African youth hungry for connectivity

Erik Hersman – co-founder of software company Ushahidi and of Nairobi’s iHub, one of the best-known hubs in Africa – claims that the continent is undergoing a “tech-hub boom”. There are now more than 90 hubs, labs, incubators and accelerators in Africa, covering more than 20 countries. According to recent research, African hubs are springing up at the rate of nearly one every two weeks.

“The tech hubs in Africa provide a home for those with new and innovative ideas, create an atmosphere where they are encouraged to try new things and, most importantly, are able to meet like-minded individuals they can grow with,” says Hersman.

iHub emerged from the success of Ushahidi’s software platform used to capture and monitor citizen reporting during Kenya’s post-election violence in 2008. Started in 2010, iHub now has over eight thousand members spread across the world, with dozens of people using the space regularly.

Nearly 75% of people using iHub are working in or developing startups, according to a recent report by iHub’s research branch. Many of these startups have a social mission, like eLimu, which is distributing e-learning tablets to improve education in Kenya’s primary schools under a pilot project. Others, such as Niko Hapa, a location-based loyalty card for businesses accessed through a mobile phone, are purely market-driven.

A space to ‘try and fail’

A thousand kilometres away in Kigali, Rwanda, a new government-sponsored ICT hub called kLab also targets young software developers and recent college graduates, offering them a place to gain practical experience and training and to work collaboratively.

Rwanda, a small, poor, landlocked country, is striving to build a knowledge-based economy. It has put ICT development at the centre of its Vision 2020 – President Paul Kagame’s plan to turn Rwanda into a middle-income country by 2020. In line with that vision, the youth are to lead the charge.

Jean Niyotwagira, a young Rwandan and one of kLab’s first “tenants,” who graduated with skills in computer engineering last year, has already founded several software companies. These include a mobile applications development company, a social networking platform company and a digital supply-chain management platform company.

Niyotwagira maintains that kLab is the most “amazing thing that has happened to the programmer community in Rwanda”. He adds, “It helps entrepreneurs who don’t have enough funds to start their own office. It’s a great space to try and fail.”

An ability to “try and fail” is a key advantage. In the past, failure usually meant economic disaster for young entrepreneurs, but now these hubs provide crucial support that enable entrepreneurs to take more risks, and either reap the rewards or start over again.

A need for investment

While bustling hubs packed with fresh ideas and idealistic entrepreneurs exist across the continent, one thing does not – investment. Many entrepreneurs struggle to get their companies past the initial seed-funding stage, since few local investors seem willing to take risks on technology ventures with potential for high profits.

“We need more tech-savvy investors,” Mbwana Alliy, a former Silicon Valley entrepreneur who now manages the Savannah Fund, a Nairobi-based investment fund specialising in high-growth technology, told Africa Renewal.

But the blame lies not just with investors. It also lies with the entrepreneurs themselves. Alliy complains that many young entrepreneurs are “unfocused” and “lack discipline”. They may be great developers, but they do not have the skills to build and manage a company.

This, many claim, is invariably a result of the education system. However, “ICT is one of the few areas where you can supplement your academic education online,” says Alfi of Sawari Ventures. “You can bring yourself up to world class through online training. You can’t do that with medicine.”

Although people can learn software-coding skills online quite easily, learning the ins and outs of business management and finance is not so easy – in this, Africa still faces an enormous talent deficit. Many hubs are now turning their attention to helping entrepreneurs build such essential skills.

Despite the challenges, youth across the continent are getting connected and creating opportunities for themselves. Whether it’s safely inside Africa’s hubs or along the bullet-pocked streets of Mogadishu, they are finding ways to use technology to innovate, create employment and improve the societies in which they live.

This article was first published in Africa Renewal