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APO Group (www.APO-opa.com), the leading award-winning, pan-African communications consultancy and press release distribution service, is proud to announce its participation at Africa Tech Festival 2025, taking place from 11 to 13 November in Cape Town. The company's presence at the continent's most influential technology and innovation gathering underscores its commitment to telling Africa's success stories, driving confidence in the continent's innovation ecosystem, and supporting its clients in connecting African technology leaders with global audiences. 

Africa's technology sector continues to record strong growth, driven by innovation, investment, and a young, digitally-savvy population. However, the visibility of these advancements on the global stage remains limited. APO Group's participation at Africa Tech Festival 2025 underscores its commitment to bridging this information gap by promoting Africa's innovators, enterprises, and success stories to international audiences and reinforcing confidence in the continent's technology and innovation ecosystem. 

APO Group's presence at the event further reflects its mission to connect African innovators, businesses, and industry leaders with global media and investors, ensuring that breakthrough ideas, successful ventures, and transformative projects receive the recognition they deserve. 

Bringing together policymakers, investors, startups, and corporate leaders, Africa Tech Festival 2025 unites its four event programmes – AfricaCom, AfricaTech, Africa Ignite, and The AI Summit Cape Town – under the themes of Responsible Innovation, Inclusive Investment, Connectivity for Development, and Policy Harmonisation. These goals mirror APO Group's aim to amplify the voices shaping Africa's digital future and ensure they are heard across global media platforms.  

APO Group Chief Executive Officer Bas Wijne will represent the company throughout the festival, delivering a keynote address on the future signals for Africa's emerging tech landscape, attending the Leaders in Africa Summit, and serving as a judge for the Africa Tech Festival Awards that will be presented at a gala ceremony on 12 November. 

“At APO Group, we don't just tell Africa's innovation stories. We help track what's next and share these messages with the marketplace, changing narratives and building trust in the continent's digital and technology capabilities,” said Bas Wijne. “Our role is to make sure the world sees the progress being made across the continent, from AI adoption to digital infrastructure and beyond. When visibility increases, so does investment, confidence, and opportunity; Africa Tech Festival provides a platform to achieve this.” 

Additionally, APO Group's Founder and Chairman, Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard (www.Pompigne-Mognard.com), serves as a member of the Africa Tech Festival Leadership Council, a prestigious assembly of senior leaders from across the continent, tasked with shaping the future of this premier technology event and ensuring it remains a cornerstone of Africa's rapidly evolving tech ecosystem. 

APO Group's involvement at the Africa Tech Festival 2025 reinforces its position as Africa's trusted communications partner, building bridges between innovators, investors, and policymakers. Through strategic storytelling, the company helps translate the continent's momentum into measurable business and reputational growth. Its extensive media network, covering more than 250 African news websites and thousands of journalists, ensures that the continent's most inspiring stories reach the audiences that matter most. 

From supporting global and pan-African tech firms operating across African markets to amplifying the achievements of home-grown startups, APO Group continues to challenge perceptions and showcase Africa as a hub of creativity, resilience, and opportunity.  

“Through platforms like Africa Tech Festival, our work enables businesses and governments alike to build trust, attract partners, and position Africa at the centre of global digital transformation,” added Wijne. 

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of APO Group.

APO Group Media Contact: 
marie@apo-opa.com

About APO Group:  
Founded in 2007, APO Group (www.APO-opa.com) is the leading award-winning pan-African communications consultancy and press release distribution service. Renowned for our deep-rooted African expertise and expansive global perspective, we specialise in elevating the reputations and brand equity of private and public organisations across Africa. As a trusted partner, our mission is to harness the power of media by crafting bespoke strategies that drive tangible, measurable impact on the continent and globally.  

Our commitment to excellence and innovation has been recognised with multiple prestigious awards, including a PRovoke Media Global SABRE Award and multiple PRovoke Media Africa SABRE Awards. In 2023, we were named the Leading Public Relations Firm Africa and the Leading Pan-African Communications Consultancy Africa in the World Business Outlook Awards, and the Best Public Relations and Media Consultancy of the Year South Africa in 2024 in the same awards. In 2025, Brands Review Magazine acknowledged us as the Leading Communications Consultancy in Africa for the second consecutive year. They also named us the Best PR Agency and the Leading Press Release Distribution Platform in Africa in 2024. Additionally, in 2025, the Davos Communications Awards 2025 awarded us the Gold Award for Best PR Campaign and the Bronze Award for Special Event.  

