| 7 Jun 2022 | 16:00 - 17:30 | Online | |
- Description
- Biographies
Description
The event with Trish Lorenz and guests which was scheduled for 7 June has unfortunately been postponed. If the event is rescheduled, we will advertise it via our website and newsletter.
Soro Soke: The Young Disruptors of an African Megacity
Published by Cambridge University Press on 26 May 2022, Soro Soke: The Young Disruptors of an African Megacity is now available to buy, and for free via Open Access.
For the first time in human history, people aged over 65 now outnumber children under five. Yet one region in the world is bucking this trend: the world’s top 20 youngest countries by population are all located in sub-Saharan Africa, and Africa’s population under 35 now equals almost a billion people. Whilst there has been much research and reportage in the West around the lives of millennials and Gen Z, little has been written on the dreams and aspirations, the fears and hopes, the needs and desires of young Africans. The Yoruba expression Soro Soke, meaning ‘Speak Up’, has become a clarion call for young Nigerians seeking to make their voices heard, resonating across the African continent and around the world via social media. In her book, Trish Lorenz speaks to the bright new entrepreneurs, artists, and activists of Lagos and Abuja, Nigeria, to understand what it means to be young in an otherwise ageing world.
The print version of the book is available to pre-order now, and the e-book will be available to download for free on publication day.
Trish Lorenz has been a journalist for more than 15 years. She is a regular contributor to titles including The Guardian, The Financial Times, and The Telegraph, among others. Formerly a design columnist at The Independent and the Lisbon correspondent for Monocle magazine, she covers subjects ranging from design, art and culture to travel, politics and human interest pieces from around the world.
Join author Trish Lorenz for a discussion about the book with some of the young Nigerian entrepreneurs, Iyinoluwa Aboyeji of Future Africa and Ibrahim Faruk of Yiaga Africa who are featured in her book.
Iyinoluwa will talk about how it feels to be a young tech entrepreneur in Nigeria today, what difference he feels that technology has made to young peoples’ lives and how it has done that. He has been involved in three big tech companies, Andela, Flutterwave and now Future Africa so will likely talk about them.
Ibrahim will talk about how it feels to be a young activist in Nigeria today including his work to increase the role of young Nigerians in the political process. A campaign group that he was involved in, Not Too Young To Run, changed perceptions of youthful participation and he will likely talk about that alongside what might happen in 2023 with the Presidential elections.
Biographies
Iyinoluwa Aboyeji
General Partner and Co-founder of Future Africa
Iyinoluwa Aboyeji is the General Partner and Co-founder of Future Africa, a platform that provides capital, coaching and community for mission-driven innovators building an African Future where purpose and prosperity is within everyone’s reach. Prior to co-founding Future Africa, he served as the Deputy Director-General for the Madam Oby Ezekwesili 2019 Presidential Campaign. He also helped to build Andela and Flutterwave, two of Africa’s largest and fastest-growing technology companies backed by global investors.
Iyinoluwa, more popularly known as “E”, holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Legal Studies from the University of Waterloo and is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. He also sits on the board of a number of corporate and non-profit organizations and advises a number of national and sub-national governments across Africa on how to support high growth innovation-driven enterprises in their domains.
Ibrahim Faruk
Programme Manager, Governance and Development at Yiaga Africa
Ibrahim Faruk has over 10 years’ experience in democracy, good governance, and cross-cutting fields with his areas of specialization and interests including but not limited to social movements, community organizing, indigene-settler conflicts, citizen and youth participation in democracy and governance, and gender issues. At Yiaga Africa, Ibrahim has built the capacity of over 300 organizers in Nigeria and across West Africa who have been instrumental in leading advocacy campaigns and movements in their communities. His work has contributed to increasing the participation of youth in Nigeria’s political system through the Not Too Young To Run movement which successfully amended the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Ibrahim was born in Jos, Plateau State, where he also received his education. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Jos (2008) and a Master’s degree in Conflict Management and Peace Studies from the University of Jos (2015). Ibrahim is a regular contributor to national discourse through his appearances on TV and radio and his opinions which have been published nationally and internationally.
