HiPipo Money

With MTN Uganda partnership, Inspire Africa has launched yet another Local TV reality show, ‘Sawa Ya Cash’. Sawa Ya Cash literally meaning ‘Cash hour’, is the first edition of the local reality television series in which, locally selected and trained entrepreneurship candidates compete to win 5,000,000/- worth of business start-up capital every week for a period of 15 weeks. The TV series is a Luganda show that will be aired on Bukedde TV every Tuesday and Wednesday 8:00pm – 8:30pm.

Read Full Press Release 3/26/2013

Inspire Africa began as a Human Capital Development organization with the sole goal of engineering successful entrepreneurship in Africa. After the launch of Inspire Africa Season One, the show amassed thousands of viewers in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda. 

Eventually Inspire Africa realized the need of an innovative and more efficient way to teach Business and entrepreneurship. With the trends in TV viewership rising, Inspire Africa saw an opportunity in the niche market that is television and created a TV reality show.

Today Inspire Africa has launched yet another Local TV reality show, ‘Sawa Ya Cash’. Sawa Ya Cash literally meaning ‘Cash hour’, is the first edition of the local reality television series in which, locally selected and trained entrepreneurship candidates compete to win 5,000,000/- worth of business start-up capital every week for a period of 15 weeks. The TV series is a Luganda show that will be aired on Bukedde TV every Tuesday and Wednesday 8:00pm – 8:30pm.

Inspire Africa has partnered with MTN Uganda its key executive sponsor and Bank of Africa to produce the TV show. MTN Uganda, under MTN business has committed efforts to support entrepreneurship in Uganda.  

“Since we launched in Uganda 15 years ago, we have given many people a platform to start and grow in businesses by partnering with us in our sales and distribution function, MTN Mobile money as well as MTN business partnerships. To date, many people have become millionaires by working with us and we are very proud to be able to make this contribution to individual’s lives as well as to the economy, said Ernst Fonternel, MTN Uganda Chief Marketing Officer.

“Our partnership in Sawa Ya Cash is just another demonstration of our commitment to empower our customers and make their lives better. And this is something we do through a number of initiatives. ” Fonternel further explained.
Over the years there has been a phenomenal growth particularly in the SME market and this has formed the backbone of Uganda’s economic growth. It is with this in mind that MTN has consistently supported this section of the economy. MTN has over the last two years partnered with KPMG to provide business and financial literacy training to two groups of 100 selected Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

Sawa Ya cash will entertain, inspire and empower millions of viewers with dynamic content and a sneak peek into the lives of successful local businessmen in the country. The show will show case the success stories of extraordinary individuals that have shaped Uganda’s economy and transformed lives of people. This is all aimed at educating the viewers about the different opportunities there are in several business sectors. The specific objective is to teach business and entrepreneurship in a more local and simplified way. 

In every episode, there will be a hot and exciting business debate of 5 contestants presenting their business ideas to the panel of Senior Entrepreneurs. In this debate they will clearly illustrate how they will enter the market and sustain themselves if given a startup capital of 5,000,000/- . The winning candidate will be selected by a unanimous decision of the Judges, based upon the practicability of their business Idea. At the end of 15 weeks, a total of 75 candidates will take part in the TV reality show, 15 candidates walking away with 5 million each, to put into their business/business idea. 

The general public will have an opportunity to take part in this TV show by applying. Applications forms can be picked from any Bank of Africa Branches in Kampala. Similarly the application forms will be available online www.inspireafrica.co.ug and on social media.  Applicants can also sms the word CASH, their name and location to 8338 to participate. It should be noted that all applicants must be between 18 to 35 years of age.

About MTN Uganda

Launched in 1998, MTN Uganda is the leading telecommunications firm in country. Visit us atwww.mtn.co.ug and www.facebook.com/mtnug.

About the MTN Group

Launched in 1994, the MTN Group is a leading emerging market operator, connecting subscribers in 22 countries in Africa and the Middle East. The MTN Group is listed on the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa under the share code: “MTN.” As of 31 December 2012, MTN recorded almost 190 million subscribers across its operations in Afghanistan, Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Republic, Iran, Liberia, Nigeria, Republic of Congo (Congo Brazzaville), Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, South Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Uganda, Yemen and Zambia. Visit us at www.mtn.com andwww.mtnfootball.com

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Kampala, Uganda

On Saturday 23rd March, 2013, MTN Uganda held a special Women’s Day Panel dialogue themed “How does she do it?” as a celebration of Ugandan women in business.

