Cyber security is what nations and organizations need to be very wary of in 2025.



According to the recent World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Cybersecurity Outlook, the intricacies of cyberspace are complex and challenging, owing to rapid technological advancements, the growing sophistication of cybercriminals and deeply-interconnected supply chains.



“Collaboration between public and private sector stakeholders is paramount to secure the benefits of digitalization for all,” Jeremy Jurgens, Managing Director, WEF, said in a statement.



According to the report, 54% of large organizations identify supply chain interdependencies as the greatest barrier to achieving cyber resilience. Furthermore, the “prevailing turmoil” has affected the perception of risks. One in three CEOs cited in the report cyber espionage and loss of sensitive information and intellectual property theft as their main concerns.



“45% of cyber leaders are concerned about disruption of operations and business processes,” the report reads.



As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to be at the forefront of innovation, the report revealed that to ensure cyber resilience, there needs to be rapid implementation of the necessary security safeguards.



“While 66% of organizations expect AI to have a major impact on cybersecurity in 2025, only 37% report having processes in place to assess the security of AI tools before deployment.”



Skills development needs to be at the forefront of organizations, according to the report, as the cyber skills gap in 2024 was only at 8%. According to WEF, two in three organizations lack the essential talent and skills to meet their security requirements; only 14% of organizations are confident that they have the people and skills they need today.



Paolo Dal Cin, Global Lead, Accenture Security, said in the statement that cybersecurity threats are more complex and unpredictable than ever and can directly impact an organization’s financial stability.



“The disruptive force of AI, coupled with supply chain vulnerabilities and geopolitical tensions, calls for a more proactive and collaborative approach to ensure a strong cyber resilient posture across all industries. C-suite leaders must adopt a security-first mindset from the outset to confidently navigate these challenges with cybersecurity as an enabler that keeps our businesses and organizations resilient,” Dal Cin said.

Businesspeople in futuristic virtual reality environment

New Report Reveals The Landscape Of Cybersecurity In 2025

In August 2024, the United States (U.S.) hiked tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) to 100% while the European Union (E.U.) increased tariffs by up to 45.3% in October 2024. The EU’s tariffs differ by manufacturer between 7.8% to 35.3%, over its standard 10% import duty.



Futurist and business strategist Dr Craig Wing tells FORBES AFRICA that the decision by the U.S. and E.U. to impose tariffs on Chinese EVs is a complex issue with far-reaching implications, driven by protectionist policies and the desire to protect domestic markets from competition from Chinese EV manufacturers.



“While this may seem like a simple strategy to protect local economies, this move also creates new pathways and opportunities, and has several important implications for emerging markets like those in Africa,” says Wing.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="731" height="1024" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Dr-Craig-Wing-Image-Supplied-731x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-64344" style="width:545px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Dr-Craig-Wing-Image-Supplied-731x1024.png 731w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Dr-Craig-Wing-Image-Supplied-214x300.png 214w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Dr-Craig-Wing-Image-Supplied-768x1075.png 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Dr-Craig-Wing-Image-Supplied-1097x1536.png 1097w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Dr-Craig-Wing-Image-Supplied.png 1280w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 731px) 100vw, 731px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Dr Craig Wing; Image Supplied</figcaption></figure></div>


A new legislation in South Africa that introduces a 150% tax incentive for the production of electric and hydrogen vehicles was signed into law on January 3 2025.



The 150% tax deduction, effective March 2026, is for qualifying investments capped at R500 million ($26.6 million) for the 2026/27 tax year.



In the same month, Mikel Mabasa, CEO of Naamsa, the Automotive Business Council, said in an interview that at least three Chinese EVs have signed NDAs with them, adding, “With good government policies, we will attract new investment, we will increase and retain investment.”



Wing says this shift is critical: “It represents an opportunity to diversify the availability of EV models in South Africa, which will undoubtedly drive down the prices and make EVs more accessible, but also create a new ecosystem of jobs in both the automotive and associated industries.



“There is also a real risk of creating a dependency on a single source market for technology (China), and this should be balanced by fostering local innovation and skills development within the local workforce, and by focusing on building strong trade relationships with various other global players.”



South Africa’s EV landscape in 2025 and beyond will be shaped by multiple factors, not just technology, but social, cultural, ethical and political factors, says Wing.



It’s important to address the influence of Elon Musk, who is South African-born and the CEO of Tesla, as his political views in the U.S. are well documented, and can shape public perceptions of EVs, he says.



“It is extremely likely he will be acting as a key advisor on technology and business and should be closely watched, as it has the potential to further shape U.S. trade policy, and also the future of the EV market in Africa, as well as other emerging economies.”



“It is a clear reality that what happens in the U.S. has a ripple effect on the rest of the world, and so the role of Elon Musk cannot be ignored,” concludes Wing.

101st Brussels Motor Show 2025

‘Opportunity To Diversify’: A Futurist On The Implications Of The U.S.’s Tariffs On Chinese EVs In Emerging Markets Such As South Africa

<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">Topline</h2>



Four disastrous wildfires were still burning across Los Angeles and Ventura counties in southern California on Tuesday, but it’s not yet clear what started the fires—as government officials, lawyers and experts weigh theories like electrical issues, embers from older fires and arson.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">Key Facts</h2>



The Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire both broke out on Jan. 7 and grew to more than 23,000 and 14,000 acres, respectively, destroying thousands of structures and leading to more than 100,000 evacuations throughout Los Angeles.



Several smaller fires—including the Hurst Fire and Auto Fire, which were both still active as of Tuesday—broke out after the Palisades and Eaton fires, and led to more evacuations.



The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection shows the causes of all four active fires are still under investigation, leading to unanswered questions about what could have caused some of California’s most destructive wildfires.



Anonymous officials involved with the investigation into the origin of the Palisades Fire told the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-12/on-an-ocean-view-trail-questions-swirl-about-what-and-who-started-palisades-fire" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Los Angeles Times</a>&nbsp;it appears to have human origins, though they noted the investigation is ongoing.



Investigators are focusing on a “crime scene” area that sits above most of Los Angeles in a neighborhood with rocky bluffs and popular hiking trails as the potential ignition site of the Palisades Fire,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/13/us/palisades-fire-cause-ignition-point-site.html" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>&nbsp;reported.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-arson">Arson</h2>



Dominic Choi, the assistant Los Angeles police chief, said Monday officials are investigating every angle and not ruling out arson as the cause of either of the major fires, but he added there is “no definitive determination that it is arson.” The theory has drawn public attention after a spate of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/weather/live-news/los-angeles-wildfires-palisades-eaton-california-01-14-25-hnk#cm5woa60c0005356oh3zuokrk" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">arson-related arrests</a>, including&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2025/01/10/alleged-arsonist-arrested-in-los-angeles-amid-deadly-california-wildfires-kenneth/">one arrest</a>&nbsp;of a man who was allegedly seen lighting a fire near the smaller Kenneth Fire last week—though police later said there wasn’t probable cause to charge him with arson, and they can’t confirm any link between the arrestee and the fires. Some experts are skeptical of the theory. A former battalion chief for the Los Angeles Fire Department told&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/weather/wildfires/are-arsonists-responsible-los-angeles-wildfires-rcna186949" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">NBC News</a>&nbsp;the area where the Palisades Fire began is “inaccessible, rugged terrain,” that typically wouldn’t draw an arsonist. Experts also told NBC natural causes are a more plausible theory because of the heavy wind conditions: “Most of the time, these fires are not arson … There is no data supporting winds bringing out arsonists,” a former detective with the L.A. County Sheriff’s Office said. The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nifc.gov/fire-information/fire-prevention-education-mitigation/wildfire-investigation#arson" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">National Interagency Fire Center</a>&nbsp;says arson may account for more than 20% of human-caused wildland fires, but the actual number is unclear as arson fires may be misclassified for some time.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="704" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/GettyImages-2193935251.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-64348" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/GettyImages-2193935251.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/GettyImages-2193935251-300x206.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/GettyImages-2193935251-768x528.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"> (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-power-lines-and-electric-infrastructure">Power Lines And Electric Infrastructure</h2>



