AfriLabs and Make-IT in Africa are set to foster intra-Africa collaboration, connectivity, and innovation at the 2022 AfriLabs Annual Gathering (AAG). The 2022 AAG, with the theme “Intra-Africa Connectivity, Collaboration and Innovation,” will be held from the 26th to 28th of October 2022 at CIELA Resort & Spa, Ngwerere Road, Bonanza Estate, Lusaka, Zambia. AfriLabs and Make-IT in Africa have worked together successfully since 2019 to support local partners in laying solid foundations for robust and resilient innovation ecosystems.
In the last decade, AfriLabs has provided a platform for dialogue amongst all stakeholders in the African innovation and technology ecosystem and beyond the continent. Among the ways in which this has been implemented are interventions to empower innovation hubs and support entrepreneurs, as well as collaborative efforts with pan-African institutions and governments in developing innovative policies, capacity-building programs, innovative financing models for entrepreneurs, and research and development.
AAG 2022 promises to be exciting as AfriLabs will be launching several new initiatives birthed from the network. One of these is a Policy Pathways framework that outlines ten (10) innovation policy areas for African Governments to contemplate. The AfriLabs Policy Pathways highlights the voices of innovators, entrepreneurs, and hubs across Africa on the 10 policy priorities all parties (governments, multilateral organizations, development agencies, and private businesses) must address to establish a framework that will foster innovation, entrepreneurship, and the digital economy for job creation, economic growth, and prosperity throughout Africa.
Register today at www.afrilabsgathering.com
About the AfriLabs Annual Gathering
The AAG, AfriLabs flagship event, provides an opportunity for technology hubs within the AfriLabs network and other stakeholders of the African technology and innovation ecosystem to convene, network, learn and share knowledge. These stakeholders include but are not limited to corporates, development agencies, academia, and investors. The event was first held in Ghana in 2016, then in Egypt in 2017, Tanzania in 2018, Ethiopia in 2019, online in 2020, and Nigeria in 2021. It has brought together over 1000 key stakeholders of the African technology, innovation, and entrepreneurial ecosystem from the public and private sectors, to network and share knowledge. Zambia won the bid to host the event this year, making it the first country in Southern Africa to have this honor.
About GIZ Make-IT in Africa
Make-IT in Africa believes in the catalytic power of African innovation and digital technologies for green and sustainable development. In close collaboration with digital visionaries like startups, innovation enablers and political partners, we empower African innovation ecosystems. Together, we aim to strengthen an environment in which the full potential of African digital innovation can unfold. Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH implements this project on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
