E-Business
A Huge Boost to Nigeria’s Tech Ecosystem as Eko Innovation Centre Launches
Technology is the key driver to fast-growing economies globally, creating smart economies with technology-driven innovative solutions, leading to the creation of new jobs that previously never existed.
This idea of a technology-driven growth is the key motivation for Victor Afolabi to develop a new innovation centre– Eko Innovation Centre for the incubation of startups in Lagos – the heart of the country’s economy.
Tech hubs are a vital part of the entire start-ups ecosystems by providing platforms and opportunities for collaborations and building support structures that are important to the growth of new startups. Lagos, over the last few years has become one of Africa’s city with a robust tech ecosystem; it is currently the city with the highest number of technology hubs on the continent.
It is in keeping up with this fast-growing paradigm of technology driven economies, that the new Eko Innovation Centre was launched on Tuesday, 28th May 2019, aimed at discovering, incubating and curating new startups that will create new technological-driven solutions and add more value to an already growing tech ecosystem on the continent. The primary objective being to transform the tech and innovation landscape in Nigeria and by extension, Africa .
According to the founder, the motivation was the need to create an enabling environment for young people to develop innovative solutions and create employment while leveraging on technology, and for him, Lagos provides the perfect setting to launch this idea.
“We saw in the Lagos manifesto an agenda to make the State a 21st century economy. The only way to create a 21st century economy is to make sure you are creating businesses and solution to problems that are driven by innovation and technology,” he said during the launch of the centre.
It will be noted that Nigeria recorded the highest growth of tech hubs in Africa, expanding by 40% in 2 years between 2016 and 2018.
Eko Innovation Centre is designed not just to add to the growing figures of local tech hubs, but to provide a much-required platform for startups to scale through the challenges of their incubation period – a bold and audacious initiative for the country’s tech community.
A Game Changing Initiative
Most of the existing technology centres and hubs primarily provide workspaces and basic facilities including power and internet services, with a few more providing support platforms for the growth of the startups operating from there.
Eko Innovation Centre will provide shared services including legal, finance, tech, marketing, and PR services among others. And most importantly, Mr. Afolabi says, the centre will provide investment readiness services as well as funding for the startups.
This means that startups that are admitted will have the time to focus on their businesses and are not worn out by bureaucracy, as the hub will essentially take up most of the bureaucratic processes, allowing the businesses focus more on the success of their ventures – a game-changer for potential start-ups.
For most Nigerian startups, the stage between concept to commercialization is mostly the defining stage of the journey, where many eventually get it wrong.EIC is simply saying, “focus on building your products and business, while we take care of the other things for you!”
The new Lagos state governor, Mr. Babatunde Sanwo-Olu also graced the occasion of the launch – the building of the hub was his former campaign office, to endorse the initiative and reiterate his administration’s commitment to leveraging on technology in delivering the megacity dream.
In his short statement, Mr. Sanwo-Olu said, “Technology is the way to go, it is the way of the future and it is the way the entire universe is going to, and everybody is using technology to develop everything that we need.
We believe that from here, things around the THEME concept that has to do with the environment, education, transportation and health innovations would be developed. People from here would come and give us innovative ideas to solve our transport problem; ideas with which they think locally but act globally.”It is important to note however, that the Eko Innovation Centre is a private investment, to run independent, without any government funding.
In conclusion, the opening of the centre is a welcome development to add to the growing technology ecosystem in the country and it is expected that it will run with full steam once to deliver the vision of the founder.
Access Holdings Plc and Coronation Group have partnered with Tate Modern to commemorate World Art Day with a virtual session highlighting the global significance of Nigerian modernism.
Access Holdings
The event, titled “In Conversation with Osei Bonsu: Inside Nigerian Modernism,” featured a virtual tour of the Nigerian Modernism exhibition and discussions on the evolution of modern art in Nigeria.
The session brought together staff members across both organisations, reflecting growing institutional engagement with arts and culture as a driver of societal development.
Speaking at the event, Chief Communications and Marketing Officer of Coronation Group, Ngozi Akinyele, emphasised the role of art in shaping identity and national development.
She said that beyond financial capital, cultural and intellectual capital are essential in defining a nation’s prosperity and inspiring dialogue.
Akinyele noted that both organisations were committed to democratising access to art, ensuring it is accessible to a wider audience rather than a select few.
The discussion also featured insights from Tate Modern Curator, Osei Bonsu, and art expert Daniel Wallis, who examined the development of Nigerian modernism and its global relevance.
Bonsu said Nigerian modernism represents an independent reimagining of global art, rooted in the country’s diverse cultural heritage and expressed through unique visual languages.
According to him, the movement challenges narrow, Eurocentric definitions of modernism and highlights the richness of African artistic expression.
The session further underscored the growing international recognition of Nigerian art, particularly through exhibitions at Tate Modern.
Participants also reflected on the visit of Bola Ahmed Tinubu to the exhibition, described as a milestone in promoting Nigeria’s cultural heritage globally.
In his closing remarks, Chief Communications Officer of Access Holdings, Amaechi Okobi, reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to advancing African narratives on the global stage.
He said the collaboration with Tate Modern aligns with broader efforts to promote dialogue, preserve cultural identity and support the creative sector.
