Why We Are Passionate About Investing In Nigeria- Facebook
…incorporates ng initiative, largest community hub
By Josh Babatunde
Facebook disclosed Wednesday in Lagos that it is passionate about Nigeria, opportunities and virtual reality because of startups who ordinarily may not get investments support.
According to Head of Platform Partnerships, Middle East & Africa, Emeka Afigbo said, “Nigeria is producing a new generation of exciting start-ups that have incredible potentials.
“We understand the important role Facebook plays here in Nigeria with developers and start-ups and are invested in helping these communities build for the next billion. One of our key passions at Facebook is nurturing and helping to develop the tech and start-up community, and I’m excited to announce our partnership with the Nigerian tech hub ecosystem especially the ng_hub space in Lagos.”
Also speaking, Facebook Public Policy Director, Africa, Ebele Okobi, explained that At Facebook, the mission is clear and it is to give people the power to build community and bring the world closer together.
“Our investments and commitments announced in Lagos today further reflect our intent to partner with Nigeria’s policy makers and its vibrant tech and entrepreneurial eco-system to create economic opportunity and independence in Nigeria and across Africa.’’
She maintained that over 22 million Nigerians use Facebook every month and 87 percent of SMEs say that when they hire, digital skills are more important than where an applicant went to school. This demonstrates that the power of digital skills to aid economic growth and development has never been more important”. Adding that Facebook’s vision of fostering a close community would result in the hub training over 50,000 people across Nigeria in Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kaduna and Lagos.
“In essence, Facebook believes that for it to be relevant and people to be connected, everyone needs to collaborate to actualise a closer community”.
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Cross section of participants The multi-faceted creative hub would be In partnership with CC Hub, And it is expected to connect and bring together developers, start-ups and the wider community to collaborate, learn and exchange ideas. The NG_HUB will also host a start-up incubator programme, as well as bespoke trainings, guest speakers and a dedicated event space, with an intent of attracting the best talent and driving innovation in Nigeria’s tech ecosystem.
Okobi said that Facebook was committed to working with Nigerian small businesses, tech entrepreneurs and the next generation of leaders to better understand and utilise the power of digital tools for economic growth.
She said that Facebook would be launching a series of learning-based programmes facilitated by local training partners, to accomplish its mission.