Lagos leads in technology start-up, development in West Africa, says Sanwo-Olu

…As Governor launches new Mainone/MDXI data centre

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Wednesday said the State is leading in technology start-up in West Africa and in technology development and e-commerce.

He said his administration would continue to support and design policies to help in creating an enabling environment for businesses to thrive in Lagos State.

Governor Sanwo-Olu made the statement during the launch of Mainone/MDXI new data centre. The company, which is a subsidiary of Equinox Technology, is a cable and communication services company.

He noted that with job creation, knowledge and skills would be acquired by those employed in the facility and they would be trained so that they could compete with their counterparts on a global level all over the world.

“Lagos is the heartbeat and commercial nerve centre of the country, therefore, we will continue to support investors and create an enabling environment for their businesses to flourish.

“Lagos remains in the tech global market and in the map of the global space as a destination of choice where investors, tech experts see as a place to be. Therefore, for businesses to thrive, with international and local businesses to do well, we need to deliberately listen to their needs, know how government can help in terms of policies to make them thrive.

“This investment is putting Lagos on a global market and likewise providing jobs for the teeming youths,” the governor said.

Speaking further on his administration’s commitment to technology and innovation, Governor Sanwo-Olu disclosed that: “In recent years, Lagos has become the leading destination for technology start-up investments on the African continent. In addition to being the largest sub-national economy in Africa, Lagos is now also Africa’s Start-up Capital.

“We are home to three Fintech Unicorns – Paystack, Flutterwave and Interswitch, among many other very successful, globally recognized Start-ups. We are also a leading global city in e-commerce and retail technology, transportation technology and education technology, according to the Global Startup Ecosystem Index.

“On our part as Government, we are ensuring that our policies are designed to support private investment and create unending opportunities for entrepreneurs and investors. We are also putting our skin in the game. We have reached advanced stages of the rollout of 3,000km of terrestrial fibre across the State. I’m aware that MainOne also has a similar network of over a thousand kilometers, part of which is in Lagos.

“We are developing a K.I.T.E Cluster/Campus in Yaba, Lagos, on 22,000 square meters of land, in partnership with the private sector. K stands for Knowledge, I for Innovation, T for Technology and E for Entrepreneurship. We have just established a new University, the Lagos State University of Science and Technology (LASUTECH), focused on building capacity in science, technology, and innovation in Lagos State.”

Governor Sanwo-Olu said Lagos State is very proud of the Managing Director of Mainone/MDXI, Ms. Funke Opeke and what she has achieved with MainOne over the last 12 years, adding that “Entrepreneurs like Ms. Opeke are solid proof of what Nigeria and Nigerians can achieve when we set our minds to it and pursue business dreams that are ambitious and world changing.”

Speaking earlier, Opeke assured that with the presence of Mainone/MDXI facility in Lagos and Abuja, they planned to replicate and extend such to Port-Harcourt and other parts of the country.

She said the new facility is a hub of digital economy in West Africa, noting that Mainone/MDXI landed its first Marine cable in Lagos and opened its first data center also in Lagos and West Africa.

“The facility will further help in boosting development especially in areas of data gathering and content creation. All telecommunications companies are connected to the facility, lots of major institutions are providing critical services all over west Africa with this facility,” she said.