Multiple residents of Altadena sued Southern California Edison on Monday, alleging the Eaton Fire was started by the company’s electrical equipment. The lawsuits cite&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/13/us/southern-california-edison-la-fires-lawsuit.html" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">eyewitness reports</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/13/business/edison-power-company-lawsuit-eaton-fire/index.html" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">of sparking power lines</a>. The company has pushed back against the theory, saying in a&nbsp;<a href="https://newsroom.edison.com/releases/edison-international-provides-latest-update-on-southern-california-wildfires-and-sce-power-outages" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">statement</a>&nbsp;Sunday its “analysis shows no interruptions or operational/electrical anomalies in the 12 hours prior to the fire’s reported start time until more than one hour after the reported start time of the fire.” One of the filed complaints&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/california-wildfires-eaton-cause-utility-fireworks-eb0f4f71e437f1ba692f929e9633c856" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">reportedly</a>&nbsp;alleged, “there is clear evidence from video footage, photographs, and witness accounts that the fire was caused by electrical equipment operated by Defendants Edison International and Southern California Edison.” Power infrastructure has been a leading cause of fires in California in the past—with eight of the state’s 20 most destructive fires having power-related causes—and the amount of fires started by equipment has grown recently,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/01/13/us/los-angeles-fires-cause.html" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>&nbsp;reported.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-old-embers-or-fireworks">Old Embers—or Fireworks</h2>



Some experts and residents believe the Palisades Fire may have been started by the remnants of a fire from New Year’s Day that began after fireworks were set off. The Jan. 1 fire broke out in the same place as the Palisades Fire and burned about three to four acres before fire officials said it was contained about five hours later, the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/california-wildfires-eaton-cause-utility-fireworks-eb0f4f71e437f1ba692f929e9633c856" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Associated Press</a>&nbsp;reported. Michael Gollner, a fire scientist and University of California at Berkeley professor,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2025/01/12/palisades-fire-origin-new-years-eve-fire/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">told The Washington Post</a>&nbsp;“it’s certainly possible that something from that previous fire, within a week, had rekindled and caused the ignition” of the Palisades Fire. A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed the department does not typically patrol past fire sites for still burning embers. The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/13/us/palisades-fire-cause-ignition-point-site.html" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">New York Times notes</a>&nbsp;a number of past major fires were determined to be started by old blazes that officials believed were put out, including the 2023 wildfire in Maui that killed 102 people and a deadly 1991 firestorm in northern California.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-other-human-causes">Other Human Causes</h2>



Cal Fire said 95% of California&#8217;s past wildfires have been caused by humans, but the agency noted human causes range from intentional arson to accidental situations, like campfires or discarded cigarette butts,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/weather/live-news/los-angeles-wildfires-palisades-eaton-california-01-14-25-hnk?t=1736873475204" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">CNN</a>&nbsp;reported.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lightning">Lightning</h2>



Officials were able to rule out lightning as a potential cause for the Palisades or Eaton fires as the area didn’t have stormy weather in the week the fires began,&nbsp;<a href="https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/ignited-deadly-california-wildfires-investigators-array-possibilities-117539585" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">ABC News</a>&nbsp;reported on Jan. 9. Lightning is a common cause of wildfires, though, and led to 174 wildfires in southern California in 2023, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nifc.gov/fire-information/statistics/lightning-caused" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">National Interagency Fire Center</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-many-other-fires-were-there-in-los-angeles">How Many Other Fires Were There In Los Angeles?</h2>



In addition to four active wildfires in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, there were at least four other fires that are now contained, including the Sunset Fire that burned through the Hollywood Hills and Runyon Canyon, the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills Area, the Lidia Fire in the Angeles National Forest and the Woodley Fire.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">What To Watch For</h2>



More information from investigators. The process to identify the cause of a fire begins with pinpointing the fire’s starting point, then investigators will usually search the scene on their hands and knees looking for clues to what could have started it, which could take days,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/weather/wildfires/are-arsonists-responsible-los-angeles-wildfires-rcna186949" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">NBC News</a>&nbsp;reported. If they find evidence it was started by a person, investigators must then determine whether it was intentional arson or accidental negligence, but NBC reported that process could take months or years.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">Key Background</h2>



Whatever the cause of the fires, experts seem to agree the conditions for the fires to spread easily were worsened by climate change. The California Air Resources Board&nbsp;<a href="https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/wildfires-climate-change" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">said</a>&nbsp;the area burned by wildfires in the state has been increasing each year since 1950, and unusually warm temperatures combined with very low precipitation create “conditions for extreme, high severity wildfires that spread rapidly.” Last summer was particularly hot in California and across the West, while there was very little rainfall: The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0ewe4p9128o" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">BBC</a>&nbsp;reported downtown Los Angeles has gotten just 0.16 inches of rain since October.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">Further Reading</h2>



<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/antoniopequenoiv/2025/01/14/california-wildfire-live-updates-new-auto-fire-breaks-out-in-ventura-county-as-particularly-dangerous-situation-red-flag-warning-goes-into-effect/">California Wildfire Live Updates: New ‘Auto Fire’ Breaks Out</a>&nbsp;(Forbes)



<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/weather/wildfires/are-arsonists-responsible-los-angeles-wildfires-rcna186949" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Are arsonists responsible for the Los Angeles wildfires?</a>&nbsp;(NBC News)



<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0ewe4p9128o" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Climate change: What role is it playing in the California fires</a>&nbsp;(BBC)



<a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-12/on-an-ocean-view-trail-questions-swirl-about-what-and-who-started-palisades-fire" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">What sparked the Palisades fire? A beloved hiking trail may hold the grim answers</a>&nbsp;(Los Angeles Times)

Death toll rises to 25 amid new Los Angeles warnings

What Sparked The California Wildfires? Experts Consider Power Lines, Fireworks—And Arson

The railway project is part of China&#8217;s Belt and Road Initiative, which Nigeria joined in 2018.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-plain has-medium-font-size is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
&#8220;This railway will also promote the development of related industries along the route. The construction and operation of the project will create numerous job opportunities in Nigeria,&#8221; the bank said.
</blockquote>



The China Development Bank recently released a $254.76-million loan for the construction of a 203-kilometer standard-gauge railway linking Kano and Kaduna, two major states in northern Nigeria.



The railway is being built by China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation.



According to the bank, the railway will promote the development of related industries along the route, creating numerous job opportunities in Nigeria.



The bank has also supported other projects in Nigeria, including the Lekki Deep Water Port in the commercial capital Lagos.



The loan announcement preceded China&#8217;s Foreign Minister Wang Yi&#8217;s visit to Nigeria, part of his annual tour of Africa.



China is Nigeria&#8217;s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade valued at $13.6 billion in 2023.



The two countries, with 53-year-old diplomatic relations, have collaborated on several infrastructure projects, including the Abuja-Kaduna Railway and the Lagos-Ibadan Railway.

