Art Of Technology 4.0: Issues In Talent Retention, Data-Driven Smart Lagos City, Others Take Centre Stage
The technology industry in many ways makes the world go round. But with growing market challenges, global uncertainties, and brain drain, what does the future of tech look like, and how can tech enthusiasts, governments, and companies weather the storm? These among others were the issues dissected at the opening ceremony of the Art of Technology (AOT) 4.0 held on Thursday, December 8, 2022, at the Landmark Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.
Art of Technology Lagos is an initiative of the Eko Innovation Centre and is the largest tech conference in Nigeria that brings together industry stakeholders, policymakers, enthusiasts, ecosystem players, investors, business founders and executives, venture capital firms, startups, and technology talents to create policies that will drive the development of a smarter Lagos.
THE FACULTY
The event was themed ‘Talent Acceleration And a smarter Lagos,’ and the conversation centered on skills, policies, and talent development within the ecosystem for the future of the workforce. The event had the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat who represented Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Hakeem Fahm, Lagos State Commissioner for Science and Technology, Abubakar Suleiman, CEO, Sterling Bank Plc, Olatunbosun Alake, the Special Adviser on Innovation and Technology to the Lagos State governor, Sumch Tarek, Managing Director, BDTask (Bangladesh), Lars Christer Johannisson, CEO, Africa Teleperformance, and other stakeholders in the private and public sector in attendance.
FLASHBACK
The Curator of Art of Technology Lagos and Founder of Eko Innovation Centre, Mr. Victor Gbenga Afolabi, said the two-day summit was building on the successes of the three editions which began in 2019. The maiden edition which recorded over 2,000 participants in attendance birthed the launch of the Lagos Innovation Masterplan which has continued to guide the Lagos State Government in achieving its Smart City agenda. It has since had over 29,000 participants since its inception ranging from startups to investors to tech founders.
AOT 1.0 gave birth to the Lagos Innovation Master Plan – an innovation strategy and tactical plan that sought to transform Lagos into a smart city through technology. AOT 2.0 saw the launch of Startup Lagos & Eko Opensource, an innovative information portal that sought to deliver critical insights into the technology startup ecosystem and a platform that serves as a bridge for private sector developers to solve governmental technology challenges.
AOT 3.0 engaged founders and policymakers to highlight challenges with attracting funding and create enabling policies to increase the attractiveness of startups to investors. The conference also saw over sixty million Naira awarded to innovative startups and R&D projects in Lagos Universities.
With such a massive impact in less than four years, Afolabi relishes with excitement as he took time to dissect how the activities of the last few years have been congruent with the core values and vision he had when the project was brewed.
2022 MILESTONES
Meanwhile, AOT 4.0 recorded another milestone with the launch of a 10-year roadmap to widening the talent acceleration pipeline to achieve talent sustainability that will deliver the Smarter Lagos agenda.
It also birthed conversations around the remodeling of the Lagos State education curriculum to change learning paradigms and contribute to policies that foster an enabling environment to produce and retain the talent that will drive the future.
Speaking at the event, the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat who represented Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, said that the state recognizes the life-changing implications technology can have on the living standards and quality of life of citizens, hence, the support of the state for initiatives like the AOT Lagos.
Dr. Hamzat said that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu led-administration has been deliberate about deploying technology to make governance seamless and has been funding the technology space in line with its smart city agenda which has further helped the state to be the 5th largest economy in Africa.
“In preceding AOT events, we have been able to foster value-creating contributions that have enabled a deeper and better collaborative relationship within the ecosystem. According to the startup genome, Lagos is now the No1 technology startup ecosystem in Africa in terms of funding, performance, and shared number of startups creating values. Between 2019 and 2021, over a 120 per cent increase in venture capital inflow into Lagos was realized resulting in $1.5 million USD in venture capital in 2021 alone. With a record of over 2000 startups creating and contributing values across Fintech, Agrictech, Construction, Health, etc.
He further stated that the entrepreneurial environment and the open support for technology informed the Sanwo-Olu administration’s increasing focus on innovation in a bid to drive value outputs for the startup ecosystem. “This administration’s contribution is evidenced in the different implementations and initiatives contained in Lagos States’ first Innovation and Technology Masterplan. The master plan contains multiple strategic pillars which cascade in multiple tactical initiatives,” he said.
ACHIEVEMENTS SO FAR
He added that since the first AOT gathering, the state has ignited the Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council, a body consisting of private and public sector professionals tasked with intervening directly in the ecosystem through funding.
“The result to date has seen over 60 startups receive funding of between 5,000 and 12,000 dollars in the two years. This funding constituted some of the initial runway rounds for startups that have gone on to raise millions of dollars in funding. LASRIC gave many of these startups their initial funding opportunities,” he said.
The deputy governor further disclosed that in fulfilling this administration’s agenda of a Smart City, over 600 Smart Intelligent Video Surveillance Cameras as well as Intelligent Transportation Cameras for Traffic monitoring and management had been deployed across the state.
Earlier in his welcome address, the Commissioner for Science and Technology, Mr. Hakeem Fahm, stated that for the state to experience total development throughout all facets of society, it was crucial to harness the youth’s energy appropriately.
He added that the Lagos youths were undoubtedly the face of the state and nation in the future, saying that they were full of wonderful ideas and boundless energy, and sure of shining like a star if given the correct platform and plenty of opportunities.
Also, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Innovation and Technology, Tunbosun Alake, said that a total of 107 tech startups operating in the State have attracted $750 million in funding so far this year.
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.
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.”
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.
BREAKOUT SESSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The conference climaxed with different breakout sessions as experts dissect and proffered possible solutions to the issues of talent retention and the future of business in Nigeria, especially with the rate at which the country is losing its best hands in every sector, including tech. Many of the talents, especially the youth, who are supposed to develop local content technology, are leaving the country in droves.
According to the experts, some of the common causes of brain drain in Nigeria include insecurity, rigid policies, political instability, poor quality of life, poor electricity, lack of facilities to work, limited access to health care, and a shortage of economic opportunities, etc.
The experts further argued that mass emigration could be curbed where organisations provide good working conditions for employees; favorable regulations set up for startups by the government, up-skilling staff through job training and workshops; start-up support in every aspect e.g. funding, advisory, mentoring, and networking.
For the first time, the organisers of the AOT introduced the Tech Ecosystem Award to recognise the efforts of individuals, groups, and businesses that have contributed significantly to the expansion and improvement of Nigeria’s technology sector.
The award nomination voting ended on November 15, 2022, with over twenty thousand (20,000) votes cast across all categories.
The winners were revealed and celebrated during the Gala and Awards Night on Friday, December 9th, 2022.