Africa’s technology hub rises in a congested Lagos neighbourhood

Software developers work on computer sytems at the Information Technology Developers Entrepreneurship Accelerator (iDEA) hub in the Yaba district in Lagos June 25, 2015. At first glance, Yaba is like many other parts of Nigeria's sprawling commercial capital: a cacophony of car horns and shouting street vendors, mingling with exhaust fumes and the occasional stench of sewage. But in between the run-down buildings in this seemingly inauspicious part of Lagos, a city of around 21 million, tech start-ups are taking root and creating a buzz that is drawing international venture capitalists and more established digital firms. Picture taken June 25, 2015. REUTERS/Akintunde Akinleye

The fading façades of century-old buildings in a neighbourhood of the Nigerian megacity of Lagos house a vibrant technology cluster that’s caught the eye of Facebook Inc and Alphabet Inc’s Google. 

The Yaba area, home to the Yaba College of Technology and the University of Lagos, is an emerging technology ecosystem – from fewer than 10 startups in 2013 to more than 60 today, including businesses like booking site Hotels.ng. It also hosts digital labs for Nigeria’s oldest bank, First Bank of Nigeria Ltd, and Stanbic IBTC, the local subsidiary of Africa’s largest lender.