Nigeria’s commercial hub is working hard to support tech startups in the city, with the launch of the Lagos Innovates initiative set to benefit the startup ecosystem in the country’s financial capital.
The Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) and the Lagos State government have worked together to launch Lagos Innovates, an initiative intended to support the growth and sustainability of tech startups in the city, according to Techmoran.
The program is available for all innovation-driven startups that are less than three years old and based in Lagos.
Lagos Innovates will assist startups in attaining access to high quality workspaces and infrastructure, education, early stage investment capital and investor and peer networks, according to the Lagos Innovates website.
Lagos State Employment Trust Fund executive secretary, Akintunde Oyebode, explained the need for the city to have an initiative like Lagos Innovates in order to support a thriving startup culture.
“Lagos has perhaps the most exciting startup ecosystem of any city in Africa. If we get our model for innovation-driven enterprises right, Lagos State has the potential to exponentially increase opportunities and jobs for its residents in the medium – to long-term,” Oyebode said, according to ThisDayLive.
“This is the right government to execute on Lagos Innovates and the broader vision of a thriving startup ecosystem. Through Lagos Innovates, Governor Ambode is delivering on his January 2017 promise to support this community in smart ways,” he added.
The Lagos Innovates initiative comes at a time when many Nigerian startups are gaining prominence.
In August the Seedstars Lagos Competition served as the Nigerian leg of the global early-stage startups competition for emerging markets, with 10 of the best startups vying to be the representative from Nigeria for the global final event next year.
E-health startup Medsaf was the eventual winner of the Seedstars Lagos content.
The startup is focused on making the process of buying and selling medication in Nigeria’s complex health system easier and more efficient. Medsaf also provides value added services to hospitals and pharmacies such as medications, inventory management applications, and tech-enabled logistics.
Medsaf will now join other Seedstars country-winners at the final event in Switzerland during April next year, where it will deliver a pitch that could potentially earn the company up to $1 million in equity investments and prizes.
