EDUCATION& TECHNOLOGY
What Cities In Africa Are Becoming Africa's Tech Hubs?
It is hard to imagine life without technology and of course Android phones! Some young people may probably go insane! Africa is investing massively in technology and innovation with some cities becoming Africa's major tech hubs. Johannesburg in South Africa and Yabacon Valley, Lagos, Nigeria is seething with the technological revolution and myriads of tech start-ups. Casablanca in Morocco, and Cairo in Egypt, are leading North Africa, growing Its ICT Technological hub to be one of the most enviable in the world. Nairobi (Kenya), Kigali (Rwanda), and Kampala (Uganda) are blazing trails, launching free Wi-Fi zones, all pushing Africa on the tech-savvy frontline.
Science and technology have brought tremendous relief to today's society. It is hard to imagine life without modern-day appliances such as electricity, cars, gas, refrigerators, washing machines, air-conditioners, and of course Android phones! some young persons might probably go insane at the latter. Just the thought is maddening! to almost anyone anyway.
These have made life more comfortable, convenient, economically stable, and productive.
In recent years technology has taken on a massive and indispensable role cutting across all fields- Aviation, Banking, Agriculture, Medical Services, Education, Biotechnology, Sports, Accounting, Communications, etc.
A world without technology is no longer possible as the entire Globe is investing massively in technology and also in innovation. And so should you!
Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Ghana, cote d'Ivoire, Tanzania, Senegal, Uganda, and Mali are some African countries taking the lead in science and technology with some of Its Cities becoming Africa’s technology hub.
1.JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA
Johannesburg is a pillar and powerhouse of technology in South Africa, with major tech hubs such as Jozi Hub blazing a trail. It has some of the largest telecommunication industries in Africa with Free Wi-Fi, of over 1000 hotspots, exclusively covering all libraries and clinics existing in the city. The escalating use of android mobile phones at a pace that is greater than the population growth rate of the city is a major indicator of the vast number of active hubs in the city. Johannesburg still has more surprises in store for the future.
2.LAGOS, NIGERIA
The tech hub in Lagos Nigerian is a pathfinder. The rush and craze for Technology are ravishing the city as almost no region or demo graph of its population is left out in this technological revolution. There are free Wi-Fi Zones across the city as its availability seems to be a defining factor of a tech-savvy country.
Yaba, nicknamed “Yabacon Valley” Nigeria’s Silicon Valley is the leading technology hub boasting over 80 start-ups. Creation Hub (CCHub), one of the famed tech hubs in Yaba has won several awards. Paga, Fintech Interswitch, Konga, OLX, Play, and Easy Taxi are other tech hubs in Lagos city.
3.NAIROBI, KENYA
The unprecedented success of M-Pesa – a breakthrough mobile app for money transfer and financial services, spin-timed a landmark that has poised Nairobi as one of the bubbling tech hubs in Africa. Technology and the success of M-Pesa's have seen the establishment of multiple SMEs across the country elevating the economy of the country. It’s all happening in the city of Nairobi.
4. KIGALI, RWANDA
The beaming technology hubs in Kigali are gradually replacing Rwandan’s history of genocide. The capital of Rwanda Kigali boasts of several tech hubs, such as K-Lab, Think, The Office, and Impact Hub Kigali all resulting in massive job creation. The Smart Kigali initiative was launched in 2013, making the capital the first city in East Africa to launch free Wi-Fi zones for its citizens.
5.CASABLANCA, MOROCCO
Casablanca Technopark is a hub in the city of Casablanca with over 170 ICT companies. It is a tech cluster focused on e-learning software engineering and ICT ventures. Casablanca is one of Africa’s leading cities in innovation and technology. Morocco was the first country in North Africa to adopt a 3G network, in 2006 and has grown Its ICT Technological hub to be one of the most enviable in the world generating a stable economy for the country, and creating over 1,500 jobs.
6.CAIRO, EGYPT
The innovation and tech hub of Egypt is impressive with the country rising as one of the most digital countries in the world. Instabug, a bug reporting app has hit over 25 million users across 100 countries worldwide asides from winning several awards in 2013.
7.KAMPALA, UGANDA
In Kampala Uganda, the Wisenga- award-winning app was created by three university students and in 2012 they won the Imagine Cup, the world's premier student technology competition anchored by Microsoft.
The launch of the Village des Technologies de l’Information et de la Biotechnologie in Grand Bassam, the innovation of the educational app Quelasy in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, for school-age children, and the rise of new tech cities in Africa is a sure win for the continent now and in years to come as the seeds of innovation are already being planted in many young minds.
Big tech set-up companies such as Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and IBM are the largest sponsors of tech hubs across Africa acting as incubators, accelerators, university-based innovation hubs, maker spaces, etc
15 Jul 2021