Project description
In reference to Silicon Valley in California, "Silicon Savannah" is the nickname given to Nairobi, the capital of Kenya which has become in a decade a technological epicenter with its weekends of startups, innovations, accelerators, incubator events and investor meetings, which are spreading throughout East Africa. Indeed, an agile mobile banking system has created new market opportunities for digital entrepreneurs. This is made possible thanks to several factors: the Kenyan government's initiatives to create favorable conditions for technological development and thus attract investors, through a policy opened to aid agencies, development funds and NGOs foreigners, the birth of M-Pesa by Vodafone in 2003 and its launch by Safaricom in 2007, the revolution that prompted many Kenyans to become technology entrepreneurs and to launch startups proactively, and the launch of iHub in 2010, as an open space for startups, propelling Nairobi to the forefront of technology and innovation. Illustrating its sustained growth, Silicon Savannah counts among others 54 startups registered in the AngelList, 4 large active accelerators (88Mph, Savannah Fund, Sinopsis Group and The Growth Hub), 2 large incubators (iLab Africa and mLab), 3 co-working spaces (Business Lounge, Genius Executives and iHub) and concentrates some 8 400 millionaires in US dollars. According to Bloomberg estimates, the Nairobi technology scene could be worth up to 1 billion dollars by 2019.
Tags: Fablab, Incubator, Smart city, Startup, Startup Academy
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Project summary
- Organization State of Kenya, M-Pesa, iHub
- Location Kenya
- Creation date 09/05/2019
- Project category Smart CitySmart-economy
