay. Ishioma Imokhai-Bello, Staff Writer What’s new? Why investing in Kenya’s future trumps gambling revenue. Kenya is a small country with a little over 53 million people. People aged between 18 and 35 are approximately 75% of its population, many of whom are unemployed and excluded in critical aspects of the economy. But Kenya's government perceived the bookmaking sector to be highly exploitative of its young and poor and began to implement strict policies on the sector in mid-2019. [Read more.]( Why are startup acts becoming more popular in Africa? Africa has often caught the same fever of tech waves in the past. And when you realise that policy innovation is also contagious, the saying that “Africa is a country” might not sound so strange anymore. In recent years, adopting startup acts has also become a pattern. [Read more.]( My Pivot Journal: Motunrayo Oyedele’s journey to becoming a professional photographer Motunrayo Oyedele has harboured a love for the spotlight since her undergraduate days. Though she was not a model by trade, she relished every opportunity to be captured by the lens of a phone camera. Her passion for photography didn’t end with being photographed; she equally loved the art of editing her photos. [Read more.]( [Share VA's Newsletter]( Felicia Omari Ochelle is helping tech companies tell compelling stories to a global audience Felicia Omari Ochelle is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of TechPR, a Lagos-based public relations agency. TechPR helps clients, especially African tech companies, better tell their stories to local and international audiences. Like a sculptor, Ochelle is of African tech companies to a global audience. [Read more](. WEI: Nigeria’s odd internet project, Microsoft’s Kenya layoffs, and MTN’s off-grid move. Last week, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved ₦24.2 billion ($52.57 million) to provide Internet services at 20 airports, some educational institutions, and markets across Nigeria. In Kenya, rumours Microsoft laid off staff at its Africa Development Centre (ADC) started circulating on social media. [Read more.]( African countries with the highest interest rates Higher rates can sometimes reflect growing confidence in Africa’s economic potential, encouraging foreign investment and stimulating local businesses. But that’s not what happens in many cases. In this article, we explore the ten African countries where borrowing is the most expensive. [Read more](. [Leave a comment]( 3 ChatGPT alternatives built by Africans It has been a short four months since OpenAI launched ChatGPT, the chatbot that has elevated the obscure technical field of AI into the public domain in a massive way. In all of this, the dominant narrative is that Africa is missing in the AI conversation. But that’s not true, as we’ll see in this article. Africans have built chatbots that can function in ChatGPT’s stead [Read more](. Register for Africa’s Business Heroes  ABH (Africa's Business Heroes) is a philanthropic initiative by the Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Philanthropy. It aims to identify, support, and inspire the next generation of African entrepreneurs who are making a positive impact in their communities and building a sustainable economy. Every year, 10 finalists compete for a share of $1.5 million in grant money, with a total of 100 African entrepreneurs being recognized over 10 years. [Register Here!](  [Open in app]( or [online]( [Share]( Holiday Jollof Read our special holiday issue on the events, businesses, people, and policies that impacted Africa in 2022. [Click]( to read. Our weekly collectibles - Scammers are using artificial intelligence to sound more like family members in distress. [They thought their loved ones were coming for help. It was an AI scam.]( - Why is America congratulating the winner of this disastrous election? Find out what [Chimamanda Adichie thinks of Nigeria’s hollow democracy]( in a letter to Joe Biden. - Learn how [five simple ideas from “Negative self-help” can change your life]( than the search for happiness ever can. #VANUGGET [Share VA's Newsletter]( VA's Newsletter is free today. But if you enjoyed this post, you can tell VA's Newsletter that their writing is valuable by pledging a future subscription. You won't be charged unless they enable payments. [Pledge your support](   [Like]( [Comment]( [Share](   Read VA's Newsletter in the app Listen to posts, join subscriber chats, and never miss an update from VENTURES AFRICA. [Get the iOS app]( the Android app]( © 2023 VENTURES AFRICA 548 Market Street PMB 72296, San Francisco, CA 94104 [Unsubscribe]() [Start writing]()