2015 kicked off on a rather slow note in the innovation landscape in Africa. But gradually, events began to unfold and the rest, as they say, is history.
Coming up with a list of the top five stories so far this year was not an easy task – but the selected stories were chosen based on their uniqueness and Africa-wide relevance.
5. Digital Migration
Many African countries that signed the ITU declaration on migration from analogue to digital broadcasting failed to meet the June deadline. Interestingly though, attention has been on Nigeria’s ability (or inability) to meet the 2015 digital migration deadline since 2012.
This January, indications emerged that the goal may not be achieved when the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC) said Nigeria may not meet the deadline. The day came and Nigeria did not meet the deadline, just like several other African nations. In Southern Africa, a new deadline for migration has been announced.
4. iROKOtv
Jason Njoku’s iROKOtv has been in the news consistently this year. In April, the company announced it now has 2 channels on StarTimes, out of the 5 new channels launched by StarTimes. In May, Bastian Gotter, Co-Founder of iROKOtv spoke to Innovation Village and he confirmed the deal with NetFlix, and other latest developments at the company. In June, Jason announced the company will be suspending its web and streaming services in Africa.
3. Nollywood
The success story of iROKOtv is centered on the success of the Nigerian movie industry which was named the second largest in the world. According to Fortune, many observers believe that the global reach of African films could take off, led by video on demand (VOD) platforms and productions of Nigeria — the continent’s largest economy and most populous nation.
“Nollywood’s popularity across Africa and the diaspora certainly demonstrates the capacity of the films to travel,” said Nigerian film producer and financier Yewande Sadiku.
2. KongaPay
eCommerce giant, Konga shot to the top of the list based on company, with its launch of KongaPay – a service that many industry watchers describe as an attempt to make Nigerians to embrace online payment. Innovation Village’s contributor Jesse earlier hinted readers about the disruptive potentials of the service before its official launch. The company also announced it has acquired Zinternet Nigeria Limited (Zinternet), a company which holds mobile money license as required by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) which has now approved Konga’s venture into electronic payment.
1. Social Media
Even though just six months had gone in 2015, there has been lots of social media gaffes – it has also played crucial roles and everyone is taking it serious now. This was the major reason why Nigerians expressed concerns over Presidential media aides’ non-existence on social media.
Social media has been the center stage so far this year in Africa. In Nigeria for instance, it was on ‘fire’ when Oba of Lagos threatened Igbos in the state. The return of then President-elect Buhari was also greeted with #BabaWhileYouWereGone. Circumstances surrounding President Buhari’s certificate also trended on social media with very funny comments and memes.
There was also the Social Media Week Lagos 2015 conference.
And, of course, no one can forget the biggest social media villain of the year (so far) Orubebe, it would a lot to break the record he set.
The second-half of the year gets underway today and there are lots of exciting innovative stuffs to look forward to within and outside Africa. While many Africans will rely on social media to break the big news, Innovation Village is the place to get the true details with special professional insights and analyses in order to make sense of what may appear as nonsense.
Do you agree with this list?
