The Lagos State Government, under the leadership of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has allocated N1 billion as a seed fund for startups to the Lagos State Science, Research, and Innovation Council (LASRIC).

This announcement was made during the inauguration of the newly reconstituted LASRIC members in Lagos.

Governor Sanwo-Olu emphasized the state’s commitment to fostering scientific innovation, positioning Lagos as a burgeoning hub for early-stage and unicorn startups.

He noted that Lagos’s startup ecosystem has outpaced many other African cities and countries in success metrics, foreign direct investment, and the number of innovative solutions and patents.

“We are committed to increasing these success metrics with the provision of LASRIC seed fund to the tune of N1,000,000,000 (one billion Naira) – in the first tranche funding to the council,” Sanwo-Olu stated.

“We believe this fund will continue to catalyse development in our dear state.

‘It is my expectation that the new LASRIC Board being inaugurated today will work assiduously towards ensuring the realisation of our collective goals and aspirations.

“Innovation is central to the governor’s THEMES Agenda, prompting the establishment of LASRIC to drive science and technology initiatives.”

The council includes experts from industry, academia, and the public sector, all dedicated to expanding innovation in Lagos.

Over the past four years, LASRIC has created over 500 jobs by supporting startups in sectors such as AgriTech, the circular economy, climate change, and construction tech. It has also backed more than 70 research and development initiatives in areas like biomass, biodiesel, and artificial intelligence for medical imaging, boosting innovation activity in Lagos by over 250%.

Sanwo-Olu highlighted LASRIC’s achievement in securing the government’s first patent through a multidisciplinary team from the University of Lagos, which developed the Ambubag Ventilator.

Several other patent-pending projects are underway, reinforcing the administration’s focus on value creation.

Olatunbosun Alake, the Commissioner for Innovation, Science, and Technology, introduced a structured assessment system called “POEM” for technology companies and startups applying for the seed funding.

POEM evaluates Proposition, Organisation, Economics, and Milestones to ensure viable and impactful projects.

“Startups or tech companies that are able to pass this assessment and access the seed funding should be able to solve problems in Lagos State and beyond,” Alake explained.

The newly appointed Chairman of LASRIC and Vice-Chancellor of Lagos State University of Science & Technology, Prof. Olumuyiwa Odusanya, expressed enthusiasm about the initiative, describing it as “a call to duty and to work.”

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TECHDIGEST – The Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Innovation and Technology, Tunbosun Alake, has said that a total of 107 tech startups operating in the State have attracted $750 million in funding so far this year.

Alake disclosed this on Thursday at the opening of the 4th Art of Lagos (AOT) conference with the theme: ‘Talent Acceleration And a smarter Lagos.’

While noting that the state has become the number one startup capital in Africa, he said Lagos now ranks 81 globally as one of the leading hubs for startups. He said Lagos is also number one in Africa in terms of the volume of deals that have been sealed from 2019 to date.

Why investors are coming to Lagos

According to Alake, investors are coming to the state not just because of its large population but also because the state government has been deliberate about making the state conducive for investments. He said:

“Investors are coming to Lagos because there have been many things we have been doing to encourage and to make sure the ecosystem is right for these investments. And Lagos is a place investor love to come to, not just because of the size of the market but also because of the potential of the returns on their investments.”

More startups/investments needed

Despite the record of the number of startups in the state and the investments they continue to attract, Alake said the state needs more startups and funding to develop because of its peculiar challenges.

“Lagos State is one of the key economic drivers for Nigeria and as a result, about 77 new residents from all over Nigeria migrate to Lagos every single day. That is an enormous challenge in itself. How do we manage this enormous population with such a static landmass? We need to apply technology. And this is why we need more startups and more investments in the state,” he said.

Source : Nairametric

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TECHDIGEST – Breakthroughs in medicine, technology and science through innovations and innovative products have had significant impact in the economic advancement of the society by improving the lives of citizens and offering more opportunities which the government and the tech ecosystem can collectively leverage on.

Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami), the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy (Nigeria), reiterated this at the Co-Create 2022 International Tech Exhibition and Gage Awards.

The Minister who was represented by Kashifu Inuwa, the Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), expressed his utmost pleasure at the event which he delineated as being timely and strategic.

While describing the theme of the event ‘collaborative innovation for a better tomorrow’ as exciting, Pantami stated that the most important part of the innovative process is commercializing it.

READ ALSO: ITU Appoints Pantami To Lead World Summit On Information Society Forum 2022

He stated that “Innovation is a process of taking an idea from inception all the way to impact and while many people think innovation and invention mean the same thing, innovation is actually creating a market or democratizing access to your solution, product or services”

Underpinning his point with an illustration, Pantami cited that the telecommunications sector which was orchestrated by Mo Ibrahim in Africa about 20 years ago and which encountered so many challenges has now evolved into the biggest sector in Africa.

Giving assurances of the government’s support to Innovators in the country, he urged all players in the tech ecosystem to think and act like Mo Ibrahim with the mindset of creating solutions to solve the country’s problems.

ALSO READ Nigeria’s low ranking in Global Innovation Index 2020 not a surprise – Omeruo, Amos

“In Nigeria, we have many problems and we need more innovations to solve them. This kind of collaborations we are having here today can open doors for this because you cannot survive in isolation. Everything is about ecosystem”, he noted.