Abuja Light Rail Mass Transit System

China Strengthens 53-Year-Old Nigeria Ties With $255-Million Railway Loan

<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-topline">Topline</h2>



An early social media influencer, her fake cancer diagnosis and the untangling of a complicated web of lies will play out in the Netflix original series “Apple Cider Vinegar,” a drama inspired by the real-life story of wellness guru Belle Gibson and the lies that skyrocketed her to fame in the early 2010s.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">Key Facts</h2>



The show, due to release Feb. 6, is inspired by &#8220;The Woman Who Fooled the World,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Woman-Who-Fooled-World-darkness/dp/1947534068" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">a book</a>&nbsp;by Australian journalists Beau Donelly and Nick Toscano that detailed Gibson’s story.



Gibson, who grew an online business using social media that included a health and wellness mobile app and accompanying cookbook, made her career by convincing her following she&#8217;d cured a range of health issues—including a brain cancer diagnosis that gave her months to live—via a healthy diet, exercise and holistic medicine.



Gibson reportedly&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/04/22/none-of-its-true-disgraced-wellness-guru-belle-gibson-comes-clean-on-cancer-hoax/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">claimed</a>&nbsp;her health issues were brought on by a negative reaction to the Gardasil HPV vaccine, that she briefly died during a medical procedure and that her cancer spread to her spleen, liver, uterus and blood—but that it was cured by fruits, vegetables and natural remedies.



Weeks before her cookbook, “The Whole Pantry,” was set to be released in the U.S. and U.K. in 2015, reporters from The Age, an Australian newspaper, launched their investigation into the self-proclaimed cancer survivor and wellness promoter&nbsp;<a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6762183/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">and found</a>&nbsp;&#8220;everything was based on a litany of falsehoods.”



As Gibson’s deception started to unravel, charities for which she claimed to have raised money&nbsp;<a href="https://www.smh.com.au/technology/charity-money-promised-by-inspirational-health-app-developer-belle-gibson-not-handed-over-20150306-13xgqk.html" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">said</a>&nbsp;they never received any,&nbsp;<a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6762183/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">theories</a>&nbsp;emerged that she suffered from a form of Munchausen’s syndrome and she&nbsp;<a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/belle-gibsons-judgement-to-be-handed-down-in-court/4ad9c382-d365-4775-84eb-0d25a9706e5e" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">was hit with</a>&nbsp;more than $1 million in fines after a federal court judge found she knowingly deceived cancer patients.



In 2015, she&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/04/22/none-of-its-true-disgraced-wellness-guru-belle-gibson-comes-clean-on-cancer-hoax/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">admitted</a>&nbsp;to Australian Women&#8217;s Weekly that “none of it is true.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crucial-quote">Crucial Quote</h2>



“At first, many of her followers jumped to her defense, suspecting a conspiracy by Big Pharma and Big Medicine, but then the tide of public opinion shifted to being adverse,” &#8220;The Woman Who Fooled the World&#8221; reviewer Ian Freckelton wrote. “Gibson went from being adored to being reviled. Ruin and prosecution were at hand.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-to-watch-for">What To Watch For</h2>



&#8220;Apple Cider Vinegar&#8221; releases Feb. 6. Though the main character shares Gibson&#8217;s name, Netflix maintains the show is a &#8220;work of fiction&#8221; that is a &#8220;true-ish story based on a lie.&#8221; The show is not a biopic or documentary.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tangent">Tangent</h2>



In addition to detailing Gibson’s deception, &#8220;The Woman Who Fooled The World&#8221; is an expose about the lure of alternative cancer treatments and the wellness cottage industry thriving on social media. A wellness culture movement that has boomed on TikTok, Instagram and other platforms has also been slammed for its harmful effects—from promoting&nbsp;<a href="https://news.cuanschutz.edu/news-stories/mounting-research-documents-the-harmful-effects-of-social-media-use-on-mental-health-including-body-image-and-development-of-eating-disorders#:~:text=These%20unfounded%20%E2%80%9Cwellness%E2%80%9D%20posts%20can,or%20indirectly%20encourages%20disordered%20eating." rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">unhealthy eating habits</a>&nbsp;to selling scam or harmful&nbsp;<a href="https://magazine.brighamandwomens.org/features/truth-lies-or-marketing#:~:text=The%20impact%20of%20social%20media,amplifying%20rare%20catastrophic%20side%20effects." rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">products</a>&nbsp;and even&nbsp;<a href="https://magazine.brighamandwomens.org/features/truth-lies-or-marketing#:~:text=The%20impact%20of%20social%20media,amplifying%20rare%20catastrophic%20side%20effects." rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">demonizing</a>&nbsp;proven medical treatments like hormonal birth control and vaccines. In some cases, like during the height of the COVID pandemic, wellness influencers&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/04/climate/wellness-influencers-conspiracy-climate-intl/index.html#:~:text=Their%20concern:%20Those%20influencers%20%E2%80%94%20some,Fallon/AFP/Getty%20Images" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">used their platforms</a>&nbsp;to spread misinformation and conspiracy theories, including anti-vax sentiment. Several influencers have been hit with lawsuits over deceptive marketing and false claims, including&nbsp;<a href="https://www.winston.com/en/insights-news/influencer-false-ad-settlement-shows-small-biz-is-fair-game" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Brittany Dawn</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/blog/2020/03/ftcs-teami-case-spilling-tea-about-influencers-and-advertisers" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Adi Halevy and Yogev Malul</a>&nbsp;and Brian “<a href="https://fortune.com/2023/01/31/liver-king-youtube-sued-by-followers-regulating-influencers/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Liver King</a>” Johnson.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">Big Number</h2>



$6.32 trillion. That&#8217;s how much the worldwide wellness industry was worth in 2023, according to the <a href="https://globalwellnessinstitute.org/press-room/statistics-and-facts/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Global Wellness Institute</a>, a portion of which is <a href="https://luxiders.com/the-toxic-wellness-culture-fuelled-by-social-media/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fueled</a> by social media.

AppleCiderVinegar_Netflix_23-11-21_22A5538_DENOISED

This Health Influencer Claimed She Cured Her Fake Cancer With A Healthy Diet—And Now She’s Inspired A Netflix Show

Our tech writer got to experience the new electric Mini Cooper SE that’s coming your way.



The highly-anticipated next-generation electric Mini Cooper SE arrived in South Africa six months later than originally planned, and quietly went on sale without a national media launch.



As it stands, Mini will produce both internal combustion engine (ICE) models and three EVs: the Cooper, Countryman and Aceman.



I’ve been driving the Cooper SE for an extended period since November. The base model comes in at R802,000 ($42,350), however my press unit has been kitted out with extras to the value of R924,500 ($48,827).



It is powered by a 160kW motor with 330Nm of torque, equipped with a 49.2kWh nett battery that promises 400km of range (WLTP figures), and has a 95kW maximum DC charging speed. It goes from 0-100km/h in 6.7 seconds while top speed is capped at 170km/h.



The look of new SE is pared down, juxtaposed by modern LED head- and tail-lights that are customizable.



Despite a retro exterior, modern finishes include 12 ultrasonic sensors and four surround cameras; a 9.4-inch round OLED screen that supports apps and games through Mini Operating System 9; a digital voice assistant called Spike; and augmented reality navigation.



Previous models supported Digital Key with NFC, but the new SE has Digital Key Plus ultrawide-band (UWB) support, so I use my compatible iPhone and Apple Watch as fully functional keys; i.e. I don’t carry the physical key anymore.



It also has the Connected Package for navigation with additional info, games and video streaming when the vehicle is stationary, wireless charging, eSIM, etc; and Driving Assistant Plus for maintaining speed, keeping a distance from vehicles ahead, detecting road signs, etc.



The Mini app offers additional functionality that is convenient for the owner, like basic vehicle info, remote 3D view, trip statistics, monitoring charge status, efficiency stats, finding charging stations and more.