APO Group's esteemed clientele, which includes global giants such as Canon, Nestlé, Western Union, the UNDP, Network International, African Energy Chamber, Mercy Ships, Marriott, Africa's Business Heroes, and Liquid Intelligent Technologies, reflects our unparalleled ability to navigate the complex African media landscape. With a multicultural team across Africa, we offer unmatched, truly pan-African insights, expertise, and reach across the continent. APO Group is dedicated to reshaping narratives about Africa, challenging stereotypes, and bringing inspiring African stories to global audiences, with our expertise in developing and supporting public relations campaigns worldwide uniquely positioning us to amplify brand messaging, enhance reputations, and connect effectively with target audiences.  

When 10-month-old baby Memunatu arrived at the Global Mercy™ (www.MercyShips.org), a state-of-the-art hospital ship, her tiny face was burdened by the weight of a large tumor on her neck. This tumor affected her ability to swallow, eat, speak, and even cry. Her mother, Aminata, was referred to several doctors who were unable to help. All it took was one encounter, one surgeon's expertise, to change their lives forever for the better.

When Anne-Marie van Tonder, a Mercy Ships volunteer from South Africa, met Memunatu and Aminata hospital in Freetown she was moved by compassion for this family. Connecting Aminata with the Global Mercy, it did not take long for Memunatu to be brought under the care of Dr. Leo Cheng, a maxillofacial surgeon from the United Kingdom.

Dr. Cheng, who has passionately volunteered with Mercy Ships for two decades, immediately recognized the urgency of Memunatu's case. Reviewing her scans revealed that, although the mass was not cancerous, it posed serous risks to her survival.

“Without the surgery, her condition would have continued to worsen,” Dr. Cheng explained. “It could have become life-threatening.”

A significant portion of today's global disease burden can be alleviated through surgical intervention. Even so, 5 billion people, close to two-thirds of the world's population, lack access to safe, affordable, and timely surgical care. Rough estimates show that someone dies every two seconds from a preventable medical condition that could have been treated surgically.

Recent work in The Lancet Oncology (https://apo-opa.co/3LHcdKk) highlights how delays in surgical care, even for seemingly benign tumors, can lead to increased health complexities, risks, and suffering. Patients not only experience the escalation of symptoms, but also psychosocial isolation and stigma many in their communities regard them as demon- possessed.

Dr. Cheng would do all he could to keep Memunatu from this future of pain and rejection. Her surgery was a delicate procedure; since her airway was already compromised, anesthesia and intubation required extraordinary coordination between the surgical and nursing teams.

“With every single millimeter, I was estimating, calculating, and trying to prevent any bleeding. It went very slowly, but very positively,” Dr. Cheng recalled.

When the surgery concluded, when the swelling finally subsided, Memunatu's transformation was striking. Her beautiful face was visible again, and her eyes were full of light and joy.

Dr. Cheng reflected on the broader significance of Memunatu's healing: “Every surgery like this reminds us that access to safe surgery is not a luxury, but essential. When we restore someone's face, we restore their humanity, their acceptance, and their hope.”

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Mercy Ships.

For more information about Mercy Ships, contact:
Email: International.media@mercyships.org   

ABOUT MERCY SHIPS:
Mercy Ships operates hospital ships that deliver free surgeries and other healthcare services to those with little access to safe medical care. An international faith-based organization, Mercy Ships has focused entirely on partnering with nations in Africa for the past three decades. Working with in-country partners, Mercy Ships also provides training to local healthcare professionals and supports the construction of in-country medical infrastructure to leave a lasting impact.  

Each year, more than 2,500 volunteer professionals from over 60 countries serve on board the world's two largest non-governmental hospital ships, the Africa Mercy® and the Global Mercy™. Professionals such as surgeons, dentists, nurses, health trainers, cooks, and engineers dedicate their time and skills to accelerate access to safe surgical and anesthetic care. Mercy Ships was founded in 1978 and has offices in 16 countries as well as an Africa Service Center in Dakar, Senegal.  

For more information, visit  www.MercyShips.org and follow @ MercyShips on social media.