BlackBerry and Lagos State Government announce partnership plan to develop Lagos Apps lab
A press statement reaching us says Blackberry and the Lagos State Innovation Advisory Council have today signed a Letter of Intent outlining their intention to build a BlackBerry Apps Lab in Lagos.
Commenting on the agreement, Managing Director for West, East and Central Africa Waldi Wepener said: “With over 250 Nigerian developed applications already available on the next-generation BlackBerry 10 platform, Nigeria’s software development community is clearly demonstrating impressive growth and innovation. Following a series of BlackBerry developer events and local partnerships in Nigeria, our commitment to build an Apps Lab in Lagos is a clear demonstration of our long term approach to support the development of a sustainable ecosystem in Nigeria.”
Waldi continued: “We are delighted to find such a progressive partner as the Lagos State Government, committed to building a culture of innovation as a core contributor to future development and we look forward to working closely with them to identify the most appropriate location for the lab.
His Excellency Babatunde Raji Fashola, Executive Governor of Lagos State said: “Innovation is at the heart of our approach to developing Lagos into a Mega City. We are very pleased BlackBerry has chosen Lagos State as a partner and is today committed to establishing an apps lab that will further Lagos as a centre for excellence in Africa.”
What a timely initiative from Blackberry!