Our current generation is beginning to shape the future of Africa. And from the looks of things so far, it's going to be one pretty face. With the inherent creativity and ingenuity ingrained in most Africans DNA, a crop of very internet savvy Africans have taken the internet by storm. I had the privilege of chatting with one of the creators of the new social network that's about to hit the interwebs and here's how the interview went down:
NAIJAFEED How far, can you tell us who you are and what Naijaborn is all about?
Interviewee My name is Mambe Churchill Nanje. I'm a 23yr old African who is currently the CEO/Creator of AfroVisioN Group www.afrovisiongroup.com. I'm also the co-founder and president of technology at Naijaborn. I've been in the software development business for four years.
NAIJAFEED What's your inspiration for starting Naijaborn?
MAMBE Naijaborn stands for Nigerian born, so basically we realized there wasn't any platform out there that's been able to present all the Nigerian talent to the world and in turn helping them make more of their talents. So Naijaborn is here to fill that void. A lot of people wish to do business with Nigerians, but they don't know who, where, or how to go about it. So Naijaborn is a place where Nigerians can introduce themselves to the world, showcase their various talents, and it also just serves as a platform where Nigerians and the rest of the world can communicate with one another.
NAIJAFEED So is it okay to call Naijaborn the Nigerian Facebook?
MAMBE Please no, Naijaborn is Naijaborn and Facebook is Facebook. We are not the Facebook clone of Nigeria and we strive to get into major inroads and business ventures that are more into media and technology. With time people will begin to see the difference. So it's not okay to call Naijaborn the Nigerian Facebook.
NAIJAFEED Besides Naijaborn being a social network for Nigeria in particular, what else sets it apart from other social networks out there?
MAMBE Naijaborn is a naija talents database, Naijaborn is a people/business search engine for Nigerians. Naijaborn is a business marketing tool, magazine, media platform, and last but not least Naijaborn is proudly Naijaborn, and it's built from scratch, making it unique and very easy to adapt to future market trends. So we stand out because we will be able to rewrite our system any day anytime while most won't because they don't build from scratch.
NAIJAFEED How old are you?
MAMBE I told you my age in the beginning of this interview. I'm 23.
NAIJAFEED Dis guy, you're young!
MAMBE Hey, come on. Must one be old to make money in Africa or must one be old to achieve great things?
NAIJAFEED Am I going to be able to hook up with fine babes on Naijaborn?
MAMBE Man I see a lot of South African babes already on the platform...seriously. Also a lot of naija babes in Europe and the UK, and some in Nigeria. The advantage is you get to know what they are doing and then you can see if your ideas match with theirs. So let's say you're crazy for a Nigerian female doctor, you simply search for a Nigerian female doctor and then you can hook up buddy. So sure, you can catch babes ooh! It's all yours.
NAIJAFEED Will Naijaborn have a feature for Nigerian artists to showcase their work like how Myspace does?
MAMBE Yes, Naijaborn already has music upload and we will strive to make a vibrant way for indie artists to showcase their music and later on it will include a sales system where someone can launch his/her album exclusively on Naijaborn. So www.naijaborn.com/beta/music is something that will evolve beyond the naijaborn.com domain. So sure, we're going to get something like Myspace but it will be a 100% naija way of doing it.
NAIJAFEED A friend of mine who's a musikshan asked me to ask you about that!
MAMBE Oh great, the website has an ideas section under "posted items", so please ask him to register on the site and try to post his ideas so we will discuss it and add to our specifications. That's how the site has been shaping itself in the last month and we are still listening. We are building the community; in short i'll say the users are the PRODUCT OWNER. So he/she can give us the specifications on how the Naijaborn music section should grow and expand...it's all open
NAIJAFEED Alright Mambe, you're a very busy young man and I know your time is valuable. Thanks for speaking with Naijafeed and best of luck with Naijaborn and your future endeavours.
MAMBE Thanks buddy, we are all working towards a better Africa. Now let me get back to my codes for villagediary.org so I can do more coding on Naijaborn later tonight.
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