At least 12 Startup Weekends will occur in Sub-Saharan Africa during a 14-month stretch from September 2011 to November 2012.

Three recent online videos provide different viewpoints of how businesses are bringing positive social change to Africa. The first, in an interview format, discusses the barriers facing entrepreneurs and how Google is enabling local discovery of solutions. The second provides an 11-minute look inside a media center in eastern Ghana. …

Can a uniquely African social network instigate revolution with the zeal of a Facebook or Twitter? The challenges facing African social networks stem more a lack of planning and focus than from a lack of technology.