A couple of months back, a friend from South Africa asked a group of fellows that I happen to be a part of about the startup ecosystem in Africa. She particularly wanted us to list business incubators from our respective countries. Going through this exercise made me realize that the Tanzanian business incubation space is still in its infancy when viewed in light of the progress made in countries such as Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria, among others.
ICT incubation generally dominates this space across the world. Countries that were quick to see ICT as a driver for growth are placing significant efforts into nurturing innovations in tech, and youngsters seem to be the party on the receiving end of this strategic thinking.
It is quite strange, though, that Tanzania is not one of the leaders in this area. I could not find reliable comparative data on the cost of internet services in Africa, but from my experience, Tanzania most likely has among the cheapest mobile internet services on the continent. Access to cheap internet truly should be a breeding ground for innovation in ICT.
As I write, Snapchat, a popular multimedia mobile application, is hitting the headlines as it is going public on a $29 billion valuation, making its co-founders instant billionaires. It might be difficult for most to appreciate this, but the US stands to benefit ‘bigly’ from such innovations. Leaving aside the direct financial value created by the ‘university dorm innovation’ that is now employing close to two thousand people, in the long run, the US is also bound to benefit from a form of cultural imperialism that it exports with the application that is now a global hit. This cultural imperialism goes hand in hand with a thriving economy, but that’s a topic for another day.
So, what’s stopping us from creating innovations that compete with global brands even internally, leave alone on a regional or continental stage? I know from my work in this industry that talent is not lacking; it is rather talent management that is.
I am immediately reminded of a case from 2012 where Kenya wanted to create an application that would allow community health workers to put information on infectious diseases directly from mobile phones into a government database. Kenya sought the services of a multinational contractor, and an Indian company quoted $1.9 million for the job. The deal was immediately stopped, and four business IT students from a local university were gathered to do the job. Each student was put on an internship worth a meagre $150 per month. The lads got the job done within a few months.
See, our technological sluggishness sometimes arises from the fact that we are fixated on the idea of importing technologies. The case of the four Kenyan students is one of many confirming that investing trust in our young ICT innovators could help boost efficiency in the private and public sectors.
The burden lies with our government and private sector. The government has a more systemic role to play by ensuring tech skills are sustainably diffusing to a larger portion of young learners so that the foundation for innovation is strengthened.
Private sector actors shouldn’t need a reminder on this issue as innovation is inherently rewarding to them. In any competitive sectors such as the telecom and banking sectors, innovation is guaranteed to give one an edge over competitors. It is no surprise that in many countries, it is almost trendy for large private firms to start their own innovation hubs.
Finally, as I have remarked time and time again, our young people also have a huge responsibility to prove that they are worth investing in. It is paramount that skeptical investors see some level of momentum in innovation before they can be converted.
If all young people do with their ‘internet abundance’ is populate Instagram feeds and pirate movies and TV shows, we will continue to lag behind in tech, and this will hurt our prospects for growth in the long run.
This article was first published in The Citizen.