The event reinforced a shared commitment by Access Holdings, Coronation Group and Tate Modern to elevate African art globally and ensure Nigerian cultural narratives continue to shape international conversations.
Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has issued a regulatory advisory to data controllers and processors across the country following what it described as escalating threats to Nigeria’s data security architecture.
NDPC
In a statement signed by Babatunde Bamigboye, lead of Legal, Enforcement and Regulations, the commission said its technical assessment revealed that some shadowy threat actors were engaged in coordinated operations targeting financial systems and critical digital infrastructure in Nigeria.
The commission urged public institutions to comply with the presidential directive of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, which emphasises the strategic importance of data in national development.
According to the NDPC, the President had declared that “data is the new oil,” stressing the need for Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to rigorously capture and safeguard information in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023.
The commission therefore advised all data controllers and processors to urgently strengthen their technical and organisational measures to protect personal data and ensure compliance with the law.
It listed key measures to include the appointment of trained and certified Data Protection Officers, implementation of comprehensive privacy policies and information security standards, as well as conducting Data Privacy Impact Assessments.
Other measures recommended by the NDPC include deployment of robust identity and access controls such as Multi-Factor Authentication, adoption of zero-trust security architecture, prompt remediation of system vulnerabilities, and continuous patch management.
The commission also emphasised the need to secure cloud infrastructure, application programming interfaces (APIs), databases and access credentials, alongside real-time monitoring, logging and threat detection systems.
Further recommendations include encryption and secure credential handling, regular vulnerability assessment and penetration testing of critical systems, as well as routine backup and resilience testing.
The NDPC warned that organisations that fail to implement appropriate data protection measures in accordance with the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023 risk legal liabilities.
It reiterated its commitment to providing regulatory support to organisations while ensuring the protection of personal data and strengthening institutional resilience across all sectors.
The forex market across Africa is witnessing more participants and more regulatory attention than it did just a few years ago. This growth is part of a bigger picture: Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to expand by 4.3% in 2026, while global forex turnover already hit an estimated $9.6 trillion daily in April 2025. However, there’s more to it than macroeconomic figures.
The trends reshaping the market are happening from within. Here are six worth paying close attention to.
1. Trading Has Moved to the Phone
The number of people accessing the market via mobile phones exceeds those accessing it via traditional bank systems. GSMA states that in Sub-Saharan Africa alone, there are more than 1.1 billion registered mobile money accounts.
The International Monetary Fund states that digitalisation and increased usage of the internet are changing payment systems in the Sub-Saharan Africa region.
Mobile access changes traders’ behavior. It lowers the barrier to entry and speeds up deposits and withdrawals. Therefore, brokers who can provide a quality mobile trading experience will have a huge advantage.
2. Regulators Are Watching
The market is becoming more structured and more transparent. In South Africa, the FSCA regulates market conduct for financial institutions. In Kenya, the Capital Markets Authority regulates capital markets and maintains a licensing system that includes online forex brokers.
Nigeria’s SEC has publicly warned that online retail forex trading can be subject to abuse when unregulated. It also provides tools for investors to check operators’ registrations.
As a result, in 2026, more traders are likely to favour brokers that can show clear licensing, transparent operations, and stronger investor safeguards.
3. Volatility Varies by Country
A common mistake is perceiving the African market as one entity. In reality, according to RegTech Afrika, there are 21 countries out of a total of 54 that have a chance of seeing their currencies depreciate in 2025, with some of them losing value by as much as 6% or more.
A trader watching the rand, naira, shilling, or cedi, regional headlines needs more than regional headlines. Country-level macro data, central bank moves, and the US dollar will still play a major role.
4. Cross-Border Payment Infrastructure Is Quietly Improving
Platforms like PAPSS are helping make payments across African countries faster and easier to complete in local currencies. According to official announcements of PAPSS, it has become operational in 18 countries across Africa, with its latest launch in Algeria in 2025. It has also become operational in Kenya through a partnership with KCB Group, as well as in Rwanda through a partnership with Bank of Kigali.
Step by step, Africa is becoming a more financially connected continent.
5. Execution Quality Is the New Standard
Data from the BIS shows that in April 2025, three-quarters of FX trades were intermediated by the global centers of the United Kingdom, the United States, Singapore, and Hong Kong. Therefore, the best liquidity and best prices are still linked to global conditions.
For local markets, this raises the bar. Forex traders are becoming increasingly aware that tight spreads, while important, mean little without reliable prices and execution. Brokers like JustMarkets that can bring all of these elements together are in a much stronger position than competitors.
6. Education as a Necessity
Regulatory disclosures from major global brokers illustrate how tough it is to trade without proper knowledge. According to publicly available disclosures, between 70% and 80% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs.
Forex traders who understand risk management and which financial news to follow have a better chance of surviving the market. Brokers who invest in education are more likely to be seen by traders as valuable partners rather than mere facilitators.
The Market Rewards the Prepared
Africa’s forex market in 2026 is shaped by volatility, stricter rules, and mobile-first trading. The traders who combine market knowledge with the right tools and the right broker will find real opportunity here, while those who don’t adapt will find the market increasingly unforgiving.
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