The African technology scene is changing, and here are the top five trends for now and in the future.
1. The scope of tech is getting deeper.
There are a number of newer technologies becoming more and more
popular over and above the usual technology stacks one comes across. Due
to the proliferation of open source hubs, and coding sites like
GitHub, it’s now easier than ever to get up and running with something
new.
2. Developers want to get onto the Cloud
More and more technologists are realising that running massive local infrastructure is inefficient, so they’re turning to cloud based services
which allow them to provision on an “as needed” basis, with monthly
billing.
3. Mobile money and ecommerce is growing
It seems pretty clear from any major African country you visit outside
of South Africa that mobile money is going to be a part of everyday life
sooner or later. So far, Mo De seem to be the best examples of
innovation
in the micro-loan space, with mPesa leading the pack for
payments. It’s not clear who the eventual winners are going to be, but
what is clear is that because Africa has a huge base of the economic
pyramid, there is demand for the ability to make micropayments, and take
microloans.
4. Entrepreneurs are largely naïve
Many entrepreneurs and innovators show a lot of naïveté. The single biggest element is unrealistic
expectations within the local market, ie: what can be achieved, how it
will be achieved, and in what timescales. This comes down to experience
and a lack of role models.
5. Tech hubs and innovation competitions are mostly hype.
There's an explosion of hubs and competitions across the continent
with a lot of talk on social media, but most of it is hype, with no services and products that lead to large scale business opportunities.
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