Next Wave: Questioning Africa’s booming tech event circus

I want more, but not of the same. [Read the newsletter in your browser.](=.YYG0z0bp6anxmxpCmIpemwTpWK4M4MZZRNwXmsVd5x4) [Cet article est aussi disponible en français](=.lX0idXNBKReP4qah6qdL-MoOSVjzwCn2nchvTxthL1I) [Next Wave Logo] 24 June 2023 Questioning Africa’s booming tech event circus [Presenting a tech software product. Photo by Teemu Paananen via Unsplash] Photo by [Teemu Paananen](=.cFh4Z18NosHNaxUyGjHYYRaJ_1Fdoqu99LEPegGhRX8) on [Unsplash](=.tH4HDTIV5vjNdWtkcqyDFqbAXM2erwoap03WXtDfRns) --------------------------------------------------------------- Everyone wants to host the definitive “African tech event”, but what is the true value of an African tech event? One of the most fascinating things to watch has been the increasing number of tech events organised in or targeting Africa’s technology “ecosystem”. As the numbers continue to grow, the impromptu small group “mixers”, large multi-day multi-track conferences, even bigger exhibitions, plus the staid business and policy affairs are all blurring into each other. The African tech media circus is on a roll, and while I am not complaining, I can’t help but wonder if the generic versions of the same event format are not a sign that the newborn sector needs an infusion of inventiveness. Partner Message [SEID ad] Calling technologists and creatives across Africa! Are you working on an innovative product that helps address disinformation and extremism challenges? If so, we want you to apply to the U.S.-West Africa Tech Challenge! The U.S.-West Africa Tech Challenge funds promising technologies that offer innovative solutions to help expose, understand, or counter disinformation, propaganda, and violent extremism within Coastal West Africa. We invite technologists from across Africa to submit an application to present their solutions for a chance to receive funding totaling $250,000 USD. The event will take place on September 27-28 2023 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. Eight finalists will have the opportunity to present their tech to a panel of judges and an audience of government, civil society, and private sector stakeholders. The deadline for submissions is July 16, 2023. To receive the full details of how to apply, click the button below: [See application details](=.p1OBtjzEKYt9Q0pRkp4_wDDOFAIc92RTwuUfKLhfKAU) The tech event “industry” is a significant several-billion-dollar market globally. In the days and weeks after COVID-19 was officially recognised as a global health emergency, tech event cancellations in the US alone reportedly caused losses of more than $1.1 billion. This was according to PredictHQ, a market intelligence firm focused on the business of events and adjacent industries. That a firm (and likely several others) could find a viable business model in predicting how events shape retail and B2B businesses is a testament to how much value events generate—at least in the United States. You could see the immediate result of the losses facing the events industry in how virtual event startups received massive bouts of venture and public funding as investors (both venture capitalists and in public markets) saw the billions of dollars events market as up for grabs. Zoom anyone? Unfortunately, it did not last even beyond the first year of the COVID-19 health emergency. Not all and randomly selected on a Sunday afternoon, please don't be angry with us, if we missed something 🙏🏾 | Infographic: Ayomide Agbaje — TechCabal Insights. With digital technology penetrating all aspects of urban life, the idea of cities that are smart, where services and infrastructure are optimal for all residents, has taken hold. Especially when paired with technology solutions that are supposed to deliver this urban transformation. Slums have been reimagined in glowing utopian visions. Physical events are now on an upswing and Africa’s technology ecosystems, which received significant injections of capital in the three years following March 2020, are building their marketplaces of technology events. It is not new, it is just…a lot more and happening in more places than before. London, Paris, Dubai, Marrakech, Cape Town, Kigali, Lagos, Lusaka, Washington DC, heck I’ve seen African tech media being invited to Punjab (you may or may not see me rocking a dark green shalwar kameez in Lahore). The most recent events I have been part of were all first-time events and were excellent in their different ways. But for today’s Sunday essay, I would deeply appreciate responses from organisers (especially) and attendees. I happen to be on both sides. But I am one person and I don’t know it all and I have a responsibility to push the hard questions, no? So here are a few questions for you: - Is there an actual events industry developing alongside or this is all just a sideshow? Let me explain. The business value of attending industry events, generally, is obvious. You get to meet people in person. That is