The ability to monitor my charge remotely has helped me several times where I could see the vehicle prematurely stopped charging.



While getting from 10%-80% takes about half an hour, its 95kW charging speed cap slows things down between 80%-100%, however the app estimate tends to be accurate, which helps with planning.



As a freelance writer working from home, the ~337km range I yield on a full charge is suited to my lifestyle. I don’t do long distance driving and can easily toggle between driving modes.



Based on access to mall and dealership chargers within my vicinity, it is the ideal runaround city EV. I find it a comfortable, pleasant drive.



I find it a premium overall experience when compared to the GWM Ora, which shares the same platform as the SE as it is currently exclusively built in the same factory in China by Great Wall Motor.



Incidentally, the launch of the Cooper and Aceman models in the United States have been pushed out indefinitely due to high tariffs on Chinese imports.



Mini says production of the two models will begin in Oxford, England in 2026.

OLED screen

A Mini Look At The Electric Ambitions On Course In South Africa

The 44-year-old legislator is the new political head of the parliament inaugurated on October 2, 1979.



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-style-plain is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
&#8220;I affirm that I will be faithful as the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly; that I will perform my functions honestly to the best of my ability, faithfully, and in accordance with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,&#8221; says Meranda.
</blockquote>



Mojisola Meranda has become the first female speaker of the 45-year-old parliament of Nigeria&#8217;s commercial capital Lagos.



Meranda held various positions, including deputy speaker, and has now taken over the reins after the reported impeachment of her predecessor, Mudashiru Obasa.



The master&#8217;s degree holder in public and international affairs will preside over the 10th Assembly as its eighth speaker.



Her journey to this position began when she won the 2015 election to represent her constituency at the subnational parliament known as the Lagos State House of Assembly.

Image supplieda

First Female Speaker Of 45-Year-Old Parliament In Lagos

How a women’s initiative is collectively uplifting lives through art and community-based tourism.



From the street art to its bustling markets, the Nyamirambo Women’s Centre in the lively and vibrant neighborhood of Nyamirambo in Kigali, is a tourism drawcard.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Mary-Nyangoma-at-Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-byChanel-Retief-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-64311" style="width:738px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Mary-Nyangoma-at-Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-byChanel-Retief-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Mary-Nyangoma-at-Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-byChanel-Retief-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Mary-Nyangoma-at-Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-byChanel-Retief-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Mary-Nyangoma-at-Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-byChanel-Retief-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Mary-Nyangoma-at-Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-byChanel-Retief-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Mary Nyangoma at Nyamirambo Woman’s Centre (Photo byChanel Retief)</figcaption></figure></div>


In one of the busy shops owned by the center selling clothes and bric-a-brac, you find the center’s project coordinator, Mary Nyangoma, who tells us how it all came to be.



The center was established in 2007 with 18 members – “women and girls” – with the aim of “empowering ourselves”.



“…because we all came from different backgrounds and, of course, from different parts of the country. But we happened to settle around this neighborhood, and then we decided to start a group,” says Nyangoma.



Some of the members at the time had not had the fortune of receiving a formal education.



“We started teaching them how to read and write, in our homes,” says Nyangoma.



It wasn’t until two women from Slovenia came to the country to report on women’s issues that they received their first donation to get the center up and running.



But they had to find other ways to make money before the funds dried up. Sharing their ideas, the founding members at the center considered acquiring other vocational skills to help generate income. “That’s when we got a chance [to] buy four sewing machines,” Nyangoma says. “We had somebody teaching us to use them, but we also started involving other women from the neighborhood… We started working with local authorities. They started recruiting women to join us for the courses, learning how to read and write and, after that, they could join the sewing course.”


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="683" height="1024" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1-683x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-64310" style="width:543px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1-683x1024.jpg 683w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1-200x300.jpg 200w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1-scaled.jpg 1707w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Nyamirambo Woman’s Centre (Photo by Chanel Retief)</figcaption></figure></div>


Over 6,000 women have trained at the center so far, with about 80% now self-employed. On the cards is an incubation training center.



The women’s center has managed to sustain its revenue, generated by the increasingly-popular tourism offerings at Nyamirambo. Using kitenge fabric, the women, who are trained and then work at the center, craft products ranging from children’s clothes to women’s accessories and home décor.



“Apart from that cooperative, the women’s center started thinking, ‘how can we make an income and keep the center open?’” Nyangoma explains as she takes FORBES AFRICA on a tour of the three sections at the center. In one, women are creating art and handicrafts; in another, there are girls (and some boys) learning different skills; and the final one houses the center’s library.



“This is where we started [and] are offering different activities in community-based tourism. [We] offer the walking tours – seeing the day-life [of ] people living in this neighborhood; we do a cooking experience – how we do it locally in our homes; basket weaving – how to make the baskets [and] sewing experiences and other stuff as well.



“The message is about working together and supporting each other, but also building a strong ecosystem.”



Gender equality and women’s empowerment are central to Rwanda’s vision for growth and progress.



In the e-mobility sector, for example, it is not uncommon to see female riders dominating the streets of Kigali, as opposed to other regions on the continent where there are more male drivers in the public transport system.



“We’re deeply committed to empowering women in the EV sector,” says Kaushik Burman, co-CEO of EV company, Spiro.



Right now, we’re seeing more and more female riders joining our network, which is something I’m incredibly proud of. We’ve set up initiatives like Spiro Academy that provide women with training and mentorship to break into technical and operational roles – areas that traditionally haven’t seen much female participation. It’s all about giving women the tools they need to build careers and independence while contributing to sustainable transportation across Africa.”



“A challenge I sometimes have [as] a female rider is when passengers question [my potential as] a rider,” Spiro rider, Blanche Dusengimana, laments to FORBES AFRICA.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-64309" style="width:614px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Nyamirambo-Womans-Centre-Photo-by-Chanel-Retief-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Nyamirambo Woman’s Centre (Photo by Chanel Retief)</figcaption></figure></div>


“I just respond by telling them that this is something I am passionate about. I show them what I have achieved as a business; how I have developed myself and how I provide for my family.”



The country has consistently been celebrated as a role model in gender equality. The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2023 has ranked Rwanda 12th out of 146 countries.



According to a report by USAID, women make up more than 60% of the Rwandan Parliament, and more than 50% of the President’s cabinet.



“I meet different kinds of people every day as a rider but when I mostly meet women… these are either women who want to be riders or don’t have anything to do with their day,” Dusengimana says. “The first thing I tell them or encourage them to do is not to look to someone else for money. I also help women get out of their comfort zone and become riders.”



At the Nyamirambo Women’s Centre, Nyangoma concurs: “Once the women and girls finish our programs, they can start their own businesses. “When I see women working together and supporting each other, I feel so strong, and I feel so happy that we are also growing up and bringing up our kids this way, so that tomorrow, they can stand here and do the same for others.”

Nyamirambo Woman’s Centre (Photo by Chanel Retief)-2-2

Leading Women Through Art And Tourism In Rwanda

The Amazon billionaire’s heavy-lift rocket is poised for its first spaceflight. If it succeeds, it will give satellite operators and the Pentagon a long-desired alternative to SpaceX—and at a cheaper price, Forbes reveals.



In2021, Elon Musk trolled Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, mocking his rival’s slow progress toward launching a rocket into space. “Can’t get it up (to orbit) lol,” he<a href="https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1386825367948644352" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">&nbsp;wrote</a>&nbsp;on Twitter.



Now, almost 25 years after Bezos started the company, Blue Origin is on the brink of clapping back. Its powerful New Glenn rocket is at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center for its inaugural launch, which could come as soon as early morning Monday.