Speaking at the event, Mazen Mroué, CEO MTN Uganda said “MTN Uganda acknowledges the importance of Ugandan women in both the social and economic development of the country. This year, as the rest of the world celebrates the annual International Women’s Day, we felt it befitting to invite business women from different spheres to engage in a panel discussion and in so doing to act as motivation to the upcoming women entrepreneurs in Uganda.”

Present were leading women in business that included Allen Kagina, commissioner general Uganda Revenue Authority, Aggie Konde, Managing Director NTV Uganda, Mama Mbire, one of the pioneer business women in Uganda, Caroline Mpyisi, owner of Montessori schools and Jolly Andruvule, director Invisible children, who all shared ideas with the other women present.

Honourable Amelia Kyambadde, the Minister of Trade and Industry was the Chief Guest of the event.

Also present was Emma Oenga who is based in Nairobi, Kenya and is a leading investor in the male dominated real estate industry in East Africa. Oenga was guest speaker at the event.

Read Full Press Release Below For Details

Today’s fast paced and male oriented world presents unique challenges to the working class woman regardless of whether she is employed, aspires to start her own business or runs her own company.

Despite this, many women today have beaten the odds to emerge as successful in the corporate world as well as in business, while combining their careers with their responsibilities as mothers and wives.

MTN Uganda on Saturday 23rd March, 2013, held a special Women’s Day Panel Discussion themed “How does she do it?” as a celebration of Ugandan women in business.

“MTN Uganda acknowledges the importance of Ugandan women in both the social and economic development of the country. This year, as the rest of the world celebrates the annual International Women’s Day, we felt it befitting to invite business women from different spheres to engage in a panel discussion and in so doing to act as motivation to the upcoming women entrepreneurs in Uganda,” said Mazen Mroué, CEO MTN Uganda.

Since its inception in 1998, MTN Uganda has created a platform through its wide product range, as well as its services and coverage, which has given women the opportunity to rise and shine in business as well as in the corporate world.

Through its leadership position, MTN Uganda employs and supports in excess of 500,000 people both directly and indirectly and a large number of these are women that partner with MTN through itsDistribution Network, Mobile Money Service and MTN Business partnership.

 “This year, as the rest of the world celebrates the annual International Women’s Day, we felt it befitting to invite business women from different spheres of the business community to engage in a panel discussion and in so doing to act as motivation to the upcoming women entrepreneurs in Uganda, Mroué explained.

Leading women in business shared their ideas with the rest of the women. These included Allen Kagina, commissioner general Uganda Revenue Authority, Aggie Konde, Managing Director NTV Uganda, Mama Mbire, one of the pioneer business women in Uganda, Caroline Mpyisi, owner of Montessori schools and Jolly Andruvule, director Invisible children.

The guest speaker, Emma Oenga who is based in Nairobi, Kenya and is a leading investor in the male dominated real estate industry in East Africa.

Speaking at the event, the Chief Guest, Honourable Amelia Kyambadde, the Minister of Trade and Industry commented, “The Ugandan government is committed to providing a favourable investment climate for prospective investors, both foreign and local. I do acknowledge that, over the years, Ugandan women have and continue to play a significant role in driving the economic development of the country through the different sectors they operate in.”

She applauded MTN Uganda for being commendable partner in the drive for economic development of Uganda.  She recognized the work done over the years and in particular the contributions made towards the training of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

The state of Uganda’s economy is such that SMEs have increasingly become one of the economy’s leading drivers of this country’s revenue with over 60% of revenue being generated by medium sized companies.

About MTN Uganda

Launched in 1998, MTN Uganda is the leading telecommunications firm in country with more than 7.7 million customers as of 31 December 2012.

Visit us at www.mtn.co.ug; www.youtube.com/mtnug; www.facebook.com/mtnuganda www.twitter.com/mtnugandacare.

About the MTN Group

Launched in 1994, the MTN Group is a leading emerging market operator, connecting subscribers in 22 countries in Africa and the Middle East. The MTN Group is listed on the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa under the share code: “MTN.” As of 31 December 2012, MTN recorded almost 190 million subscribers across its operations in Afghanistan, Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Republic, Iran, Liberia, Nigeria, Republic of Congo (Congo Brazzaville), Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, South Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Uganda, Yemen and Zambia. Visit us at www.mtn.com and www.mtnfootball.com.

