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UnionPay International and Pesapal Partner to Boost Cross-Border Payments and Tourism in East Africa
Launching initially in Tanzania followed by Rwanda, this collaboration significantly enhances payment convenience for international travellers while unlocking new commercial opportunities for local businesses. As the lead market for the rollout, Tanzania will see immediate expansion of UnionPay acceptance across key tourism and commercial sectors, including hospitality, retail, restaurants, transport, petroleum, and lifestyle merchants. The enablement allows international UnionPay cardholders to seamlessly make in-store purchases using both contact and contactless (tap-to-pay) payment technologies.
LG Electronics (LG) is inviting consumers from around the world to visit its exhibition at IFA 2026 in Berlin, Germany, from September 4 to 8. Under the theme “Innovation in Tune with You,” LG will showcase its AI Home vision, powered by “Affectionate Intelligence,” through integrated solutions that orchestrate connected experiences across customers’ living spaces, lifestyles and everyday routines. At IFA 2026, LG will unveil the next evolution of its AI Appliances Orchestra concept, showcasing an expanded, AI-powered connected ecosystem that builds on the debut of the concept last year. The booth will bring products, services and AI-powered experiences together to illustrate how LG’s solutions can work in harmony to make life more convenient, personalized and efficient for European consumers.
Award-winning online trading platform Mitrade Group is rolling out an upgraded MitradeGPT model to traders across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) after receiving Global Business Magazine’s 2026 AI Broker of the Year award. The launch comes as growing use of AI in financial research raises questions about the accuracy, context and reliability of generated information. That reliance is evident in HSBC’s 2026 research involving UAE investors. It found that 83% of respondents use AI for finance and investment decisions, including 78% who use it for analysis and research.
The Global Environment Facility (GEF) Council today announced the selection of Diego Mesa Puyo as the family of funds’ next CEO and Chairperson. Mesa Puyo, an international leader in energy policy, economic development, and sustainability, and former Minister of Energy and Mines from Colombia, will serve an initial term of four years, aligned with the GEF-9 funding period and the last sprint towards critical 2030 environmental goals.
Envision Energy, a global leader in green technology, today announced a collaboration with Sasol, a global energy and chemicals company, to advance the design study of a potential green hydrogen system at Sasol’s Sasolburg operations in South Africa. The collaboration marks an important step in exploring how future energy system can integrate renewable power, energy storage and electrolyser technologies to unlock new pathways to support the development of lower-carbon fuels and chemicals, including potential applications in eMethanol and sustainable aviation fuel (eSAF).
Skye Africa Intelligence (Pty) Ltd and the East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community (“ECSA-HC”) today announced a Memorandum of Understanding establishing a regional partnership to deploy AI-enabled health solutions across the ECSA-HC membership, announced on the sidelines of the 16th ECSA-HC Best Practice Forum, taking place from 2 to 7 August 2026 in Manzini, Eswatini.
TONGWEI, a global leader in renewable energy and one of the world’s largest integrated photovoltaic manufacturers, has once again secured a place on the 2026 Fortune Global 500, ranking No. 464 globally. This marks the fourth consecutive year that TONGWEI has been included in the prestigious ranking, recognizing its strong manufacturing capabilities, business resilience, and continued growth in the global clean energy market. The 2026 Fortune Global 500 ranking reflects the scale and competitiveness of global enterprises. The companies listed this year generated combined revenues of approximately US$43.1 trillion, exceeding one-third of global GDP. The minimum revenue threshold for entry increased from US$32.2 billion to US$33.2 billion, representing a 3% year-on-year rise. Despite a challenging global economic environment, only 122 companies from China made the list, making China the second-largest contributor after the United States.
China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (HKG: 0386, “Sinopec”) has commissioned a specialty polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) resin facility with an annual production capacity of 50,000 metric tons at its subsidiary, Chongqing SVW Chemical Co., Ltd. The facility achieved stable operation during its initial startup and produced products that met quality specifications, with the first shipment already sent to Europe. The new facility increases the site’s total PVA production capacity to 210,000 metric tons per year, making it the world’s largest single-site production base for high-end PVA.
On July 30, 2026, the opening ceremony for Wison’s Abu Dhabi subsidiary and its new office was held in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. Since establishing its first overseas office in Saudi Arabia in 2008, Wison has been actively involved in energy engineering projects across the Middle East, steadily building its regional market expertise and international project execution capabilities. The establishment of the Abu Dhabi subsidiary and the opening of its new office mark a significant step in Wison Engineering’s strategy to deepen its presence in the Middle East and advance its internationalization efforts.
At the Boao Forum for Asia Perth Conference on July 27, Li Donglin, Chairman of CRRC Zhuzhou Institute, joined global political and business leaders to share the company’s strategy for scaling green industries through proprietary technologies and application-driven innovation. Discussing how to move innovation from the laboratory to commercial deployment, Li argued that real-world industrial settings should determine technology priorities. He cited partnerships with XCMG Group and Australian mining giant Fortescue as examples. Together they are creating integrated green value chains linking mines, railways and shipping—for example, using renewable energy to power electric locomotives and producing ammonia and methanol from renewable hydrogen for marine fuel. These system-level applications, Li said, create the real-world demand that drives innovation.
“The Summit will open with a royal keynote from the Asante King Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, and feature institutional investors, private equity and private credit firms, multilateral development institutions, blended finance organizations, development finance institutions, sovereign representatives, policymakers, family offices, and business leaders to explore investment opportunities across infrastructure, mining, natural resources, agriculture, manufacturing, technology, energy, and other strategic sectors.”