Plenty of people in the space industry and government are cheering for it to succeed – and to end SpaceX’s near monopoly on lofting American satellites into orbit.



“The space industry likes having choices,” said Caleb Henry, an analyst at Quilty Space. “And it doesn&#8217;t have that today. It just has SpaceX.”



And Blue Origin is selling launches at a price per satellite that’s significantly better than SpaceX, a former employee told&nbsp;Forbes.



The launch attempt comes less than two weeks before Donald Trump returns to the White House. During his first term, the former president attacked Bezos over negative coverage in the Washington Post, which Bezos owns. Now Trump, with Musk at his right hand, is promising a shakeup in government spending and regulation that could tilt the playing field for the commercial space industry — and threaten some of Blue Origin’s government contracts.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-animal-spirits">ANIMAL SPIRITS</h3>



Bezos has positioned Blue Origin as the slow and steady alternative to SpaceX’s “move fast and fail quickly” ethos. Its motto is “gradatim ferociter,” Latin for “step by step, ferociously,” and its logo features two tortoises. So far the tortoise has been soundly beaten by SpaceX’s hare.



Over the past decade, SpaceX ramped up its launch cadence to unprecedented levels while its competition was largely sidelined. The old heavyweights of space launch — the United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed Martin, and Europe’s Arianespace — struggled with delays in developing new rockets, and Western sanctions removed Russian rockets as an option. SpaceX’s Falcon rockets propelled cargo to orbit 133 times in 2024, with one failure, the vast majority of the 145 launches attempted in the U.S. last year and more than half of the 263 worldwide, according to space activity tracker<a href="https://planet4589.org/space/papers/space24.pdf" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">&nbsp;Jonathan McDowell</a>.



But New Glenn, first announced in 2016, promises to be a fierce competitor. Like SpaceX’s Falcon 9, it’s a two-stage heavy lift workhorse, with the first stage designed to return to earth for reuse. But according to Blue Origin, a larger nose cone gives New Glenn twice the cargo volume of Falcon 9, and its powerful engines are designed to propel double the payload mass.



And Blue Origin is pricing to give customers more bang for the buck than SpaceX, according to a former employee who now works for a competitor who spoke to&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;on the condition of anonymity.



Blue Origin is charging roughly $110 million per launch, he said, compared to about $70 million for a Falcon 9 – effectively offering to carry twice as many satellites for roughly 50% more money.



Blue Origin didn’t respond to a request for comment from&nbsp;Forbes.



Blue Origin&#8217;s New Glenn rocket, which stands 32 stories tall and is designed to launch 45 tons of payload into orbit, is pictured during a hotfire test at Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Dec. 27.Blue Origin



New Glenn is already proving attractive to companies building large constellations of small satellites for low-Earth orbit, particularly as those satellites have gotten larger, said Henry.



Blue Origin has won contracts to use it to launch satellites for all of the major constellations, except, of course, for SpaceX’s Starlink. That includes AST Mobile, which is developing a network to provide cellular service from space. The company has said New Glenn can carry eight of its Block 2 satellites, which will be the largest yet put in low-Earth orbit. Falcon 9 can carry just four.



And Bezos’ Amazon.com is leaning heavily on Blue Origin to realize its plans for its Kuiper satellite network. Blue Origin is slated to launch at least 23% of the constellation and potentially as much as half. Amazon expects to pay Blue Origin $2.7 billion through 2028, it said in a financial filing last year.



The U.S. government is also eager for another option to launch its intelligence and communications satellites. In June the Defense Department picked Blue Origin, along with SpaceX and United Launch Alliance, to compete for up to $5.6 billion worth of launches through 2029.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-money-out">MONEY OUT</h3>



It’s welcome revenue after years of heavy spending to build the company. On the New Glenn program alone, Blue Origin has spent on the order of $10 billion, the former employee estimated. Apart from a few NASA contracts, that money has come from the deep pockets of Bezos, who has committed to use the vast fortune he’s made from Amazon to realize his boyhood space dreams.&nbsp;Forbes&nbsp;estimates his net worth at $233 billion, a distant second in the world to Musk’s $416 billion.



While it’s taken a quarter century for Blue Origin to take its first shot at space, it has notched impressive achievements on the way, while building infrastructure for mass rocket launches that SpaceX only put together gradually after reaching orbit. The company developed a powerful rocket engine, the Be-4, that’s powered two successful launches of United Launch Alliance’s new Vulcan rocket. With its reusable New Shepard rocket, which is designed to bring tourists to the edge of space, Blue Origin has become the only rocket company besides SpaceX to pull off the trick of landing its first stage. And it has built up manufacturing facilities expected to produce over 100 Be-4 engines in 2025, and multiple boosters to support a pace of 12 launches a year.



“It&#8217;s easy to be a little flip about, ‘SpaceX has done so much and Blue Origin has done little,’ but it&#8217;s nuanced,” said Carissa Christensen, CEO of the space consulting firm BryceTech.



A successful launch would be powerful validation for Blue Origin, but the attempt comes against a cloudy political backdrop. Trump has tasked Musk with leading an effort to chop government spending and regulation. A relaxation of rules in the heavily regulated space industry would help all participants, but competitors fear<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeremybogaisky/2024/11/12/in-trumps-space-race-musks-spacex-is-a-sure-bet/">&nbsp;preferential treatment for SpaceX</a>.



Exhibit A: Trump’s nominee to run NASA, billionaire Jared Isaacman. His company Shift4 Payments has invested in SpaceX, and Isaacman has bankrolled two private spaceflights on Falcon rockets.



Last March, Isaacman&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/rookisaacman/status/1767893365541032333" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">questioned</a>&nbsp;the wisdom of NASA’s decision to fund the development of redundant lunar landers from SpaceX and Blue Origin, in case one faltered.



But Bezos has professed confidence that Musk won’t use his influence in the Trump administration to benefit SpaceX at Blue Origin’s expense.



“I take at face value what has been said, which is that [Musk] is not going to use his political power to advantage his own companies or to disadvantage his competitors,” Bezos said in December at a&nbsp;New York Times&nbsp;conference.



Bezos, in any event, is looking far beyond the next four years. He wants Blue Origin to drive the creation of an off-world economy where manufacturing and mining is done in in space, and the “Earth will be zoned residential and light industry.” Someday he thinks that will make Blue Origin a bigger business than Amazon, he said at the&nbsp;Times&nbsp;event. But it’s all predicated on bringing down the cost of reaching space, starting with New Glenn.



“We know how to travel to space. We know how to land on the Moon. We need to be able to do it a hundred times cheaper,” Bezos told&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsuqSn7ifpU" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">space YouTuber Tim Dodd</a>&nbsp;in September. “That’s what will really open the heavens to humanity.”

New York Times Holds Annual DealBook Summit

With New Glenn Launch, Bezos Looks To Break Musk’s Stranglehold On Space

Anthony Joshua is targeting a showdown with Tyson Fury in 2025, but the two-time heavyweight champion isn’t just focused on reclaiming the world title — he’s also investing in Nigeria’s future.



British-Nigerian boxing star Anthony Joshua recently expressed his determination to reclaim the world champion title after paying Nigeria&#8217;s President Bola Tinubu a New Year&#8217;s Day courtesy visit.



“Ups and downs happen, but I can’t stop now. I keep riding the wave. My goal is to become a three-time world champion and face Tyson Fury in 2025,” Joshua told reporters.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="698" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154612-1024x698.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-64318" style="width:612px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154612-1024x698.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154612-300x204.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154612-768x524.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154612-1536x1047.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154612-2048x1396.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo courtesy of X</figcaption></figure></div>


He met with Tinubu at his Lagos residence, where he presented the president with an autographed boxing glove. Tinubu expressed pride in Joshua’s achievements, calling him &#8220;a true champion and worthy ambassador of Nigeria&#8221;.



