“Innovation is ahead of government, but there’s political will,” Lagos Innovates’ Hakeem Onasanya insists

Like the Renaissance, Medieval, or Enlightenment era, this is the Innovation era, where ingenious tech is leading our lives, and now AI is helping human beings do more than they ever imagined. From this comes the question of how fast the government is trying to catch up with the fast pace of the tech ecosystem.

In our curiosity, we sat with Hakeem Onasanya, the Head of Lagos Innovates, a branch of the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) to determine if the Lagos government understands innovation, and is aiding the growth of the tech space instead of stifling it.

Fortunately, like us, Hakeem is enthusiastic about the growth of the tech ecosystem and mentions that Lagos Innovates exists to “cater to the needs of the tech ecosystem. It provides an enabling environment for people with innovative ideas to thrive.”

He adds, “Accelerating the growth of the tech ecosystem in Lagos,” is a priority for Lagos Innovates.

The growth of the tech ecosystem, anywhere in the world, is generally seen as a positive development due to its potential for economic growth, innovation, and societal advancement. You’d want to recall how ICT has contributed a significant chunk to the country’s GDP. And, this is why we insist on policies that enable innovation, not the ones that come with a misinformed understanding of the tech space, just like the downing of crypto in Nigeria.

Hakeem has the same conviction and says:

We understand the phenomenal economic benefits. We understand its impact on job creation. It also creates avenues for innovation in private and public life.

He adds that this is why the Lagos State Science Research and Innovation Council (LASRIC) was inaugurated on June 19, 2017, by the former governor, Akinwunmi Ambode.

Hakeem insists the Lagos government is prioritising focus on the tech ecosystem and is also working to ensure that new technologies like AI and Blockchain do not overstep boundaries.

So, sitting with the stakeholders is indispensable, so both parties understand the form innovation is taking, and policies are formed to ensure both the growth and protection of consumers.

“Innovation is ahead of government,” Hakeem says in response to the question of proper understanding before policy releases, and this is a challenge, especially considering the pace of growth the tech ecosystem is experiencing.

In the last couple of years, we have seen the rise of the metaverse [where proponents keep selling the idea that virtual realities are better], blockchain technology, robotics, automation, and more recently, the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), and government needs to follow up.

What we have seen is a range of both enabling and stifling policies both on the national and state level.

We would recall how Lagos residents were let down when the government announced a ban on bike-hailing services provided by Gokada, Max, and a host of others, citing road safety and security, failing to understand how those services helped residents navigate the state with ease.

Then, David Afolayan, in an article, “Bitter Truths About the Lagos Government Showdown With Uber, Gokada, Opay and Others“, said that “the Lagos government has a chequered history of inflicting unremitting hardship on its citizens without remorse. Somehow, every administrator had some sort of trademark hardship he introduced.”

Hakeem, however, insists the government created Lagos Innovates to help solve the challenges of the tech ecosystem.

“Before [the framework of] Lagos Innovates, we had a consultant go into the tech ecosystem and saw challenges around three major stakeholders: startups, hubs and workspaces, talents.”

On impact, Hakeem says, “we have had success stories of startups…We have issued 409 workspace vouchers, we have incubated 114 startups and we continue to follow up with the startups.”

There is, however, an issue with continuity in government, especially in Nigeria. Is Lagos Innovates a long-term project? In response, Hakeem says “we have survived the first transition when Babajide Sanwo-Olu stepped in and we keep solving problems that are imminent in the tech ecosystem. Besides, LSETF is backed by law, so no politician can decide to stop the work.”

Watch the full interview here: