Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Friday in Lagos inaugurated a large tech hub, which he said could drive Nigeria’s technology growth and export of innovations.
The tech hub, known as Vibranium Valley, houses 30 tech companies and has the capacity to house 50 more.
Vibranium Valley, owned by the Venture Garden Group (VGG), is housed on the grounds of the then renowned Concord Printing Press of Nigeria owned by the Late MKO Abiola.
Osinbajo said in a keynote address that Nigeria’s future would be on technology, adding that Vibranium Valley could be the next innovation cluster to drive the country’s technology advancement.
The vice president spoke on “The Role of Technology and Entrepreneurship in Nation-Building”.
He said: “We are here today to commission the Vibranium Valley.
“We are told that Vibranium Valley houses 30 tech companies and has the capacity to house 50 more companies and about the largest tech campus in Sub-Sahara African.
“Two gentlemen started these technological companies from a startup company to 60 million dollar-companies.
“Through their investment, they have created a system of world-class technology; these companies provide technological solutions to most of the problems confronting us today.”
Osinbajo said that it was not by accident, but design that the future of Nigeria would not be on oil or solid minerals.
“It is about technology, it is about innovations, and tech innovation is all about highly skilled people, entrepreneurship spirit and a supporting ecosystem of government, investors, mentors and global collaboration.
“In the past, Nigeria billionaires were traders, oil and gas moguls; in the next few years, billionaires from Nigeria will be techies,” he said.
This government is taking this phenomenon seriously, demonstrated by our innovation hub plans and ease of doing business initiative.
The Chief Executive Officer of Venture Garden Group, Mr Bunmi Akinyemiju, said that VGG desired that Vibranium Valley would stimulate collaboration with policy makers and other stakeholders.
He called for a technology ecosystem in Nigeria for solutions to toughest national problems using technology.
He said that VGG was focused on leveraging on innovative technology to create African solutions to African problems. (NAN)
