Within Africa’s tech scene, there’s a continuous thread of competition which flows between East and West Africa. In fintech, a number of players including Branch, Carbon and Kuda are building tech solutions to serve Africa’s unbanked population.
For the ride-hailing sector, SafeBoda, OPay and MAX.NG are all trying to help commuters beat traffic jams albeit on different sides of the continent, however in the innovation hub space, one company recently bucked this trend with news of a significant acquisition.
CcHUB (Co-creation Hub), arguably the largest of Africa’s reported 618 active tech hubs, recently announced the acquisition of iHub, their largest counterpart in East Africa.
In an unprecedented step for the sector, the acquisition marks a further expansion of CcHUB Pan-African network after they announced the opening of their Design Lab in Kigali, Rwanda earlier this year. It is a bold move for a company who has not only partnered by the likes of Google for Startups and Facebook but also announced plans to raise $60mn for their Growth Capital fund to invest in African startups.
In iHub, they are acquiring a startup with an equally-strong reputation on the continent too. With the likes of internationally-recognised companies such as BRCK and Ushahidi, the company has seen over 500 companies receive business support services, 100+ of which have gone through incubation and accelerator programs.
In light of this, Mfonobong Nsehe caught up with the man who will be overseeing both organizations, CcHub co-founder and CEO, Bosun Tijani, who recently led the #StopRobbingUs campaign to end police harassment against Nigeria’s tech community. Here’s how we got on:
What does the acquisition mean for your vision on the continent?
The vision of CcHub remains the same – to create a robust platform that is capable of attracting the best resources and partnerships resources to accelerate the application of technology and innovation for economic prosperity across Africa. As the continent moves towards further integration, we’re bringing together two of the continent’s biggest innovation hubs in Africa’s most active tech sectors in East and West Africa. Both regions face unique challenges but through our acquisition, startups have access to knowledge and resources from across the continent to create scalable solutions. Additionally, this not only holds huge benefits in terms of fixing Africa’s challenges but also for mass job creation.
This acquisition positions you as undisputedly the largest innovation hub on the continent. With this in mind, what’s your view on Africa’s place in the global economy with regards to innovation?
Recent data shows 2019 funding levels are already above $530mn for African tech startups so there’s already a strong awareness for how tech can accelerate Africa’s development. But with the acquisition, it’s about leading the way for the next stage of growth and ensuring Africa is prepared to compete on a global level. Innovation is moving quickly throughout the world and in order for Africa to not be left behind, there needs to be an understanding of the changing rules for engagement. Innovation isn’t just limited to local players anymore but it’s about working with top experts from across the globe and establishing a strong network of corporates, governments and startups from different parts of the world. It’s vital that Africa takes an open approach to collaboration if it wants to experience the full benefits of science and technology. Together, we will be stronger – and international companies who are looking to enter into the African market, know that they have a trusted partner, with a pan-African network, to collaborate with.
Your work protecting Nigeria’s tech community brought international attention through the #StopRobbingUs campaign. How much damage do you think this could have on Nigeria’s tech ecosystem?
The strength of Nigeria’s tech ecosystem lies in its talent and there’s a serious danger this could be lost. It’s quite simple – they won’t tolerate a society that doesn’t represent or support them, especially as demand grows for their skills. Why would a professional in any sector want to stay in a country that doesn’t protect them from extortion and physical attacks? That’s why we are mobilizing so we can provide a safe environment for talent to provide the solutions the country needs to move forward. It’s critical that they stay in Nigeria and contribute to the sector and the wider economy. We want to see action from the government to put an end to intimidation and extortion, so we can get on as a business community and build out Nigeria’s tech infrastructure.
Source: Forbes
