One of Africa’s biggest ‘technology-focused’ conferences is billed for 31st October and 1st November 2012 at the Indaba hotel, Johannesburg, South Africa. Tech4Africa aims to create an informal environment for learning, networking and interaction, so that delegates are inspired to innovate and build the next set of technology products that will unlock the next billion consumers. The theme for the 2012 conference is, “Unlocking the next billion consumers”.
The Tech4Africa team explained it thus; “Given that seven of the world’s ten fastest growing economies are in Africa, it’s likely that the continent will form a large portion of that next billion. It makes sense that a conference that bills itself as Africa’s “premier mobile, web and emerging technology event”, should choose this as a theme then.”
Tech4Africa is the first Web, mobile and emerging technology conference of its kind in Africa. They bring together internationally respected speakers and practitioners who are building the Web and technology as we know it, with leading Africans who are themselves paving the way forward.
Speakers will delve into topics like emerging technologies; Web 2.0; mobile, wireless and cloud computing; Windows 8, digital marketing, mobile monetization, and the Mxit developer ecosystem.
Birthed in 2010 after a series of missed strikes, Tech4Africa 2012 will focus on mobile content, entrepreneurship and financing, social business and innovation and enterprise opportunity. Developers, social media marketers, technologists, students and investors are a part of the potpourri expected at the conference. There will be over 45 speakers in 40 sessions spread across the 2-day period.
The conference on Thursday 1st November includes keynote speakers Tom Rosemalia, Vice President of Corporate Strategy and General Manager of Enterprise Initiatives at IBM and Ralph Simon, founder & CEO of Mobilium, while other speakers include Amolo Ng’weno (MD of Digital Divide Data in Kenya), Neal Ford (Director, Software Architect and Meme Wrangler at ThoughtWorks), Vérone Mankou (CEO of Way-C in the Democratic Republic of Congo), Emma Kaye (CEO of Bozza) and social entrepreneur Josh Adler.
A Google G+ Hangout will be held live at the conference so that tech hubs from around Africa can be part of the conference. Delegates can interact with a panel, ask questions and find out more about what is happening on the ground in other parts of Africa.
Why should you attend? It is an opportunity to create new networks and find potential new partners, employers, recruits and clients. International speakers like Desigan Chinniah from Mozilla and Neal Ford from ThoughtWorks, and other delegates from Adapt IT, CloudAfrica, Department of Education, DSTV Mobile, Firestring, FNB, GeoLink, Highway Africa, Hollard Insurance, House for Hack, IS, Nokia, PayFast, Quirk, SEACOM, Standard Bank, Symantec, SYNAQ, Technical Placements, Telkom, Virgin Mobile will be in attendance.
There is a competition for startups who get to pitch their products. The top start-up pitches will present to the whole audience in a live pitch competition on Thursday, for a prize of R25,000!
The Tech4Africa team aims to inspire you. They said, “Our simple goal is that delegates walk away both informed and inspired. Placing greatest emphasis on learning, interaction, engagement and discussion, we want the conference to be a place for new ideas and to encourage people to make and change things.”
MTN, Google, IBM, Mozilla, Tech Central, Memeburn and PayFast amongst others are partnering the event.
Visit www.tech4africa.com to find out more including how to host a Tech4Africa conference in your own country, city or town. Do let us know if this has been helpful in the comment section below.