Nigeria sidelined again as Visa picks Kenya for new hub

Nigeria has again lost out to Kenya in digital solution infrastructure as American global tech payments giant, Visa has built an innovative studio in Kenya to help Africans develop digital solutions.

This is not the first time international firms have bypassed Nigeria, regarded as the biggest market in Africa.

In 2021, Toyota, a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer, opened a second assembly plant in Ghana, snubbing Nigeria, which has the biggest economy in West Africa.

This comes less than three months after the American microblogging giant platform, Twitter also snubbed Nigeria for Ghana.

Analysts attributed the ugly trend to the increasing level of insecurity in the country, which appears to have defiled several solutions.

Visa, the multinational financial services company unveiled the facility on Wednesday in an event attended by major tech stakeholders and engineers in the region.

Visa’s Senior Vice President & Head in charge of Sub-Saharan Africa, Aida Diarra, in his remarks, described the hub as a home that would bring together developers, Visa’s internal and external clients, and other partners to co-create payment and commerce solutions.

Speaking on Africa’s recent awakening to technology, Aida Diarra, Visa’s Senior Vice President, Senegal, who was shortlisted in 2019 amongst the 100 most influential African women, stated that Africa was a fast-growing area with tech-savvy inhabitants.

She said: “Sub-Saharan Africa is a fast-growing area with tech-savvy inhabitants. As we proceed to develop digital funds adoption within the area, our aspiration is to deepen our collaboration with shoppers and companions in creating options which can be designed across the distinctive wants of Africa.”