| EMERGING MARKETS REVIEW | Connected Post-Harvest Logistics |
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August 10th, 2020
This newsletter is inspired by my latest research analysis report on Connected Next Generation Post-Harvest Logistics in Emerging Countries.
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INFRASTRUCTURE
MAKING AERIAL FIBER DEPLOYMENT FASTER AND MORE EFFICIENT
July 13, 2020 - Facebook Engineering
According to Facebook Engineering, Facebook is designing a robot-based solution to deploy fiber optic infrastructure over existing power line infrastructure. Citing that large-scale fiber deployments have been inhibited by their cost and complexity, Facebook aims to partner with deployment firms and power companies to bring fiber connectivity around the world to rural, lower-income, and affluent communities. The idea is said to have been influenced by the company's travels across rural Africa where the World Bank lists Uganda as having an electrification rate of around 43% as of 2018. This rate, the article adds, is magnitudes above what fiber footprint the country has. And so it continues that such a gap, by example, presents an opportunity for its robot-based installation solution to expand the reach of the country's fiber network.
https://engineering.fb.com/connectivity/aerial-fiber-deployment/
EMERGING MARKETS WILL RELY ON 2G AND 3G FOR ANOTHER 5 YEARS - GSMA
July 8, 2020 - Developing Telecoms
According to Developing Telecoms, a new report from the GSMA cautions mobile operators to maintain their legacy networks as billions of customers across Africa, India, and Latin America will continue using 2G and 3G cellular over the next 5 years. By the same token, the article notes that the GSMA research has also found that approximately 20% of mobile traffic in the US and Europe was delivered over 3G networks. And with a new dawn in deployments in 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT) networks, the GSMA reminds operators of the need to increasingly manage capital expenditures for new deployments against the operational expenditures of legacy infrastructure.
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TECHNOLOGY
GO REAL-TIME TRACKERS USED TO PROTECT AVOCADOS FROM THEFT
July 2, 2020 - FreshPlaza
According to FreshPlaza, real-time tracking of in-transit food shipments can have benefits beyond just temperature monitoring of perishable foods. The article highlights the case of Avocado grower-shipper La Bonanza Avocados of Uruapan Michoacán, Mexico. Facing difficulty preventing theft of their cargo-carrying trucks, sometimes several in a day, the article notes that the threat to their operations became significant. The company uses cargo temperature monitoring devices which attach to pallets and employ a tracking service for pinpointing the location of their delivery trucks. According to the article, a new-found application for this location tracking is the ability for the company to locate their stolen trucks in real-time. This feature has taken on a new significance as it allows for prompt response time on stolen trucks since the cargo is off-loaded by thieves quickly onto other trucks. Using this feature, the company has been able to rapidly identify their truck locations in these situations and to recover their perishable cargo.
https://www.freshplaza.com/article/9231409/go-real-time-trackers-used-to-protect-avocados-from-theft/
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COLD STORAGE
KENYAN FIRM PLANS HUGE COLD CHAIN FACILITY IN EAST AFRICA
July 14, 2020 - Pumps Africa
Pumps Africa reports on one company's efforts to take on the challenge of transportation of perishable goods in Kenya. Cold Solution, a leading Kenyan temperature-controlled warehouse and logistics service provider, has announced it will invest $70 million to construct a 15,000 sqm facility at Nairobi's Tatu City Special Economic Zone. As a one-stop-shop facility, it will offer customers local and long-haul temperature-controlled transportation across East Africa, along with real-time product tracking capability.
http://www.pumps-africa.com/kenyan-firm-plans-huge-cold-chain-facility-in-east-africa-2/
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CLIMATE CHANGE
CLIMATE SCIENCE HAS A BLIND SPOT WHEN IT COMES TO HEAT WAVES IN SOUTHERN AFRICA
July 13, 2020 - InsideClimate News
In this article, InsideClimate News reports on a new study concluding that coordinated climate data reporting in Africa is lacking, and that research on a global level is tilted towards developed nations. According to the article, Africa is the world's hottest continent by geography, yet when it comes to knowing how many people have been seriously affected by the extreme heat, it is difficult as the impact has been poorly tracked. In particular, there appears to be an intensifying of heat waves across Sub-Saharan Africa as weather stations and climate models indicate. Though, these heat waves are not being recorded, and the lack of such data is said to hinder activities as effective disaster preparation, vulnerability assessment, and climate resilience planning.
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/13072020/africa-heat-waves-climate-science
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ECONOMY
FROM MAGAZINE: DIGITAL REFORMS FOR SMOOTH SAILING IN AFRICAN WATERS
July 1, 2020 - Logistics Update Africa
In this article, Logistics Update Africa reports on a variety of trade related areas. Particularly, these address the flow of trade across the African continent, how Covid-19 is playing into it, and a view on not postponing the African Union's African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) until January 1, 2021. According to the article, as ocean trade accounts for 90% of imports for Africa, investments in a variety of digital and physical infrastructure-related activities are gaining momentum. For instance, these include joint interests in development of IoT-based traceability functions for containerized goods, as well as DHL Global Forwarding's online platform that helps customers manage their logistics anywhere, anytime. Other areas include construction investments in ports and terminals as seen by DP World's efforts to create a major logistics gateway in Dakar, Senegal to Africa's West and NorthWest regions. Equipment financing is also reported to be on the rise as with the case of Bolloré Ports' Conakry Terminal gantry installations at the Port of Conakry, Guinea. The article notes that Covid-19, as a period of instability, is a key factor for the maritime industry to turn to reliable solutions for continuity of economic activity.
https://www.logupdateafrica.com/digital-reforms-for-smooth-sailing-in-african-waters-shipping
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