&#8220;Anthony Joshua’s dedication and achievements continue to inspire millions daily,&#8221; Tinubu shared in a post on X. &#8220;Thank you for the autographed glove — it is a symbol of perseverance and excellence. A symbol of what Nigerians are known for.&#8221;



On returning to his roots in December, Joshua began his visit in Sagamu, Ogun State — his hometown —on the outskirts of commercial capital Lagos.



The visit was marked by warm receptions as he connected with residents and local leaders. A highlight of the visit was his meeting with Governor Dapo Abiodun in the state capital, Abeokuta. Following their discussions, the Ogun State Government announced plans to build a state-of-the-art Anthony Joshua Indoor Boxing Ring in Abeokuta.



&#8220;Joshua’s achievements on the global stage bring pride to Ogun State, and we are committed to supporting him while celebrating the immense talents that put our state on the world map,” the governor’s office stated. Joshua was also named Ogun State’s official sports ambassador, and he is set to play a key role in the Gateway Games National Sports Festival, where he will light the ceremonial torch in May.



The boxer also visited Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who praised him for his determination and highlighted Lagos’ role as a hub for culture and &#8220;endless&#8221; inspiration. &#8220;As Anthony prepares for a bigger and better 2025, we encourage him to keep inspiring the world with his grit and determination,&#8221; Sanwo-Olu said.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="683" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154621-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-64317" style="width:556px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154621-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154621-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154621-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154621-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_20250103_154621-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo courtesy of X</figcaption></figure></div>


Joshua, 35, rose to international fame by winning his first 22 professional fights, holding the heavyweight title from 2016 to 2019. Though he faced setbacks, including two losses to Oleksandr Usyk, Joshua rebounded in 2023 with a series of victories, including a knockout win over Cameroonian boxer Francis Ngannou early last year.



&#8220;To all Nigerians in the diaspora, you have a place to call home. I’ll continue to put my feet on the soil here and give back to communities,&#8221; declared Joshua, ranked by Forbes as the 16th highest-paid athlete globally in 2024, with earnings of $83 million

RING Magazine Awards London

‘A Place To Call Home’: Celebrity Boxer On Reconnecting With Nigeria As He Eyes Third World Title

Finishing school, possibly earning a degree, staying with one employer, and steadily climb- ing the corporate ladder once defined the path to career success.



Today, those conventions are vanishing as quickly as metal filing cabinets in a paperless office.



The modern workforce is navigating a new landscape, where traditional career paths that once offered stability and direction are rapidly crumbling.



The rules, traditions, and practices that shape sional advancement are being swiftly filed away, by new approaches to work.



Consider the traditional belief in long-term job stability and loyalty to a single employer. Lifetime employment with one company, once a hallmark of success, is being replaced by more dynamic career models where multiple job changes, freelancing, and gig work are seen as strengths rather than liabilities.



In line with this, a degree, once viewed as the mandatory ticket to career success, is no longer a universal requirement.



Many employers are now prioritizing skills, experience, and adaptability over formal education.



With the rise of alternative learning platforms, certifications, and on-the-job training, many workers are proving that career growth doesn’t always require a traditional degree.



The expectation of a linear career path — from entry- level to senior roles within the same field — is also losing its grip.



Workers today are embracing sideways moves, skills diversification, and career shifts that defy predictable patterns.



Many now prioritize work-life balance, creative fulfillment, and autonomy over simply reaching the top.



The belief that years of experience determine an employee’s worth is also being challenged.



Employers are increasingly focusing on potential, the ability to learn quickly, and adaptability.



Soft skills — such as communication, collaboration, and emotional intelligence — are becoming more critical than ever, overtaking the once-dominant focus on tech- nical expertise.



As career pathways become less predictable, the dominance of full-time, permanent roles is also fading.



And the once-rigid nine-to-five schedule is collapsing under the weight of flexible work models, with a growing emphasis on results rather than hours spent at a desk.



Even the physical office is losing its appeal.



The rise of remote and hybrid work models has shifted the focus to location flexibility, a critical factor for job seekers today.



The traditional concept of retirement, too, is being retired.



The assumption that workers stop working in their 50s or 60s is fading, as life expectancy increases and professionals seek continued engagement.



Some are opting to work well beyond traditional re- tirement age, often transitioning into phased retirement plans that allow them to stay connected to their careers in ways that suit their lifestyles.



The bottom line is that the old rules for career success no longer apply.



With so many job conventions crumbling, the question is: what’s driving this shift in how careers are built?



It all boils down to the relentless pace of technological change, shifting attitudes, and evolving economic forces.



Technology has been the primary driver, reshaping industries at a rapid pace and making adaptability far more valuable than the old standard of longevity.



Job roles are being redefined, and entirely new indus- tries are emerging seemingly overnight, forcing both employers and employees to rethink their approaches. In addition to technological change, people’s priorities are changing.



Workers today demand more than fair com- pensation – they want careers that align with their personal values, offer work-life balance, and provide a sense of fulfillment.



Burnout is no longer a badge of honor — it’s a signal to seek the type of work that offers flexibility and purpose.



From an economic perspective, businesses also require flexibility.



The rise of freelancing, short-term contracts, and gig work allows companies to respond more nimbly to changing market conditions.



For workers, this shift means more freedom to craft careers that don’t fit into the traditional one-company- for-life mould.



The workforce is embracing a patchwork of experienc- es, projects, and roles, stitched together to create a career that’s more personalized and dynamic than ever before.



The collapse of career conventions is not a crisis — it’s a necessary shift.



The future of work is no longer about following a pre- set path – it’s about each individual charting their own career course.



Whether it’s ditching the nine-to-five or working for multiple employers over a lifetime, today’s workers are finding new ways to thrive in a world where the old rules no longer apply.



In this new landscape, adaptability, flexibility, and creativity are the true keys to success. And while the career ladder may be a bit wobbly, it’s offering far more interesting ways to climb

Senior couple enjoying time by the sea with their camper van

Expert-Speak: The Old Rules Of Getting Ahead At Work Are Taking Early Retirement

The exchange’s ownership structure mandates that up to 25% of the shares be held publicly, while the remaining 75% is reserved for private investors.



Ethiopia made history on Friday with the launch of its first securities exchange in over five decades.



The Ethiopian Securities Exchange (ESX) debuted with a single listed company, Wegagen Bank, marking a significant milestone in the country&#8217;s economic liberalization efforts.



The socialist military government abolished the securities exchange in 1974.



After ringing the launch bell, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed tweeted, “Invest in Ethiopia — a fast-growing economy with immense potential and a dynamic trajectory toward prosperity.”



The ESX is expected to operate from 9AM to 3PM, and its chief executive, Tilahun Kassahun, anticipates that 90 companies will join the exchange within the next decade.



Ethiopia Investment Holdings (EIH), which controls 40 state-run companies, will play a crucial role in developing the market. The state-run company is already offering shares for the Ethio Telecom offer.



&#8220;Today marks the beginning of a new era for Ethiopia, where capital can flow freely to unlock opportunities,&#8221; Kassahun said at the opening ceremony.



In April 2024, the ESX established October 2023, concluded its capital-raising exercise, achieving more than double the funds needed to commence operations.



Through a public-private partnership, the ESX has the EIH as its founding shareholder, representing the government’s interests.



As of April 2024, key investors included entities such as FSD Africa, the Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB), and the Nigerian Exchange Group Plc (NGX Group).



