Scientists are increasingly confident that they can predict the global impact of the El Niño weather phenomenon – and for African countries the projections are not good.

Extended reality technology (XR) and the metaverse could reshape how we interact, learn, work and create. But what are the implications of this technology for Africa?

Most South Africans would agree that the most important challenge facing the country is the level of load shedding/power outages. When those same South Africans are asked why they have not implemented their own electricity solutions the answer is invariably cost.

Organisations and donor programmes are often caught up in achieving their goals and forget the invaluable benefits of pausing to reflect on what is or what is not working, and making use of the data from Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) activities to guide implementation. In other cases, foundations or donors have a portfolio of grantees and do not take the opportunity to deliberately reflect and synthesise learnings across their portfolio. This is where a Learning Partner can be beneficial.

Ethiopia is experiencing a transformative shift in its financial landscape as digital financial services (DFS) gain popularity. With non-financial institutions now able to provide services alongside banks, the country has witnessed significant changes. 

Lebanon’s Early Childhood Education (ECE) sector has seen multiple crises over the last few years. School closures from the COVID-19 pandemic, economic concession, and public service deadlock have resulted in a deep decline in the quality of education within the public system.

As we commemorate Disability Pride Month this July, Lauren Den Besten reflects back on her first interview at Genesis. "With wringing hands ensconced in my lap, I chose to vocalise the pride I take in being disabled and asked about the reasonable accommodations that are provided in what I hoped would be my future place of work," she writes.

How does a customer standing before a cashier decide what method to use to pay for goods – cash, credit/debit cards, digital wallets or even cryptocurrencies? A few considerations inform this decision: the transaction fees, safety or convenience. Rarely does the environmental impact of different payment methods come to mind.

How do you ensure that targets are suitable and relevant? Unfortunately, target setting has developed a bad reputation as people often overemphasise the target rather than the required intervention.  Our latest mailer expands on key considerations for developing targets that reflect project context and SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound) criteria, which we’ve put into practice with partners like TechnoServe and Seedstars.

Can the application of algorithms based on AI and machine-learning models tackle the problem of adverse selection, which sits at the heart of credit risk management?

Tito Tibi and Richard Ketley of the Financial Services Strategy practice at Genesis Analytics argue that they have the potential to significantly move the needle in this area. 

It is imperative for banks to understand the risks that climate change impacts pose to their balance sheets and overall operations. A well-defined climate change strategy enables the mitigation of, and adaption to, risks while responding to new opportunities.

Climate change seems to make headlines every day. It can be disheartening to hear for example that the methane leaks from a fossil fuel field are equivalent to the UK's total greenhouse gas emissions in an entire year. This can create an almost paralysing sense of helplessness that can be a barrier to climate action.