At the forefront is the Nexode Air 65W Charger, a compact yet powerful solution for MacBook Air users. Despite its pocket-size, it delivers up to 65W of stable fast charging. Beyond MacBook Air, it also provides ample power for iPhone, iPad, AirPods, and other Apple devices, making it a versatile companion for both work and travel. UGREEN also offers the Nexode Air 65W Charger Slim as an ultra-portable alternative, featuring a three-device charging capability for added convenience on the go.
Optimizing Streaming Performance Through Advanced Tencent Cloud Solutions
Broadcasting a global football tournament of this magnitude requires a resilient technology backbone capable of handling surging traffic, supporting millions of concurrent requests, and maintaining uninterrupted performance from the opening match to the final whistle. To meet these demands, tapmad partnered with Tencent Cloud to strengthen its streaming capabilities and ensure audiences across Pakistan could stay connected to every moment of the action. Major live sports events require streaming platforms to manage significant spikes in viewership while maintaining a consistently high-quality and low-latency viewing experience. To support these demands, Tencent Cloud provided tapmad with Cloud Streaming Services (CSS), Content Delivery Network (CDN), and Media Processing Service (MPS). At the core of the solution, Tencent Cloud’s CSS delivered end-to-end live audio and video capabilities, including high-quality, low-latency broadcasting, transcoding, and global content distribution. Backed by Tencent Cloud’s global CDN, which spans more than 3,200 nodes worldwide and offers over 250 Tbps of bandwidth capacity, tapmad was able to seamlessly manage surges in viewership while maintaining stable performance and consistent streaming quality throughout the tournament. Complementing these capabilities, Tencent Cloud Media Processing Service (MPS) optimized video delivery through advanced cloud-based media processing and transcoding, enabling smoother playback across a wide range of devices and network conditions. Together, these integrated solutions enabled tapmad to deliver a reliable and uninterrupted viewing experience, keeping millions of football fans across Pakistan connected to
The first phase of South Africa’s largest wind farm cluster has entered commercial operation, marking a tangible step in the country’s Just Energy Transition. The Ummbila Emoyeni Wind Farm Phase one, developed by Seriti Green and powered by 25 Goldwind GWH182-6.2 MW smart turbines, has a total capacity of 155 MW. President Ramaphosa hailed the project as a pivotal milestone for South Africa’s Just Energy Transition and national sustainable development agenda. Chinese Ambassador to South Africa Wu Peng congratulated the project on its milestone success, noting that this undertaking stands as a compelling testament to pragmatic and fruitful China-South Africa bilateral collaboration.
Oxford ELLT Express enables eligible test takers to receive their English language test results within 12 working hours of completing all components of the Oxford ELLT. The service also provides same-day Speaking test appointments, letting students take a live speaking test with a human examiner with as little as two hours’ notice.
“My immediate priorities are to build a management team rooted in the UAE, to establish sound operating and governance systems, and to translate the Group’s technology and manufacturing capabilities into deliverable outcomes — based in the UAE, serving the GCC and reaching global markets,” said Dr. Al-Mansory.
The RESPITE Solar-plus-Storage Project in Sierra Leone, backed by the World Bank, represents a milestone in the country’s power development journey, increasing national electricity access from 16% to 36%. Sungrow’s PowerTitan Series ESS played a crucial role in addressing financing challenges and gaining confidence from investors. Leveraging advanced black start and off-grid capabilities, the project team successfully implemented an emergency response strategy to ensure stable electricity supply in a challenging operating environment with frequent power outages.
“WPS Office lets me draft something faster, then finish polishing it in a few clicks. It’s far more efficient than general AI tools,” said Nasser Almandhari, a UTAS student, citing the app’s translation feature in particular. “It gives me exactly what I want, and I don’t have to constantly switch between apps to get there.”
ABU DHABI, UAE, July 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Robo.ai Inc. (NASDAQ: AIIO) (the “Company”) today announced the appointment of H.E. Dr. Ahmed Naser Al-Raisi, former President of INTERPOL, as Chairman of its proposed subsidiary, Alif Holding, an Abu Dhabi-headquartered intelligent industrial technology group (the “Group”), effective immediately. The appointment further strengthens the Group’s corporate governance and its security and compliance oversight. Under the banner of “Building Intelligent Industries”, Alif Holding is structured around two integrated platforms — intelligent software and intelligent equipment — and develops, integrates and manufactures AI systems in the UAE. Its business is centred on government and public-sector projects and mission-critical domains, spanning energy, oil and gas, ports, public safety, utilities, mining, transportation, smart cities and critical infrastructure, with systems engineered to meet the security, reliability and continuity standards required for government-grade deployments. Committed to technology neutrality and open architecture, and anchored in “Made in UAE” manufacturing, the Group is strongly aligned with the UAE National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence 2031; it will be based in the UAE, serve the GCC region and reach global markets.
Investec Selects Infosys Finacle SaaS Platform on Microsoft Azure for Digital Banking Transformation
Investec, a leading international bank and wealth manager, has selected the Finacle Digital Banking Solution Suite on Microsoft Azure to modernize its banking operations across South Africa, the UK, Mauritius, and the Channel Islands. Key benefits include real-time data and AI foundations, accelerated lending growth, compelling cash management propositions, sharper liquidity optimization, and seamless integration with the wider fintech ecosystem. The cloud-native SaaS implementation through the Microsoft Marketplace will provide the scale, resilience, and performance needed for future growth.

