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One of us is no longer with us. Mubarak was one of Nigeria’s best designers, and well-loved by the community. He will be greatly missed.
Good morning.
1. Lagos became Atlantis over the weekend. The Island and Lekki, to be specific. Five days of non-stop rain peeled the veneer of civilization to reveal the sad state of infrastructure that we know to be the reality. A reality that could have been avoided if its past handlers and inhabitants had sense and built the place properly, with drainages, you know. I’m going to stop talking now, because it makes no sense that a country’s economic capital doesn’t have drainages and becomes submerged if the heavens decide to take an extended piss.
+ Bonus – this Oyinbo/Mzungu who breaks out a Kayak and takes to the floodlike a boy scout. Your head is there.
+ Justin’s comic panel is pretty much sums up what things looked like by Saturday. Well, there was that crocodile that was said to have been found (and killed) around Chevron in Lekki.
+ This is obviously Photoshop comedy, but a “Lekki Has Fallen” Nollywood movie might come of this yet.
+ All of this is happening while the state government is super gung ho about turning Lagos into a smart city. A commendable idea, but potentially quixotic when existential concerns like climate change and failing infrastructure are demanding attention right now.
2. Emmanuel Quartey has been out and about. My man left Ghana to spend a month in Lagos, and this is what he has to say about it and its startup ecosystem. Lagos is pretty lit, when it’s not drowning in its own sewage. Okay, that last part was me, not Emmanuel, sorry. Please read his excellent write-up. Link
+ Emmanuel is also compiling this cool list of instances where African founders have shared hard data about their companies. Because it needs to happen more often, people.
3. Techmoran is reporting that an executive at Ushahidi was accused of sexual harassment, and that the organization is allegedly covering it up. Unfortunately, it’s rather dodgy reporting that doesn’t name names or cite sources, so we’ll have to wait till there is more concrete info.
We are drafting an open manifesto for the Yaba technology cluster, and we’d like you to join us! Start contributing here.
What else is going on?
+ Ghansat-1, Ghana’s first space satellite, was launched into orbit last week. Link
+ In South Africa, Liquid Telecom was successful in its raise, to the tune of 9.4 billion Rand. Link
+ Meanwhile, South Africans are protesting high data costs. Link
+ Africa Tech Roundup’s Andile Masuku caught up with Africa’s lady of tech, Rebecca Enonchong at Afrobytes in Paris. This 30 minute podcast is perfect for your break time. Link
+ Our son, Elon, has blessed us with the Tesla Model 3. Hallelujah. At a mere $35,000, none of the evidently affluent people who read this digest have any reason to not cop one. Except they live in Nigeria, that is. Ahem.
+ Developers in Lagos, the next Forloop event is on the 16th of July. Also, read the latest edition of their newsletter, and subscribe if you like
+ Please hire my friend, Lamide Akintobi, to compere your tech and business events. She knows the work. You are welcome.
We are drafting an open manifesto for the Yaba technology cluster, and we’d like you to join us! Start contributing here.
Other stories
+ Ghansat-1, Ghana’s first space satellite, was launched into orbit last week. Link
+ In South Africa, Liquid Telecom was successful in its raise, to the tune of 9.4 billion Rand. Link
+ Meanwhile, South Africans are protesting high data costs. Link
+ Africa Tech Roundup’s Andile Masuku caught up with Africa’s lady of tech, Rebecca Enonchong at Afrobytes in Paris. This 30 minute podcast is perfect for your break time. Link
+ Our son, Elon, has blessed us with the Tesla Model 3. Hallelujah. At a mere $35,000, none of the evidently affluent people who read this digest have any reason to not cop one. Except they live in Nigeria, that is. Ahem.
+ Developers in Lagos, the next Forloop event is on the 16th of July. Also, read the latest edition of their newsletter, and subscribe if you like
+ Please hire my friend, Lamide Akintobi, to compere your tech and business events. She knows the work. You are welcome.
A message from LSETF
If you are involved in the Lagos tech ecosystem, the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund needs your input to guide its plans to support tech entrepreneurs. You can help out by visiting this page to take a survey.
Upcoming events
Dar es Salaam: Mobile 360 Africa, July 11th. Link
Lagos: Datalytics Meetup, July 13th. Link
Want to see your event in here? Add your event
Thanks for reading.
“Living is what we do while waiting to die” – Imogie Mubarak, February 2017.
Go out there and live your best life today
