The latest from Bird

February 19, 2025

Digital IDs are a mainstay in Africa’s internet economy drive

African nations are rapidly adopting digital ID systems to enhance security, streamline identity verification, expand financial inclusion, and accelerate the digital economy.

January 30, 2025

Earn abroad, build at home: Kenyan trade queen’s memo

Raised in Kenya and based in Germany, Zenz, whose Kenyan name is Machugu, described herself as a “perfect migrant”, a term she used with a wry chuckle.

January 29, 2025

Ethiopians Embrace E-Bikes with Battery Swap Stations

In Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, urban commuters are swapping their petrol-powered two-wheelers for high-tech, battery-powered bikes. For “e-riders,” long waits at fuel stations are becoming a thing of the past as they embrace an electric future, driven by ease and cost-efficiency.

January 29, 2025

African Migrants From Top Economies Out-Earn US Nativesq

According to 2024 data from the U.S. Census Bureau, African migrants from some of the six largest economies in Africa earn above the U.S. average income of $80,610, highlighting their notable financial success in the diaspora.

January 28, 2025

The Millenial Architect’s AI Is Helping Africa’s Urban Designers Fuse Heritage With Sustainability

Victor Kiarie’s solution to Africa’s fast-growing concrete sprawl is to redefine African urban design so that it is defined by its many unique environments – both geographic and cultural. To encourage other architects across the continent and beyond, he has merged modernist architectural theory with an AI tool.

January 27, 2025

African countries tighten digital currency rules to combat ‘evolving’ crypto crimes

As cryptocurrency-related crimes rise, countries including Kenya, Namibia, South Africa and Nigeria are implementing new crypto-related regulations to balance innovation with consumer protection and risk management.

January 23, 2025

With fish cookies, Francis Thoya hopes to raise healthier kids

Before 2020, Thoya worked as an event planner, focusing on birthday parties, weddings, and other events.

However, his once-thriving business stood at a standstill as social gatherings were prohibited due to the nationwide lockdown.

January 23, 2025

From IT guru to top poet: Story of Njeri Wangari

According to her website, Wangari, 43, is “that woman who, in a room, will be having animated conversations peppered with hearty laughter”.

It goes on to describe her as a person who thrives on the presence of an engaged audience, where large crowds feed her energy.

January 22, 2025

Solar energy use is increasing in Africa

With rising fossil fuel costs and persistent power blackouts, countries like Egypt, Zambia, Nigeria, and Angola are stepping up their solar capabilities, shifting Africa’s concentration of solar power away from South Africa.

January 17, 2025

The new language of activism for African youth

From Kenya to Nigeria, Tanzania to Uganda and Zambia, a rising wave of youthful musicians is building on the legacies of iconic figures such as Fela Kuti and Brenda Fassie to deliver messages of activism and demand improved governance.

November 18, 2024

The Makhanda Declaration lights a path for media reform in Africa.

SPECIAL REPORT | BIRD AGENCY | South Africa’s Rhodes University recently unveiled the Makhanda Declaration, a new commitment to strengthen journalism as a public good in South Africa and beyond.

November 16, 2024

Rising Quality of made-in-Africa goods boosts intra-continental trade.

African businesses increasingly prefer to trade across the continent’s borders over out-of-the-continent markets like Asia, the US, and Europe, due to the rising quality of made-in-Africa goods, lower market prices, and accessibility.