CÔTE D ’ IVOIRE
Côte d ’ Ivoire : Tech hub on the rise
Following years of political turmoil , Côte d ’ Ivoire is growing quickly and attracting investment . Now , the government is trying to position the country as west Africa ’ s technology and start-up hub .
THE NUMBER OF INTERNET SUBSCRIPTIONS HAS INCREASED 40 TIMES BETWEEN 2011 AND 2015 FROM 200,000 TO 8 MILLION .
In July the government , in partnership with the African Development Bank ( AfDB ), announced the creation of the Ivorian Innovation Fund ( FII ). The € 200m ($ 223m ) project will be devoted to infrastructure and finance support for start-up businesses , particularly in the technology sector .
The government plans to use the fund to develop business partnerships and training opportunities among the member countries of the West African Economic and Monetary Union ( UEMOA ). The money will go some way to addressing the problems facing technology start-ups in Abidjan , Côte d ’ Ivoire ’ s capital , including the lack of technical skills and financing . Additionally it could be positive for west African regional integration , prompting the bloc to pull together to develop technological capabilities .
The fund is the most recent initiative designed to enhance the tech and start-up environment in Côte d ’ Ivoire . In April 2015 the government announced a seven year , € 152m euro project to lay thousands of kilometres of fibre optic cables and establish of cyber centres in rural areas . In October 2015 , Abidjan hosted the 11th edition of the Africa Telecom People exhibition , where key stakeholders gathered to discuss the future of e-commerce in Africa .
2016 | Business Times Africa 25