It is a safe bet that only a minority of readers will have come across the names; Arthur Zang, Saheed Adepoju, and for that matter, Apostle Dr Kwadwo Safo! For the majority that do not have a clue, you are not alone; these names, although they may arguably warrant at least half a portion of the recognition conferred to football superstars such as Didier Drogba or Samuel Eto’o, their names remain largely unheard of. Nonetheless, before I explain, please take a moment to consider this; where was the computer, tablet or Smartphone that you are using to read this piece made? The relevance will soon be clear – now let me explain the characters behind the three names I mentioned earlier. Arthur Zang is a 26 year-old Cameroonian engineer who in 2010 invented the Cardiopad, a touch screen medical tablet that makes it possible to carry out heart tests such as electrocardiogram for patients based in rural locations, while allowing for the results to be wirelessly transferred to heart specialists in urban areas for interpretation. So far, the machine has done wonders. In fact, as Cameroon’s thirty heart specialists are all based in either Douala or Yaoundé, the country’s economic and political capitals, heart patients often have to travel across the country for a consultation. Similar stories can be found across Africa. Mr Zang observes that while the current price for an electrocardiograph device is no less than 3800 Euros, his device, which has a 97.5 per cent reliability rate, is available on the market for 1500 Euros. Saheed Adepoju is a 31 year-old Nigerian entrepreneur who invented Inye, a low cost tablet computer designed for the African market. Educated both in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, Saheed used his mathematics and computer science background to invent a mobile internet device that allows users to run Google Android operating system, play media files and also use the device for recreational purposes. Inye, which is an eight-inch device that is half-way between a laptop and a mobile phone, was put on the market for $350 as opposed to around $700 for an iPad or similar devices. This, Saheed believes, is the device’s selling point, particularly amongst African students. Apostle Dr Kwadwo Safo, on the other hand, is an inventor and a philanthropist who also owns Kantanka Group of Companies, a Ghanaian company behind the invention of a car that is engineless. Yes, this is not happening in Europe, Asia or America, it is happening on the African continent. As Safo’s son, Kwadwo Safo Jnr, a commercial pilot, who acquired his licence at age 19, explains, “the non-engine vehicle does not rely on a combustion engine to move, but an electric motor powered by rechargeable batteries,” Safo Jnr explained to Al Jazeera. The young pilot also explained that batteries can be recharged with solar energy or electricity simply because, as you drive the car on the road, it converts the energy from the sun into mechanical energy. And although some car parts are imported, Safo Jnr, the group’s chief operations officer, believes that his company will soon be able to mass produce vehicles that can be afforded by middle-income earners in Africa with an average income of $1,400. Now, as we can clearly see from the three characters above, there is no shortage of capacity in Africa. In fact, so many young techies out there with earth-shaking ideas are waiting in the wings to break through. However, their ideas might never see the light of day simply because in Africa we tend not to support our own. We are more inclined to go for imported products from Europe, America and Asia, thereby supporting their inventors instead of our own. Admittedly, the level of quality is significantly miles apart, but we should not expect this gap to close anytime soon if the computer, tablet or Smartphone at your fingertips is made in China, USA or somewhere in Europe. And, the lack of venture capital firms in Africa to fund African ideas has not helped either. If African venture capitalists really do exist, now is the time to stand up and be counted. Otherwise, the technology renaissance underway in various parts of Africa will have been a total waste. The writer is a UK Parliamentary Intern and holds a Master of Science in Public Services Policy.
