Silicon Lagoon: Africa’s Tech Revolution Heads West

Across the street from a church and in front of a dilapidated school is a grimy, sand-colored building that looks like any other here in Lagos, a prominent Nigerian port city.

But inside is something far from ordinary: the center of West Africa’s burgeoning tech scene. On the walls, posters preach disruption: “Move fast and break things.” In rows of blue and orange desks, millennials are trying to do just that. Small groups huddle around laptops, discussing ideas for the next big tech company. One person is working on his digital marketing startup; another is teaching a child how to code. When they’re not working, many here take a break on the roof, which is layered with AstroTurf and often hosts barbecues for local tech geeks.

Welcome to the Co-Creation Hub, a workspace-cum-incubator in the heart of Yaba, Lagos’s to find and mentor another 20. It was also the first stop for when he turned up unannounced in Nigeria for a two-day visit in August. The hub is located close to the offices of Andela, a Nigerian startup that trains software engineers, in which the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, the philanthropic investment company set up by Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, recently led a $24 million investment round.