often invaluable for a business and I understand that. But the more these events happen and are not differentiated, the more I question if the model (profit for organisers) is that valuable especially as more events resemble each other and are multiplying. - Is there really a demand for and a deep-enough pocket for undifferentiated tech events happening throughout the year? If there is a growing demand for these events, that might be a proxy for learning how much business is generated by events. It sounds like data airlines and other types of travel/hospitality businesses will want to look into and use it to create custom packages. If there is not, the question is, how much do regionally disjointed events really help in fostering networking or connections? Or are the same set of people always seeing the same set of other people? - If you’ve attended tech events (especially the conferences and exhibitions) in Africa, what were the top three things you looked forward to when deciding what event to be a part of? There is a school of thought that dismisses the overall value of attending events. I think it’s an incredibly short-sighted school of thought, especially when applied broadly and they got louder during the “focus on positive unit economics” era of venture capitalists, just a few months ago. And while there is merit to the argument that startup money is not supposed to fund tourism, one could just as easily dismiss the real chance to score new leads or even deals, find and nurture relationships. Or have the opportunity to do things as basic as increasing discoverability—especially for B2B firms. Partner Content: [LiteUp Naija: Illuminating Nigeria with the power of the sun](=.99trVZjhr-Q_ttBk0GacrMXjtymWF8mp_IevnpX5V5E) My point is not whether attending events can be useful. It personally is. But it is also probably subjective to each person’s experience. My concern is whether our events are too undifferentiated to matter, especially in a relatively small “ecosystem” where tech startup relationships with traditional businesses are underdeveloped and the transitional businesses who are most likely to talk to tech startups are mostly in financial services. Creating better tech events will likely be a long road, at the end of which some events will be solidly cast as segment pillars that people will enthusiastically look forward to. Getting there will mean carefully curating event playlists that combine the right amount of optics, business savvy and attendee value. A few of the personal gripes I wish I could fix with the wave of a wand include what appears to be a lack of interest in boring technical events and the catch-all events that offer standard fare. What is on everyone’s minds, but goes politely unspoken is often, After celebrating African tech in March, why should I celebrate it in August and again in December?”Is it over-indexing on public relations versus meetings that change things? Can meetings change things? From one event attendee/quasi-planner to another, talk to me, what am I missing? Partner Message [Moonshot-2023 ad] We are doing this one differently and leveling up. For two days, TechCabal is pulling all our resources, network and friends together to bring Africa’s tech ecosystem in one place to collaborate, tear back the curtain and moveinnovation on the continent forward! Be the first to know who will be there and when early bird tickets are available. [Get inside info](=.knrUKRon6gbBkWASTONVrEzWDhm5noYh0BAgPI-vrq8) --------------------------------------------------------------- We'd love to hear from you Psst! Down here! Thanks for reading The Next Wave. Subscribe [here](=.dVvwbZ4CROnsLpNkX4V5dWw_WFg_DLnHKbg8BHr7lBY) for free to get fresh perspectives on the progress of digital innovation in Africa every Sunday. Please share today’s edition with your network on WhatsApp, Telegram and other platforms, and feel free to send a reply to let us know if you enjoyed this essay [Subscribe to our TC Daily newsletter](=.uq3sGUrDqxi-32pOeE80JpB-T_o1aD66KaulSUseUgg) to receive all the technology and business stories you need each weekday at 7 AM (WAT). Follow TechCabal on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay engaged in our real-time conversations on tech and innovation in Africa. Abraham Augustine, Senior Reporter, Business and Insights TechCabal. If you liked this edition of Next Wave, please share with your friends. And feel free to reply with thoughts and feedback. We welcome those. =.UpPYrJdGfMHSpkNvIHmdRNRodCtZrEtCqOcJj0Dvwkk =.7x7ZGh4Zy7qmhWUllmaot4ucijvxnWzFpEwQJtUPumU =.vqOuHpZljvqU_amNJMbcW2eBXsNDyCjNKIgmiu7s6Lk =._-lgYE4IRLNyMWKSAU_Qe0RnSd-iuyYRKjJ08JSJ8MY =.g5dVw33rShpnrs-Jy4LnO7AKYbu4ENehh4uB3vZs7ps # # # # # 18, Nnobi Street, Surulere, Lagos, Nigeria [View in Map](#) You received this email because you signed up on our website or made purchase from us.If you know longer wish to recieve these emails, please [unsubscribe](=.kIKtV_du4C-AygBimKo8AUdHEOgW3JgosGvVR7LkGvk)