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AFP-Jiji LAGOS, Nigeria (AFP-Jiji) – With its colorful hammocks and ping-pong table, a new technology center in the metropolis of Lagos would be out of place among start-ups on the other. But the NG_Hub office is located in the suburbs of Yaba – the heart of Nigeria's burgeoning tech scene that attracts the attention of global giants eager to tap into an emerging market of connected African youth. 19659002] In May, Google and Facebook launched initiatives nearby
Recently, Nigerian Vice President Yemi Osinbajo was in California to court US tech investors for what he said could announce a " fourth industrial revolution ". Last month, Google announced that it would open the first artificial intelligence lab in Africa in Accra, the capital of Ghana.
Demographics is a key popul factor According to UN estimates, the population is expected to double to 2.4 billion in 2050.
"Companies like Facebook and Google really have the # 39 "opportunity to go" If you look at Netflix, Amazon, Facebook, Apple, where does this growth come from? He is international, "he told AFP
Facebook operates from the NG_Hub because it does not yet have a permanent office in Nigeria.
The chief of public policy of the The company, Ebele Okobi, said at the opening of The Social Network is committed to training 50,000 people across the country to "give them the digital skills they need to succeed," was Added:
In exchange, Facebook, which currently has about 26 million users in Nigeria, is getting more users and access to a mbadive market to test new products and strategies. [19659002] "We are invested in the ecosystem. Just the fact that they engage … that in itself is a goal, "she added.
Cybercolonialism?
Many African governments have welcomed the titans of technology with enthusiasm
In California, Osinbajo The Nigerian government "will actively support" Google's Next Billion Users plan to "ensure better digital access to Nigeria and the world."
Few sectors in Africa inspire as much Hope that technology, which has the potential to revolutionize "Ubenwa, a Nigerian start-up described as" Shazam for babies ", after the application that identifies music and movies from extracts
Ubenwa badyzes a baby's cry using AI to diagnose asphyxia at birth, a major cause of death in Africa when babies do not get enough of a baby. oxygen and nutrients before, during or immediately after birth
Early detection of the problem could save thousands of lives. 59002] "Africans should be responsible for finding solutions," said Tewodros Abebe, a PhD student studying language technology at the University of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
"If we do not are not involved, no one can understand the existing problems. "
Abebe dismissed fears that what Facebook and Google are doing is a form of so-called cyber-colonialism." Working collaboratively, I think, is a good way of transferring technology to Africa, "he said." If they're just looking for business, that's colonization. "
"Epocalypse Now"
As the African tech sector grows, fueled by the growth of mobile phone use, governments must also protect the personal data of their citizens.
Osinbajo told tech leaders that Nigeria was eager to create the right environment for development, including for regulation
But the debate on privacy is unobtrusive in many African countries.
Facebook has also been center of a storm for failing to protect user data related to manipulation allegations in the 2016 US presidential election and Brexit referendum.
Globa Justice Now, an anti-poverty group fears that technology companies will be left free to create a state of global surveillance.
"We could find ourselves sleepwalking to a world in which a handful of technology companies exert monopolistic control," said the militant group in a May 2018 report entitled "Epocalypse Now."
Renata Avila, of The World Wide Web Foundation in Geneva "The message is that Africa needs investments and that it needs to develop these industries, so it's usually a pro-business narrative" , said Avila.
"But there is little forgetfulness," she added, warning that without regulation, people were vulnerable to exploitation. Speech
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