Buttressing his point further, the Minister holistically averred that the 5 critical stakeholders in an ecosystem are the Innovators otherwise known as the Entrepreneurs who start and grow businesses with ideas and solutions, the Human Capital Developers who discover talents and are the human components of technology, the Government who are the enablers of a level playing field for innovators, the Risk Capitals who invest money in startups and the Corporate Organizations who buy the products.

He further asserted that an effective collaboration of these 5 stakeholders in Nigeria will produce an excellent and viable ecosystem in the country.

Emphasizing the present administration’s commitment to the implementation of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) by effectively collaborating with innovators in the industry, Pantami disclosed that the Federal Executive Council has given approval for the Ministry and Agencies under its supervision to co-create solutions with the ecosystem in areas of procurement, IP & Patenting and giving Incentives to encourage the startups.

The Honorable Minister while giving further disclosure on how co-creating with the ecosystem can be achievable, highlighted that showing clarity on processes by all parties, unleashing energy, building trust, building stronger startups and devising policies to shape the future are key indices into establishing and sustaining a formidable ecosystem in the country.

“Whatever we do, we don’t do in isolation. We work with the ecosystem to co-create policies and co-create the regulations. Whatever we do, we do together. We believe that together, we can do greater things. That is why we are here to work with you and to co-create our future”, he concluded.

The technology exhibition, which was occasioned at the Landmark Centre, Lagos had in attendance, Mr Olatunbosun Alake, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Science and Technology; Dr. Krish Ranganath, the Chief Technical Officer of the African Data Centre; 100 tech exhibitors and other key players in the tech ecosystem and was geared at showcasing innovative businesses locally and across the globe with a physical presence in Nigeria.

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TECH DIGEST – Lagos State has opened discussions with technology giants, namely, Facebook and Google to deliver on Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s vision to create Yaba Technology Cluster, called K.I.T.E.

The K.I.T.E project entails making the Yaba Technology cluster a free zone that would allow the growth of funding and financing for innovative ideas generated by entrepreneurs.

K.I.T.E. is an acronym for Knowledge, Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship.

The Governor said that in the State’s bid to ramp up its intervention in provision of technology infrastructure and expand the tech space to accommodate more startups, Lagos State Government is set to embark on the construction of the biggest technology cluster in West Africa.

The Governor spoke of the development on Wednesday when he toured two major innovation and technology hubs within the State.

Accompanied by members of the State’s Executive Council, including Commissioner for Science and Technology, Mr. Hakeem Fahm, and Special Adviser on Innovation and Technology, Olatunbosun Alake, the Governor visited Venia Hub in Lekki and Impact Hub in Ikoyi, meeting scores of startups in the ecosystems for a roundtable discussion on expanding funding opportunities and infrastructure development.

Governor Sanwo-Olu in company of his Special Adviser on Innovation and Technology, Olatunbosun Alake during the tour of tech ecosystem in Lagos

Sanwo-Olu said the Yaba Technology Cluster, called K.I.T.E., would be a free zone that would allow the growth of funding and financing for innovative ideas generated by entrepreneurs in tech industry and FinTech space, adding that the ecosystem would also offer free labs for the use of startups to take their innovations to from ideation to the next level.

The Governor described technology as “the new oil” for Lagos, Africa’s largest megacity to exponentially generate wealth and jobs for its young population, while also leveraging it in raising the status of State to attain Fourth Industrial Revolution.

He said: “Technology is the new oil and the basic element for the Fourth Industrial Revolution globally. As a State with a massive population of young people, we need to play major role in the development of technology, which is an enabler to leapfrog into rapid socio-economic growth. We take technology as an important deliverable in our Government’s development agenda.

“For us to make lasting impact in tech industry, we said to ourselves we needed to build the infrastructure to support sector. We are building a tech campus on a 22,000 square meters land in Yaba, which we christen K.I.T.E. We are working with global brands in the tech space, such as Facebook and Google, to deliver this important technology hub.

“We are currently laying 3,000 kilometres metropolitan fibre optic cables across the State to drop reliable and fast Internet connectivity in homes and work places. These are part of the infrastructure required as backbone for the tech industry to flourish and empower our young people in the space to take their businesses and ideas to the level of stability.”

Aside the infrastructural initiatives, Sanwo-Olu said the State Government had been providing support for startups through the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) and Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council (LASRIC), which provide grant opportunities for innovators and tech researchers.

The Governor disclosed that two out of the 20 start-ups ideas supported through LASRIC last year had secured patents for their innovations and ready to transform into fully-fledged businesses that would create jobs.

Sanwo-Olu said the State Government’s intervention in the technology space was about creating opportunities for the future and providing platforms to make start-up businesses thrive.

He said: “The visit to your ecosystems today is for you to be assured that this Government is not sitting back in taking steps to ease access. We fully understand the role which technology plays in our lives and how technology is important to any society that wants to be relevant in coming decades. We are happy to be building the capability for Lagos, so that we can compete with other developed cities in the world.”

The Governor had a roundtable discussion with some of the startups to communicate the State’s effort and how better the Government could properly channel its interventions in the sector.

Some of the startups had the opportunity to present their business models and innovative solutions to the Government’s team. The engagement gave the Governor and his team the possible areas of intervention.

LSETF Executive Secretary, Mrs. Teju Abisoye, said the agency had been providing support for over 38 partner hubs across Local Government Areas (LGAs) and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in the State, stressing that the objective of the funding was to support startups from idea to exit stages.

Venia Hub is an ecosystem housing Flutterwave and 100 other tech start-up companies. Impact Hub also has scores of startups operating in its ecosystem.

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