Also, 16 domestic private commercial banks, 12 private insurance companies, and 17 other private domestic investors have also invested in the exchange.

IMG_20250110_220758

Ethiopia Rings In ‘New Era’ With Launch Of First Stock Exchange In Over 50 Years

In this week’s edition of The Prototype, we look at how too much reliance on AI assistants could make it harder to think, a company building bioengineered arteries, the role viruses play in Alzheimer’s and more. <a href="https://www.forbes.com/newsletter/the-prototype">You can sign up to get The Prototype in your inbox here</a>.



<abbr>N</abbr>ew AI tools&nbsp;are slowly becoming ubiquitous, being added to the software and hardware we use every day (sometimes whether we like it or not). But if we’re using artificial intelligence to perform tasks, search for information and solve problems, what does that mean for the intelligence we’re born with?



To figure this out, a team of researchers conducted a study involving 666 individuals ages 17 and up, representing a diverse population. It first evaluated the extent to which each of them made use of AI tools, then tested their critical thinking skills. The results of the study,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4698/15/1/6" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">which were published</a>&nbsp;in the journal&nbsp;Societies, found that those who used AI tools a lot showed worse critical thinking abilities than those who didn’t use them often or at all. Whether someone used AI tools was a bigger predictor of a person’s thinking skills than any other factor, including educational attainment.



The reason for this is a phenomenon called “cognitive offloading” – where people’s thinking and problem-solving are essentially delegated. Frequent cognitive offloading reduces a person’s ability to independently think and solve problems. “This relationship underscores the dual-edged nature of AI technology,” the study authors wrote. “While it enhances efficiency and convenience, it inadvertently fosters dependence, which can compromise critical thinking skills over time.”



These findings are consistent with other studies that have shown a similar negative impact from AI tools on critical thinking skills. The authors note, however, that other studies show AI tools can be beneficial when they complement critical thinking, rather than offloading it. “Future research should explore strategies to integrate AI tools in ways that enhance rather than hinder cognitive engagement,” they wrote. “Ensuring that the next generation is equipped with the skills necessary to navigate an increasingly complex digital landscape.”



Stay tuned.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bioengineering-off-the-shelf-arteries-for-trauma-patients">Bioengineering Off-The-Shelf Arteries For Trauma Patients</h2>



<abbr>E</abbr>very year, thousands of Americans receive traumatic injuries that damage the arteries that crucially carry blood to their limbs. When these occur, patients basically have three options, Laura Niklason, CEO of regenerative medicine startup Humacyte, told me: they can have a vein grafted from another part of their body, which takes extra time and causes additional trauma; the surgeon can replace the artery with a synthetic plastic one, which creates a high risk of infection; or the limb can be amputated.



Niklason has a fourth option: her company has developed a bioengineered artery called Symvess which can be surgically implanted in a patient’s body, helping to both preserve the limb and reduce risk of infection. Symvess is derived from human donor cells that are grown in a lab on a degradable scaffold, in batches of 200 at a time. Over time, the cells recreate the physical structure of a blood vessel. Once that’s complete, the living cells are then processed away, leaving the artery structure behind, which can then be implanted in a new patient without risk of rejection. Cells in the patient&#8217;s body then occupy the implant, essentially regenerating a new artery.



Last month, Symvess was&nbsp;<a href="https://investors.humacyte.com/news-releases/news-release-details/humacyte-announces-fda-approval-symvesstm-acellular-tissue" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">approved by the FDA</a>&nbsp;for use in patients with traumatic injuries. That approval was based on studies that showed that the product, which has been implanted in over 600 patients so far, is significantly less likely to cause infection or lead to limb amputation compared to conventional synthetic arteries made from plastic.



For its next steps, the company will be working with Medicare and private insurers to ensure that they will pay for transplant procedures using Symvess. It’s also conducting studies to use Symvess with patients who have kidney dialysis and patients who have pulmonary arterial hypertension. It’s also developing a new, smaller version of its product that could potentially be used for heart bypass patients.



“This is truly a first-of-its-kind technology, and the FDA had to see a lot of data before they could get comfortable and say yes,” said Niklason. “So I’m very glad to be here.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">DISCOVERY OF THE WEEK: INACTIVE VIRUSES MAY CAUSE NEURODEGENERATION</h2>



It’s long been known that repeated head injuries can lead to&nbsp;neurodegenerative diseases&nbsp;like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and CTE. But it wasn’t clear exactly how that happened. New research suggests the answer may be&nbsp;dormant viruses, particularly&nbsp;herpes simplex 1, which is found in the brains of over 80% of the population. These findings were reached by growing&nbsp;small tissue models&nbsp;of the brain, some with the herpes virus and some without, which were then struck repeatedly with a piston to mimic concussion.



The study, which was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scisignal.ado6430" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">published in&nbsp;Science Signalling</a>, found that the brain tissues with the virus developed signs of&nbsp;Alzheimer’s disease, while those without did not, and that the damage was markedly increased with repeated blows. The researchers plan to conduct future studies that explore whether exposure to&nbsp;antiviral or anti-inflammatory drugs&nbsp;shortly after an injury could help prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">FINAL FRONTIER: WATER-BASED PROPULSION TEST</h2>



Japanese startup&nbsp;Pale Blue&nbsp;<a href="https://pale-blue.co.jp/news/543/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">announced</a>&nbsp;it has signed a deal with Italy-based company&nbsp;D-Orbit&nbsp;to conduct two demonstrations in-orbit of its&nbsp;new ion thruster, which allows satellites both to maneuver and to take themselves out of orbit at the end of their life. Pale Blue’s thruster uses&nbsp;water&nbsp;as a propellant, which potentially offers a cleaner and more sustainable fuel for small satellites.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">WHAT ELSE I WROTE THIS WEEK</h2>



In my other newsletter,&nbsp;InnovationRx, my colleague&nbsp;Amy Feldman&nbsp;and I&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/innovationrx/2025/01/08/innovationrx-medical-debts-will-be-erased-from-credit-histories/">covered a number of healthcare stories</a>, including a drug that significantly improves survival for&nbsp;lung cancer&nbsp;patients, the controversy over&nbsp;pulse oximetry&nbsp;technology and a new study that finds that while&nbsp;LLMs&nbsp;are good at answering medical exam questions, they’re much less proficient at making diagnoses from patient conversations.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">SCIENCE AND TECH TIDBITS</h2>



My colleague Jeremy Bogaisky&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeremybogaisky/2025/01/09/amazon-alibaba-fiber-optic-drone-ukraine/">reports</a>&nbsp;that online retailers like Amazon and Alibaba are selling technology that&nbsp;protects drones&nbsp;from having their signals jammed or being remotely taken over.



Ai startup Anthropic’s new funding round will make all seven of its founders&nbsp;billionaires,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2025/01/08/anthropic-60-billion-valuation-will-make-all-seven-cofounders-billionaires/">write my colleagues</a>&nbsp;Alex Konrad and Phoebe Liu.



Researchers&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2025/01/novel-quantum-refrigerator-great-erasing-quantum-computers-chalkboard" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">developed a technique</a>&nbsp;for&nbsp;refrigerating quantum computers&nbsp;in a way that reduces errors and could potentially make them more reliable.



Eating&nbsp;grapefruit&nbsp;can interfere with the action of several kinds of medications, including anti-anxiety drugs and statins. But new research suggests it may be possible to&nbsp;<a href="https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/nph.20322" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">grow a variety of the fruit</a>&nbsp;that doesn’t interfere with prescription drugs.



Biologists successfully transplanted&nbsp;chloroplasts–the cells that power photosynthesis– from algae into&nbsp;hamsters, where they&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/pjab/100/9/100_pjab.100.035/_article" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">successfully functioned</a>&nbsp;for about three days.



