Lagos: A look at Africa's new startup capital

25 Jan 2022
Florian Zandt.
Data Journalist, Statista

Lagos, the Nigerian capital managed to outperform its direct competitors Nairobi, Cape Town and Johannesburg in 2021 when it comes to attractiveness for startups.

Lagos is the biggest metropolitan area in Africa and has made a name for itself as a tech hub rapidly advancing towards a 24-hour economy, generating 10% of Nigeria's total GDP of $432.3 billion.

Eight out of 10 of the highest-valuated African companies as of July 2021 were located in South Africa.

When it comes to attractiveness for startups, Lagos leads the ranking of African cities according to data by StartupBlink. The Nigerian capital managed to outperform its direct competitors Nairobi, Cape Town and Johannesburg in 2021, a trend that is likely to continue. These scores are the exception rather than the norm though. As our chart shows, African cities still have room to improve in terms of sowing the seeds for future startup growth.


Overall, only seven African cities had a score of more than 1.0 points on StartupBlink's index for 2021, with the urban areas claiming the top spots coming as no surprise. Lagos, for example, is not only the biggest metropolitan area in Africa but has also made a name for itself as a tech hub rapidly advancing towards a 24-hour economy, generating ten percent of Nigeria's total GDP of $432.3 billion.

Nairobi, the second-highest rated African city in 2021, is home to the African headquarters of global heavyweights like Cisco, IBM, Coca-Cola and Google, a fact at least in part attributable to its reputation as a tourism as well as a financial hotspot. In terms of homegrown achievements, institutions like the Nairobi Securities Exchange, one of the biggest African stock exchanges, and companies like SafariCom, which boasted a market cap of $15.3 billion in November 2021, make Nairobi fertile ground for investors.

Cape Town and Johannesburg, on the other hand, are still profiting from the economic standing of South Africa, which led all African countries in terms of GDP for decades.
Notable companies include Cape Town's Naspers, whose valuation of $104 billion in July 2021 made it the largest company on the continent by a wide margin. As data from African Business shows, eight of the ten highest-valuated African companies as of July 2021 were located in South Africa.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/01/lagos-africa-startup-capital/


Cc Seun Mynd44 Lalasticlala

Lagos, for example, is not only the biggest metropolitan area in Africa but has also made a name for itself as a tech hub rapidly advancing towards a 24-hour economy

At the moment, Lagos is the best place to invest on the African continent .

Please bring your investments to Lagos today.

In Lagos, your investments are safe and guaranteed of great returns.

We are a very hospitable people and we have the best run city economy in Africa in terms of GDP. We have a vibrant population with many beaches and great food!

Please invest in Lagos today.

Thank you.
May God bless you.

Guys there's no entitlement in Title.
Nigeria is this, Nigeria is that, yet you can't feel it in your everyday life

Emdexs:
Guys there's no entitlement in Title.
Nigeria is this, Nigeria is that, yet you can't feel it in your everyday life

Change your mindset , the crowd you hang with and the kind of books you read.

Also, quit wasting time on the unsocial media and find great mentors to guide you.
I wish you all the best.

As for my Lagos o, we and our forebears paid the price for excellence.

For us, it is excellence is in Omoluabi, deed and words .
That is why we are truly known as Lagos the Centre of Excellence

Emdexs:
Guys there's no entitlement in Title.
Nigeria is this, Nigeria is that, yet you can't feel it in your everyday life

We feel it in lagos bro.
Lagos economy is moving away from depending on natural resources

Emdexs:
Guys there's no entitlement in Title.
Nigeria is this, Nigeria is that, yet you can't feel it in your everyday life

Low self esteem Nigerians at it again.

But if the title says “Ghana is the new start up capital”, you would have used the same title to disparage Nigeria.

Lagos state government need to dedicate attention to the tech industries.
Just like fashola did during his time regarding technical skills (WAPPA). Lagos state government can create training program that'll teach the youth stuff like 3D printing, basic coding and PCB manufacturing .

Electricity should be stable in lagos. Alot of lagosians just need stable power supply to make millions. In shorter time we'll be competing with the indians.

Lagos state government need to give special attention to start up and loans to help technologist improvetheir innovations

tollyboy5:

We feel it in lagos bro.
Lagos economy is moving away from depending on natural resources

You better dont say that loud.....

NimrodEndOfDays:
You better dont say that loud.....

What do you mean?