African startups get $1bn boost as Timbuktoo launches Lagos hub
TLDR
- UNDP partners with African governments and private sector to create $1 billion startup innovation initiative with technology hubs across Africa.
- First tech hub opens in Lagos, Nigeria as part of major initiative to support African startups.
- Future hubs to launch in Accra, Kigali, and Lusaka focusing on agritech, healthtech, and minetech respectively.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), along with African governments and the private sector, plans to raise $1 billion and establish a series of technology hubs across the continent to boost start-up innovation.
The first of 10 hubs under the Timbuktoo program, which will be part of the world’s largest initiative supporting Africa’s technology startups, will open this week at UNDP’s innovation center in Lagos, Nigeria.
“This is a key milestone in the journey towards sparking a startup revolution on the continent,” said Ahunna Eziakonwa, assistant secretary-general and director of the UNDP Africa Bureau. Additional tech hubs will launch across the continent later in 2024, including an agritech hub in Accra, Ghana; a healthtech hub in Kigali, Rwanda; and a minetech hub in Lusaka, Zambia.
Key Takeaways
Africa currently holds a mere 0.2% share of global startup value, contrasting sharply with its 2% share of global trade value. The landscape further reveals that 89% of venture capital entering Africa is foreign, with 83% concentrated in just four countries: Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Egypt. Additionally, over 60% of this capital flows into the fintech sector. The Timbuktoo initiative, launched by the UNDP in collaboration with eight African countries, aims to address these disparities. The initiative adopts a pan-African approach to support startups while also focusing on the entire ecosystem. This involves fostering connections between government policy, universities, corporates, development partners, catalytic partners, and commercial investors, thereby promoting a comprehensive and collaborative strategy for sustainable economic development across the continent.
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