Do you want to make that call but you are in short of credit/airtime? MTN  Uganda has produced an answer through the newly launched product MTN Xtra Time. With MTN Xtra Time, Customers can now get an airtime loan and pay later, so even if they have run out of airtime, they can still stay in touch. To use the service “dial *146#”.

 Read FULL Press Release:

MTN Uganda provides Airtime loans through MTN Xtra time

Release date:3/21/2013

Effective today, MTN prepaid customers can keep talking with MTN Xtra Time. Customers can now get an Airtime loan and pay later, so even if they have run out of airtime, they can still stay in touch.

Customers can dial *146# to access MTN Xtra Time loans as well as to check their Airtime loan balance. In order to apply for MTN Xtra Time, a customer must have less than 240/- in their account. To access up to 1,000/- in Airtime, customers must have recharged a minimum of 10,000/- per month for the last 6 months or minimum of 15,000/- per month for the last 12 months to access 1,500/- in Airtime. The MTN Xtra Time loan attracts a 10% fee which is deducted from the Airtime loan. MTN Xtra Time loans are automatically paid back on subsequent recharges and current Airtime loans must be paid back in full before applying for subsequent Airtime loans. MTN Xtra Time loans represent normal Airtime and can be used for all MTN services although it is not transferable via Me2U.

“At MTN we would like to make communication as convenient as possible and by allowing our customers to continue talking with MTN Xtra Time, this service provides both convenience as well as support during emergency situations.” said Ernst Fonternel, MTN Chief Marketing Officer.

“So remember to dial *146# the next time you run out of airtime and continue talking with MTN Xtra Time.” Fonternel concluded.

About MTN Uganda

Launched in 1998, MTN Uganda is the leading telecommunications firm in country with more than 7.7 million customers as of 31 December 2012.

Visit us at www.mtn.co.ug;
 www.youtube.com/mtnug; 
www.facebook.com/mtnug ;
www.twitter.com/mtnugandacare.

About the MTN Group

Launched in 1994, the MTN Group is a leading emerging market operator, connecting subscribers in 22 countries in Africa and the Middle East. The MTN Group is listed on the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa under the share code: “MTN.” As of 31 December 2012, MTN recorded almost 190 million subscribers across its operations in Afghanistan, Benin, Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Republic, Iran, Liberia, Nigeria, Republic of Congo (Congo Brazzaville), Rwanda, South Africa, 

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Kampala

Following the 16 Percent Revenue growth by MTN Uganda, MTN Group President and CEO Sifiso Dabengwa and Group Chief Operating Executive Ahmed Farroukh visited Uganda and congratulated MTN Uganda upon their strong performance in the year 2012.

He was in the country as part of the group roadshow across the 22 MTN operations”.

Recently, MTN Uganda revealed that revenues for the year 2012 grew by 16 per cent. The growth according to the company came at the back of increasing returns from voice coupled with an ever growing data and mobile money platform usage.

“MTN Uganda delivered strong results in a competitive market with Revenue up 16% and EBITDA up 22%. Data revenue increased 86% supported by a strong performance in MTN Mobile Money,” read part of a statement from the telecommunication giant, adding: “With more than 20 million transactions each month; MTN Mobile Money now contributes meaningfully to MTN Uganda’s revenue.”

Details.

Fifty-one years after he first started looking after Her Majesty’s interests in exotic destinations James Bond is about to appear on British Airways’ aircraft again as his latest movie Skyfall debuts on board.

Besides establishing a reputation for being well-travelled and with a taste for the finer things in life, Bond has also become known for the hi-tech wizardry he uses to thwart villains bent on global domination.

To mark Sky fall’s on-board premiere, Jim Davies, the British Airways Museum’s equivalent of Q, has taken a journey back in history to explore some of the technological innovations in air travel since 1962.

It was the year when Bond first appeared onscreen in Dr No. While the scheming doctor was planning to disrupt an early manned American space flight with a radio-beam weapon, the airline’s predecessor, BAE was introducing some of its own electronic gadgetry, launching its first electronic reservations unit. A year later BOAC, with which it would later be merged to form British Airways, rolled out electronic reservations to Canada and New York, making it much quicker and easier to make and retrieve bookings.

