Many Nigerians believe Twitter’s decision is a turnoff to the continent’s largest economy, which is experiencing rapid growth and investment in its tech scene.
Now it looks like his company will be the first to take that step.
The social media giant also cited the host country of the African Continental Free Trade Zone (AfCFTA) Secretariat in Ghana as another reason for moving there, saying it is in line with “ its ambition to establish a presence in the region that will enhance our efforts. to improve and tailor our service across Africa. “
No convenience to conduct business
Some Nigerians gave one inconducive business environment “for Twitter that prefers Ghana over Nigeria.
Another commenter, Onye Ajuju, said Twitter’s decision was justified and Nigerians had a “bloated sense of justice.”
It is unbelievable to see Nigerians throwing a tantrum because Twitter has gone to Ghana. The lack of awareness of how bad it is in the country, the bloated sense of entitlement, the unhinged expectations that everyone should have the dysfunction of Nigeria. accept … it’s unbelievable! ” she said.
In 2018, Facebook opened its first community hub space in Africa in the commercial city of Lagos, Nigeria, while plans were announced last year to open an operational office in Lagos as well, but for tech investors like Iyinoluwa Aboyeji there are lessons to be learned as Nigeria will continue to attract much-needed foreign investment.
“We need to think carefully about the reasons why Twitter chose Ghana – not necessarily in the context of whether we want to bring Twitter to Nigeria or not, but in the context of what it takes to be a competitive destination for investors. continue. ” Aboyeji told CNN on Tuesday.
“We need to think very carefully about strengthening democracy and the rule of law, freedom of speech and most importantly our role in making the Africa Free Trade Agreement possible. It’s not enough for us to just be a big market. Next to us a very competitive neighbor, doing the right things to make himself the center of West Africa, ”he added.
‘A more productive market’
Another Nigerian tech entrepreneur and investor Bosun Tijani told CNN that Twitter simply chose a more productive market to run its operations in Africa.
“While Nigeria has a huge market that Twitter would like to target, the business environment here is quite demanding … It’s tough … the cost of running a business here is high. But with the AfCFTA agreement for a single market that Africa has signed up to so far, a company like Twitter can choose to establish itself in a small market like Ghana – that offers the best opportunity to operate – and still serve the Nigerian market, ” said Tijani, who leads a technical innovation lab.
Ghana has also been ranked the 43rd most peaceful country in the world, in the 2020 Global Peace Index, ranking 104 places for Nigeria – struggling with the Boko Haram uprising and periodic outbreaks of violence.