SME Confidence & Digital Payments: Mastercard’s SME Confidence Index reports 81% of Nigerian SMEs are confident about the year ahead, with 68% expecting revenue growth and 100% saying digital/online payments are key to scaling. SMME Support via Franchising: South Africa’s FASA and Township Entrepreneurs Agency (TEA) sign an MOU to launch a national SMME Support Programme, using the franchise model to reach entrepreneurs across all nine provinces. Insurance & Resilience: PSG Insure warns weather-driven shocks are reshaping short-term insurance risk in 2026, while motor remains the biggest claims volume—pushing insurers to rethink pricing and preparedness. Clean Cooking Push: Nigeria’s government inaugurates a National E-Cooking Steering Committee and says the policy framework is ready to speed adoption of e-cooking technologies. Jobs & Enterprise Finance: Nigeria’s Bank of Industry says it disbursed N645bn in 2025, backing 12,501 businesses and 1,615 start-ups and creating 1.68m jobs. Disaster Hits MSMEs: Ghana’s Accra floods again are described as an existential threat to MSMEs, with businesses losing stock and facing slow recovery. AI for Home Services: Santam-owned Kandua launches “Jess,” an AI home companion that helps homeowners diagnose issues and book vetted service providers. Crypto Trading Demand: Nigeria’s Stockhut is positioned as a growing choice for crypto trading as more users rely on digital assets for transfers and survival.