Former Mxit CEO, Alan Knott-Craig Jr has resurfaced as the man behind the City of Tshwane’s plan to be the first metro in Africa to provide free Wi-Fi on a massive scale. Last Thursday, Tshwane Executive Mayor, Kgosientso Ramokgopa, launched the project that will see it provide free Internet access to 200 schools in disadvantaged areas and tertiary institutions in the next three years. Knott-Craig Jr went to ground last year after he resigned suddenly from Mxit in October. The move surprised the most as one week he was featured in Finweek announcing plans to grow the social network’s virtual money product, Mxit Moola, and the next he tendered his resignation. Before he walked off into the sunset, techies thought Junior was emotionally invested in Mxit, he’d bought it barely a year prior through his investment company, World of Avatar (WoA). He left WoA at the same time. At the time he told young professionals gathered at the DHL Rising Stars Conference that he was going to South America to figure out his next move. Alan Knott-Craig Jr “Being in business is like being in a marriage. You constantly have to ask if it is still working. If it isn’t, you have to be brave enough to walk away,” he said. He also issued a statement at the time saying, “While the shareholders and I share the same vision, we differ on how to get there. Therefore I agreed to go my own way. I wish them all the best for the future.” Tech Analyst, Arthur Goldstuck, guessed shareholders had grown tired of Knott-Craig’s relaxed management style. He often admitted he didn’t pay much attention to the numbers, that he placed more emphasis on having fun on the job. Now he has made a come back as founder of Project Isizwe, a non-profit organisation whose goal is to bring free Internet to Africa. The NGO has the technology and means to tap into big companies’ unused bandwidth without impacting said companies. By so doing it is able to provide free Internet access. Project Isizwe is calling for donations from individuals and for corporates who want to see it advance to come forward. Speaking at the launch, Knott-Craig said he had found himself in the same position as millions of South Africans – young and unemployed. However, having successfully rolled-out free Wi-Fi to Stellenbosch in the Western Cape in April this year, sparked the idea for Project Isizwe. The project with the City of Tshwane will roll-out free Wi-Fi to five locations by November; the Tshwane University of Technology’s Soshanguve campus, the University of Pretoria’s Hatfield campus, Tshwane North College, the Mamelodi Community Centre and Church Square in the CBD. It is estimated this phase will cost the city R1 million.
Posted on: Sat, 24 Aug 2013 19:05:53 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015