Oct 1, 2021Lagos Angel Network 2.0Dear Angels, On behalf of the new board of governors of the Lagos Angel Network, I would like to thank the outgoing founding board — chaired by Mr Adedotun Sulaiman, and including Mr Tomi Davies, Mr Collins Onuegbu, Mr Dipo Adebo, Mrs Bunmi Morenike Lawson, Mr David Richards, Mrs Yemi…3 min read3 min read
Published inKola Aina·Jun 19, 2020The MVP (Minimum Viable Product) for a career in Public Service — a book review.A review of the upcoming book — “Never An Afterthought,” authored by Afolabi Imoukhuede — Upon reading the advance copy, I debated describing this book as a memoir or a manual. …Book Review5 min readBook Review5 min read
May 21, 2020Why We Remain Bullish About AfricaLast week I was privileged to deliver the keynote at TechCabal’s “Bullish on Africa” conference. Besides the fact that it was such an ambitious event, I also got a chance to anchor a fireside chat with the insightful Amandla Ooko-Ombaka who authored the famous Mckinsey Report on “Tackling COVID-19 in…Africa6 min readAfrica6 min read
Published inKola Aina·Dec 13, 2019ANNOUNCING VP’S LATEST PARTNER — KAYODE OYEWOLESometime mid-2016, just around the launch of Ventures Platform, I got a message from someone called Kayode. In that message, I could sense his passion for startups and founders. It was palpable. He soon became one of our founding investment team members alongside; Fola Olatunji David and Mimshach Obioha. Since…Startup2 min readStartup2 min read
Published inKola Aina·Dec 9, 2019The Enabling Role of Stakeholders in InnovationI had the rare privilege to deliver a keynote at the Art of Technology — AOT Lagos Conference on Thursday the 5th of December 2019. As requested by many, I am sharing the presentation slides from my keynote with some explanations to give context into the message I hoped to…Lagos State7 min readLagos State7 min read
Published inKola Aina·Aug 1, 2019Leadership Changes at Ventures Platform HubLeadership Changes at Ventures Platform Hub At Ventures Platform Foundation — where we are working to build the future of Africa through innovation and entrepreneurship — Mimshach Obioha is the new Executive Director where he will provide focused leadership to the amazing teams that work with our partners to implement…1 min read1 min read
Aug 1, 2019Leadership Changes at Ventures Platform HubOver the course of 3+ years, Ventures Platform has morphed into 3 entities under the “umbrella”; Ventures Platform Hub, and today we have made some leadership changes effective 1 August, 2019. At Ventures Platform Foundation — where we are working to build the future of Africa through skills, innovation and…Startup1 min readStartup1 min read
Published inKola Aina·May 8, 2019Digital Explorers: A Journey of talent development and knowledge transfer.A huge portion of Nigeria’s teeming youth population is unemployed. More than 8 million of them, at the last count. The thought of that many young people milling about with nothing to do is unnerving. If nothing is done, bad things could happen. With an economy largely dependent on dwindling…Nigeria7 min readNigeria7 min read
Apr 30, 2019The imperative for developing the digital economy at the sub-national level.A transcript of remarks I had the privilege of delivering at the Induction Ceremony for new and returning governors as organized by the Nigeria Governors Forum on 29th April 2019 in Abuja Nigeria. The Chairman of this panel and Senate president, your excellencies, ladies and gentlemen. …Africa3 min readAfrica3 min read
Published inKola Aina·Nov 29, 2018A paper on how to optimize the role of technology in open and distance learning.This blog is the transcript of a lecture I was invited to deliver on the topic; “Making ODL fit for purpose: deployment of qualitative and fool proof ICT components.” — The talk was delivered at the National University Commission Conference on Policy and Practice in Open and Distance Learning on Thursday 29th November, 2018. I hope you find the principles and ideas shared useful, especially as you think about tertiary education in Nigeria.Education9 min readEducation9 min read
