AfriLabs Annual Gathering 2021

AfriLabs flagship event, the AfriLabs Annual Gathering provides a unique opportunity for hubs in the AfriLabs network and other stakeholders in the African tech ecosystem to convene, network, share knowledge around a common theme and build partnerships.

The event was first held in Ghana in 2016, then in Egypt in 2017, Tanzania in 2018, and in Ethiopia in 2019, and they have altogether brought together over 1000 key stakeholders of the African technology, innovation, and entrepreneurial ecosystem from the public and private sectors, to network and share knowledge.

The 5th Afrilabs Annual Gathering was held from 12th to 14th October 2020, which was the first virtual edition of the Afrilabs Annual Gathering. Our decision is informed by advice from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), as well as leading global and local health authorities.

As a monumental milestone for the Network, the 2021 Annual Gathering marks AfriLabs 10th year Anniversary. The Gathering themed “AfriLabs at 10: A Decade of Empowering and Inspiring Innovation across Africa” will illuminate AfriLabs growth and impact to the development of the African Innovation Ecosystem. The event will be held in Abuja, Nigeria from the 27th to the 29th of October, 2021.

After going virtual for the first time last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s AfriLabs Annual Gathering which coincides with AfriLabs 10th year anniversary will be held in Marrakesh, Morocco from 25th-27th October 2021. The theme for this year’s Gathering is “AfriLabs at 10: A Decade of Empowering and Inspiring Innovation across Africa” and Douar Tech, an AfriLabs Member Hub based in Morocco will be a co-host of the event.

The history of the African Innovation Ecosystem is a story of resilience, growth, collaboration and creativity. More than before, Africans are developing scalable solutions to their problems and one factor that is contributing to this is the growth of the support systems like innovation hubs (incubators, accelerators etc.) in the entrepreneurship space.

AfriLabs has for a decade played an important role in the empowerment of innovation hubs across the continent. In our 10th year of existence, we reflect on the journey so far in providing support to the ecosystem. We celebrate our strides and that of our community and plan for the future with the dream of a thriving innovation economy in Africa.

A YEAR OF GOLDEN CELEBRATIONS

“AfriLabs will be 10 this year and we will be celebrating and reflecting on the strides of the Innovation Ecosystem in Africa. If you have been part of our story, we would like to invite you to celebrate with us in Morocco. If you haven’t worked with us or any of our community members yet in building the Africa of our dreams, still join us and let us all set the tone and ambitions for the next 10 years!” said Anna Ekeledo, Executive Director, AfriLabs.

For this year’s Gathering, we are riding strongly with our community and for the first time, they were actively involved in the selection of the theme, and their choice is a reflection of our impact in empowering hubs and driving innovation across the continent. The 6th edition of the AfriLabs Annual Gathering will be highlighting 10 years of our existence and we will be hosting a series of exciting events throughout the year which climaxes at Morocco in an effort to share the successes and challenges of the last decade while looking forward to a future of more collaborations and opportunities.

Looking back at all our previous Gatherings, this year’s event will spotlight the impact of innovation in Africa in the last decade, drive more strategic collaborations and we look forward to engaging more stakeholders in the African Tech Ecosystem as well as building sustainable capacity for hubs on the continent.