“We can build, grow, and achieve our vision of an Innovation Economy in Africa” Anna Ekeledo, Executive Director, Af

AfriLabs is a network of 240 technology and innovation hubs across 48 African countries.

The organization started in 2011 and has worked with innovation hubs to build an innovation infrastructure that encourages the growth of knowledge of Africa and the digital economy, by supporting the development of start-ups, technology and innovation.

Anna Ekeledo, Executive Director, AfriLabs in a 2021 open letter to Africa’s ecosystem builder noted the role of innovation on the continent and the next giant stride the organization is set to take.

Below reads the open letter:

The year 2020 brought with it a plethora of emotions, experiences, and social, economic, political, and health events mainly influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic.

A number of us suffered loss and to those I say, in solidarity, our hearts continue to be with you and your families as you navigate into the year.

In spite of all of this, we are incredibly proud of the efforts of our community members, especially innovation hubs across the continent.

At AfriLabs, we have seen resilience in the face of unprecedented disruption.

Every day in the past year, we worked with our community members who have stepped up to the challenge to support businesses across Africa navigate the negative effects of the pandemic; and build innovative solutions leveraging digital technologies to support governments, organizations, and society to increase access to healthcare, products, and services needed.

To properly showcase our impact in 2020, we have created a concise report of our activities in the last year where we saw the power of our community shine through.

We now believe more than ever that if we work together, we can overcome anything.

We can build, grow, and achieve our vision of an Innovation Economy in Africa, driven by the power of our community.

We are a resilient people and this report showcases our stories, through the voices of our team, our members, partners, and everyone who has worked with us or been impacted by us last year.

This year, AfriLabs will be 10 years old and we will be celebrating and reflecting on the strides of the Innovation Ecosystem in Africa.

If you have been part of our story, we would like to say a big thank you! If you haven’t joined us in building the Africa of our dreams…well, let’s make it happen in the new year 2021.

Featured Image: Anna Ekeledo, Executive Director, AfriLabs

Don’t miss important articles during the week. Subscribe to techbuild.africa weekly digest for updates.