In 1965, Bond was heading to the Bahamas to recover two nuclear warheads which the SPECTRE organisation had stolen. Meanwhile a BAE Trident aircraft was about to make history, using the sort of radio technology which might have turned Dr No green with envy. The flight from Paris Le Bourget to London Heathrow made the world’s first fully automatic landing of a commercial aircraft carrying fare-paying passengers. It paved the way for today’s automated systems which enable aircraft to land in all weather and poor visibility.

By 1969, Bond is onto his sixth film, On Her Majesty’s Secret Serviceand his adventures had taken him to Jamaica, Turkey, Switzerland, the United States, the Bahamas, Japan and Portugal. No doubt MI6 was grateful when BEA introduced the first computer-produced timetable, making mission planning much simpler and a new, computerised check-in system meant its agents could spend less time hanging around airports and more fighting bad guys.

As the sixties give way the seventies longhaul global travel entered a new era with Boeing introducing its now-iconic Jumbo-Jet. In 1971, while Bond was investigating an international diamond smuggling ring in Diamonds Are Forever, BOAC operated its inaugural commercial Boeing 747 flight from London to New York.

Then, in 1976, science fiction became fact when a commercial aircraft capable of travelling faster than one of Bond’s bullets took to the skies. On 21 January that year, British Airways and Air France Concordes took off simultaneously, starting the world’s first supersonic passenger services.

By 1993 things had also speeded up on the ground, when British Airways introduced Fast Track, a dedicated channel for premium customers, hastening the journey from check-in to the departure lounge.

The next revolution in long-haul luxury travel happened in 1996, when British Airways unveiled seats which turned into fully flat beds at the touch of a button and semi-private cabins in its flagship First cabin. Bond had a year before been flitting between Russia and Cuba to prevent criminals using Golden Eye satellite weapons and would no doubt have revelledthe additional comfort and privacy.

He would also almost certainly have approved of the recent £100 million makeover of the cabin, with the hand-stitched leather seats reminiscent of those in an Aston Martin, mood lighting and an electronic blind, similar to those in private jets.

In 2000 Bond was taking a well-deserved rest after The World Is Not Enough saw him narrowly escape death at an ICBM base in Kazakhstan, rescue M and disarm a bomb in a nuclear submarine in Istanbul. Meanwhile British Airways was again upping the ante in business travel, launching the first fully flat bed in business class.

The cabin was re-launched in 2007 with the second-generation Club World as distinct from its predecessor as Daniel Craig in Casino Royale to Pierce Brosnan in The World Is Not Enough. Both are definitively James Bond, Craig’s just a more modern take on a classic.

Now British Airways’ latest innovation means that customers boarding longhaul flights can see Bond battle former MI6 operative Raoul Silva in Skyfall from the moment they board the aircraft. Its extended programming which runs from the moment customers reach their seats until they leave the aircraft provides up to an hour more entertainment.

“Constant innovation is what has made the Bond franchise such a success. We’re constantly looking for new services and products that will make travelling with British Airways even better,” says Frank van der Post, British Airways’ director of brands and customer service. 

 British Airways Highligths

• British Airways’ predecessor, BOAC introduced inflight entertainment on Boeing 707 flights to Moscow and Tokyo in 1970.
• The top five movies in 2012 were – The Avengers, Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Prometheus, Dark Knight Rises, Snow White and the Huntsman.
• Like Bond, British Airways uniforms over the past 50 years have reflected the fashion of the time. 

Businesses mainly corporate companies spend billions on advertising every financial year. Government, public organisations and NGOs also spend billions on advertising and public relations.

According to a survey; the 2011 Industry Exposure survey, here are the twenty companies that spent most on advertising that year. The list is mainly dominated by Telecoms, Beverages and Soft drinks companies among others.

A list of the top advertisers for 2012 will be out soon.

Top twenty Advertisers as of for December 2011

1. MTN Uganda 
2. Airtel Uganda 
3. Orange Uganda 
4. Mukwano Group of Companies
5. Warid Uganda 
6. Nile Breweries 
7. Crown Beverages 
8. Unilever Uganda 
9. Movit Uganda 
10. Uganda Breweries 
11. Century Bottling Company 
12. Uganda Telecom 
13. Vision Group 
14. Ministry of Health 
15. Pearl of Africa Samona Products 
16. Multi Choice Uganda 
17. Game Uganda 
18. Stanbic Bank Uganda 
19. Nation Media Group 
20. Bidco Uganda 

Source: 2011 Industry Exposure survey.