Scientists at Northwestern University&nbsp;<a href="https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2025/01/trash-to-treasure-industrial-waste-battery/?fj=1" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">built a battery</a>&nbsp;that uses triphenylphosphine oxide, a common&nbsp;industrial waste product, to store energy instead of metals.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">PRO SCIENCE TIP: ADD WATER TO YOUR COFFEE BEANS</h2>



Here’s an easy tip to enhance the flavor of your morning cup of&nbsp;coffee: add a little&nbsp;water&nbsp;to the beans before you grind them. This isn’t a new idea–among coffee professionals this is known as the “Ross Droplet Technique”–but new research gives scientific backing to the idea. When beans are ground, they build up a&nbsp;static electric charge, which causes clumping and inconsistent extraction during the brewing process. In new&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cell.com/matter/fulltext/S2590-2385(23)00568-4" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">research published</a>&nbsp;in the journal&nbsp;Matter, scientists found that the Ross Droplet Technique reduced the static charge during grinding, producing a&nbsp;better-tasting coffee.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">WHAT’S ENTERTAINING ME THIS WEEK</h2>



I’ve been listening to the concept album&nbsp;Epic&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.epicthemusical.com/" rel="noreferrer noopener" target="_blank">Jorge Rivera-Herrans</a>. It’s a musical-style adaptation of&nbsp;The Odyssey, telling the tale of&nbsp;Odysseus&nbsp;from the end of the&nbsp;Trojan War&nbsp;until his return home to&nbsp;Ithaca. The album is divided into nine sagas of a few songs each, serving as chapters in the story. It’s an amazing version of one of humanity’s oldest stories, and it’s appropriate for it to be sung–that is, after all, how it was originally presented in the time of Homer. It’s streaming on most of the major music services.

Working robots

The Prototype: Study Suggests AI Tools Decrease Critical Thinking Skills

The West African sub-region, including countries like Burkina Faso, Niger, Mali, and Nigeria, continues to grapple with insecurity and violence fueled by terrorist attacks.



Al-Qaeda affiliate Jama&#8217;at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) claimed responsibility for the late Wednesday carnage in northern Benin on Friday.



This jihadist group, known for its operations in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, reportedly said it killed soldiers exceeding 30, and seized weapons, ammunition, and a drone.



The attack occurred near the borders of Burkina Faso and Niger, a region plagued by terrorist activities.



Benin&#8217;s Army Chief, Colonel Faizou Gomina, described the loss as &#8220;very heavy&#8221; and revealed that &#8220;the targeted position was one of the strongest and most militarized under Operation Mirador&#8221;.



This operation was launched to bolster the country&#8217;s security forces in response to the growing terrorist threat.



This attack is not an isolated incident. In December, gunmen killed three Operation Mirador soldiers and wounded four others who were guarding an oil pipeline in northeast Benin.

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Jihadist Group Claims Responsibility For Attack On Northern Benin’s ‘Most Militarized Operation’

South Africa boasts a rich potential of sprint stars. Akani Simbine’s coach Werner Prinsloo weighs in on what’s needed to give the world a run for its money.



South Africa has a new wave of exciting young sprinters to add to the established talent of Akani Simbine, which led to a surprise silver medal in the 4 x 100-meters at the Paris Olympic Games. Simbine, Shaun Maswanganyi, Bradley Nkoana and Bayanda Walaza stunned the field to finish second and underline the rich potential of sprint stars in the country.



But nurturing talent from young prospects to the finish is both a labor of love and a long process, with many pitfalls, and highs and lows, along the way.



Werner Prinsloo has been coach of Simbine, 31, for the last 14 years and is regarded as one of the top sprint trainers in the country, and by extension, the African continent.



He is excited by the prospects for several athletes coming through, but has also seen this movie before, and it did not end as he had hoped last time.



“Sprinters seem to come in waves. If you go back to 2014 or 2015, there was a group of very good sprinters and we thought we were going to dominate the world. But it didn’t happen. They come and go,” Prinsloo tells FORBES AFRICA.



“It’s up to the coaches to nurture the talent and we’ve got a group of really good trainers that can manage these sprinters over time. The big issue we have, and we see this not just in South Africa, is the fact that a lot of juniors don’t transition to the senior level.



“That’s our biggest challenge, because we have a big group of high school sprinters that are very, very good. But taking the next step is the challenge.



“Someone like Akani is an example. He started with me at the age of 17 and he wasn’t a top sprinter in his age group. But over the last 14 years he matured and got better, and that’s what we need to be able to get right with the current youngsters.”



The reason why many promising sprinters fail is largely a socio-economic one, according to Prinsloo.



“There are a lot of factors and we’ve had these discussions among coaches and administrators so many times. A lot of these kids, when they’re in high school, they have a system to work in, they have a coach. Everything’s done for them,” he says.



“Some get to university and that continues, but most don’t. So, what happens then? They don’t have that support system anymore. Now they have to do everything for themselves. Find and pay for a coach, find a physiotherapist and travel from wherever they live to training.



“Most kids come from poor backgrounds and they just can’t afford that. Unless they can somehow go to university, they are lost to the system, despite their enormous potential.”



A MEN’S 100M is  generally over in under 10 seconds and to the untrained eye, it just looks like guys trying to run very fast. But Prinsloo reveals there is a real science behind it and a mix of good genes and working on the mechanics of each portion of the race is vital. “People underestimate real sprinting. Everyone can run, but sprinting is a skill that needs to be developed over time,” he says. “Obviously, the best of the best are born with what they call ‘fast twitch muscle fibers’. And they have more of it than everyone else.



“So that gives them a bit of an edge, because they have that ‘speed gene’. Most of the Jamaicans are born with it and those are the guys that become the top sprinters.



“And then over time, it’s just developing the mechanics of sprinting. Some of the guys get it at a young age, some need more maturity over the years to develop it.



“If you break down the 100m, you have your start phase, you have a drive phase, then you have an acceleration and transition phase, which goes into the maximum speed phase. All in under 10 seconds.



“And in each one of these phases, the mechanics are different. The public don’t see it. They just see the guys coming out of the blocks and running, but in each phase the biomechanics are different. We work on each separately.



“Akani is one of the fastest in the world in the maximum speed phase, that is the best part of his race. And we know if we can work on him to get better in the acceleration phase, for example, that will put him in a good position.”



Simbine remains the gold standard, so to speak, in South African sprinting, but has yet to pick up an individual medal at the Olympics despite coming agonizingly close on two occasions.



His time of 9.93s in the Tokyo final in 2021 was four hundredths of a second behind bronze medalist Andre De Grasse. Marcell Jacobs won gold in 9.80.



He bettered his time in Paris to 9.82, and on this occasion was one hundredth of a second behind Fred Kerley (9.81) for the bronze and fractions of a second behind gold medal winner Noah Lyles (9.79).



“Leading up to Paris, we said, ‘look, we have to make this the year to perform’. And so everything in the last few years was geared towards getting him ready,” Prinsloo says.



“We got to a point where in training and in our approach to the work that we do, we found this groove. A big factor was his mentality, his emotional state. He was in a much better space. And that builds a lot of confidence in athletes. “It’s unfortunate he couldn’t get into the medals in the 100m, but the time was good. He ran a personal best and a national record, and that set up everything for the relay silver.”



Prinsloo confirms that the next games in 2028 are very much in Simbine’s sights. “We are looking to the next Olympics in Los Angeles. We are so close to the 9.7s and that’s what we’re pushing for now. It’s going to be small things that will get us there.”

Tag: Featured

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