MS in JV with UN to promote biz in Africa
Microsoft Corp, the world's biggest software company, said it has entered into a partnership with the United Nations to supply information technology and other support to small businesses in Africa.
By Agencies |
CAPE TOWN: Microsoft Corp, the world's biggest software company, said it has entered into a partnership with the United Nations to supply information technology and other support to small businesses in Africa.
Microsoft and the UN Industrial Development Organization plan to set up technology centers in African communities, where entrepreneurs will be able to access business support services, information, training and computers.
The initiative ``will make growing and starting a new business much easier,'' Cheick Diarra, chairman of Microsoft's African unit, said today at two-day conference. ``We need to commit to the shared responsibility of growing the continent and its people.''
South African Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka said that Africa has to spend more on technology if it wants to speed up development and poverty alleviation, and urged computer companies to make it more readily accessible.
Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete said Africa needed to reduce its dependence on satellite communication.
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``Our nations are ready to invest in subterranean and fiber- optic cables,'' he said.Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates and former US President Bill Clinton are due to speak on the final day of the two-day conference on Tuesday.
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