Speaking at an event at the
Vibranium Valley, a digital technology hub in Lagos employing over 1,500
Nigerians with a 5 years plan of employing 45,000 people, he said;
“Technology
is changing the way we live, work and socialize. Social and governance problems
are also solved with technological innovations especially in a city-state such
as Lagos with a Gross Domestic Product of more than $136b dollars. A huge
investment in technology and the creation of expansive learning facilities will
help us reach the Lagos we want faster”.
According to the World
Economic Forum, by 2030, one in five people will be African. Combining the
continent’s soaring population with technology, improvements in infrastructure,
health and education, Africa can become the next century’s economic growth
powerhouse.
Lagos as one of the fastest
growing African city-states in the world and a GDP more than many countries has
a key role to play in helping Africa become the economic growth powerhouse, and
only leaders with the right vision, know-how and willpower can put in place the
structures that are required to accelerate this growth.
Technology and the Future of Lagos
A visionary leader selects
the necessary resources required for the journey long before the journey begins
and Sanwo-Olu has taken such a step with the selection of Dr. Kadri Obafemi
Hamzat, a man who has driven the development of complex technology systems at
different levels of the private and public sectors as his running mate.
Speaking at an event in
Lagos this week, he went on to emphasise his stance by first making a pledge to
provide institutional and infrastructural support for the growth and
development of the technology sector in the State if elected as Governor in
2019.
‘‘I’m aware that technology
is the oil of today. Some ten years ago, the richest companies in the world
were oil and energy giants, but the tide has changed. What we have today are
technology companies dominating the global economic space. With technology,
transparency and accountability in government become easier and possible.
Technological innovations are helping social enterprise address social
problems. Tech is accelerating SME evolutions and the impact of this is
positive on the economy, which gives everyone a share of the prosperity created
by this system,” he said.
Collaboration and The Future of Lagos
Collaboration is a very
important part of the future of Lagos, and past governors of Lagos have
demonstrated the importance of collaboration with different Public-Private
Partnership projects that have made the lives of the citizens and residents of
Lagos easier.
Beyond collaborating on
that level, Babajide Sanwo-Olu at an event talked about how when elected, his
government would partner with the private sector in education, health, security,
and transportation to solve social issues, create employment opportunities and
support entrepreneurship.
Internet Access and The Future of Lagos
On November 11th, 2018,
Babajide Sanwo-Olu at the Leisure Mall in Surulere, Lagos launched the “Sanwo
Free WiFi” initiative, that will over the next couple of weeks be launched in
other parts of the state.
Internet access is a big
leveler and Mr. Sanwo Olu has demonstrated his understanding of the key part it
has to play in closing the gap between Lagos and the rest of the world.
There are so many big ideas
in Lagos, almost as much as in Silicon Valley, but a major differentiating
factor is access to the Internet and the lack of adequate infrastructure to aid
software development.
Lagos is the Silicon Valley
of Nigeria because we have the largest cluster of technology hubs. Lagos as a
state has about 28 hubs while the entire country of South Africa has 59 hubs.
Babajide Sanwo-Olu understands how important Lagos is in the plan for tech
advancement in Africa and knows that the sheer amount of talent breeding in
hubs like CcHub, iDEA hub, Wennovation Hub, Leadpath Nigeria, Vibranium Valley,
Zone Tech Park and even our Ikeja Computer Village just to mention a few needs
to be harnessed properly.
He has promised that his
administration will listen, get input and put forth customised solutions. His
support for the tech industry is absolute because it is an extremely vital part
of our economy.
The Future of Lagos is now.
Babajide Sanwo-Olu is now and the future.
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