Salut,
Victoria from Techpoint here,
Here’s what I’ve got for you today:
- Bolt scores regulatory certificate in SA
- Lena is rewriting the classroom
- Kenya’s first electric school bus hits the road
Bolt scores regulatory certificate in SA
South Africa’s ride-hailing scene just hit a regulatory milestone. Bolt has become the first major e-hailing platform in South Africa to officially register under the country’s new transport rules, scoring a Certificate of Registration from the National Public Transport Regulator on February 27, 2026. That’s a big deal, as the government pushes to modernise and regulate how app-based taxis operate.
This isn’t just paperwork. The new framework is designed to bring more oversight, safety and certainty to a sector that’s grown fast but often operated in a grey zone. Bolt’s registration shows it’s willing to play by the rulebook, and the company says this step will help build trust with both drivers and riders by making the platform safer and more accountable.
Bolt hasn’t just filed the forms and waited. It’s been active on the ground, holding driver summits across the country to help its partners understand the new rules and their responsibilities. The idea is to make sure drivers know what’s expected as the industry adapts to tighter standards.
Why this matters is twofold. First, there’s a broader push to stop unregulated e-hailing operations and make sure vehicles and drivers meet minimum safety and licensing requirements, something industry groups have been calling for for a while. Second, competitors like Uber are still racing to complete their own registrations before deadlines that, if missed, could see them operating illegally.
Bolt’s move sets a precedent as South Africa’s transport environment evolves. With clear rules now in place, regulators, drivers and passengers all have more clarity about how the booming ride-hailing industry should operate. Whether other big players follow soon will be a key story to watch in 2026.
Lena is rewriting the classroom
In the middle of lockdown, while most of the world was baking bread or learning TikTok dances, two young Nigerians were quietly building what would become one of Africa’s boldest education bets.
Victoria Fakiya – Senior Writer
Techpoint Digest
Stop struggling to find your tech career path
Discover in-demand tech skills and build a standout portfolio in this FREE 5-day email course
Danny Ombeh and Faruk Bilesanmi didn’t start out trying to fix education. They met in 2020 through freelance gigs on Fiverr. Faruk needed a designer; Danny stepped in, and the projects kept coming. But somewhere between client work and late-night conversations about startups, they realised they wanted to build something more meaningful. That spark eventually became Lena, a gaming platform designed to help African children master maths, literacy, and science, not through longer videos or endless quizzes, but through immersive gameplay.
The idea hit close to home. Both founders grew up with mothers who are teachers, which meant they had a front-row seat to the limits of traditional classroom tools. For Danny especially, it was personal. As a child with a restless imagination, he struggled to focus in school and later felt the impact when studying aerospace engineering. Lena, he says, is for kids like his younger self — bright, curious, but underserved by rigid learning systems.
What sets Lena apart, according to its founders, is that it’s not “gamified” in the usual sense. It’s not just quizzes with badges. The curriculum is baked directly into real game mechanics, so kids learn by playing, not by feeling like they’re doing homework on a screen. In a crowded edtech market, Lena is betting that attention is the most valuable currency in education.
Whether that bet pays off could say a lot about the future of learning in Africa. For more, including how Lena works, check out Sarah’s latest story on Techpoint Africa.
Kenya’s first electric school bus hits the road
Kenya just got a glimpse of what the future of school transport could look like: quiet, clean and electric. BasiGo has rolled out electric school buses at School of the Nations in Nairobi, making it the first school in the country to swap diesel engines for battery-powered wheels. The move comes as part of a broader shift toward greener transport solutions in Kenya’s cities.
Under BasiGo’s Pay-As-You-Drive model, schools don’t have to buy the buses outright. Instead, they pay a per-kilometre fee that covers charging, maintenance, insurance and even battery leasing, a setup designed to cut the high upfront cost that often stops clean tech adoption in its tracks. The first bus on the road is a 25-seat electric model imported earlier and proven in public transit over the past three years.
What makes this noteworthy is not just the bus itself, but what it signals for Kenya’s electrification journey. Electric vehicles, especially buses, are gaining traction across Africa as countries look to reduce emissions, cut fuel bills, and build more sustainable cities. Schools adopting EVs send a strong message that electric mobility isn’t just about passenger shuttles and matatus anymore; it’s about everyday life and safer, cleaner city air.
BasiGo isn’t stopping at just one vehicle. The school plans to expand its electric fleet with up to 11 vehicles this year, and the company is also installing charging infrastructure on campus to support the buses. This expansion mirrors wider trends in Kenya’s transport sector, including government policy support for electric mobility and growing interest from operators in low-emission fleets.
With electric school buses now a reality, other institutions may start asking why their fleets aren’t next. For students, it’s a cleaner ride to class. For Kenya, it’s another step toward a future where electric transport is the norm rather than the exception.
In case you missed it
- Fewer exits and tighter capital force African angels to push for discipline
What I’m watching
- You’re Not Lazy — You’re Just Focused On The WRONG Goal (Fix THIS & Finally Start Winning)
- Even Healthy Couples Fight — the Difference Is How | Julie and John Gottman | TED
Opportunities
- As one of Techpoint Africa’s most engaged readers, you have a direct hand in shaping what we publish next. Take our quick, 3-minute survey to tell us the stories and features you value most. Your responses are anonymous, and your feedback will help guide our editorial focus in the months ahead. Fill the survey here.
- Interswitch is hiring a Strategic Partnerships Executive. Apply here.
- CANAL+ Group is looking for a CDI – Finance & Administrative Director GVA. Apply here.
- Tix Africa is hiring a finance operations specialist (Lagos, Nigeria). Apply here.
- Flutterwave is hiring for several marketing and finance roles. Apply here.
- Credit Direct is expanding and hiring across Product, Tech, Risk, Strategy & HR. Apply here.
- Spot & Tango is looking to hire a Customer Experience Specialist (Remote). Apply here.
- Infuse is looking to hire a Senior Product Manager (Contract, Remote). Apply here.
- LemFi is looking to hire a Customer Support Associate (Lagos, Hybrid). Apply here.
- Moniepoint is hiring a Talent Acquisition Manager (Remote, Lagos). Apply here.
- Ouida Books is hiring four women editors for an 18-month paid internship. Learn developmental editing, rights trading, book production, and more at the Lagos publisher. Apply here.
- Flutterwave is hiring an Executive Communications Lead,Brand & Storytelling. Apply here.
- MTN is looking for a Manager, RMS Music and Podcast.Digital Services NG. Apply here.
- Moniepoint Inc is hiring a Senior UX Researcher. Apply here.
- WorkNomads is hiring an AI engineer. Apply here.
- Miri Africa is hiring for several roles. Apply here.
- Kernel is hiring a Product Designer (🇬🇧 Visa Sponsorship). Apply here.
- Profound is hiring a Frontend Software Engineer to join their team in the UK (UK Visa Sponsorship available for exceptional candidates). Apply here.
- Bitoshi Africa is hiring for Backend Developer (Node.js) and QA Analyst roles. Apply here.
- Moniepoint is hiring for over 100 roles. Apply here.
- Building a startup can feel isolating, but with Equity Merchants CommunityConnect? You can network with fellow founders, experts, and investors, gaining valuable insights and exclusive resources to help you grow your business. Click here to join.
- To pitch your startup or product to a live audience, check out this link.
- Have any fresh products you’d like us to start selling? Check out this link here.
- Follow Techpoint Africa’s WhatsApp channel to stay on top of the latest trends and news in the African tech space here.
Have a superb Thursday!
Victoria Fakiya for Techpoint Africa
