There’s a comforting story we tell ourselves: that technology is the great equaliser, the force that levels playing fields, erases borders, and offers opportunities to all. But as the digital wave gains momentum across Nigeria’s South-East and South-South, one truth has become harder to ignore: tech isn’t neutral. And if we don’t pay attention, it could leave behind the very communities it promises to uplift.
The Hype vs. The Reality
Scroll through your social media feed and you’ll see it: startups springing up in Asaba, Uyo, Enugu, Aba, founders talking about “disrupting” markets, investors praising innovation, pitch events promising to unlock the region’s potential. On the surface, it feels like progress.
But progress for whom?
Who are we truly building for?
Who gets to benefit from this digital renaissance — and who gets left watching from the sidelines?
Access Isn’t Equally Distributed
It’s easy to assume that because mobile penetration is high and everyone seems to have a smartphone, the South is fully plugged into the digital economy. But that’s an illusion.
In many rural and semi-urban parts of these regions:
- Data is still expensive relative to income.
- Network reliability is patchy — a livestreamed class or a digital banking transaction can be impossible where 3G or 4G drops without warning.
- Devices are outdated — not everyone is holding the latest iPhone or even a mid-tier Android. Many rely on hand-me-downs or entry-level phones that struggle with basic app updates.
This means the apps, platforms, and digital services we’re celebrating often serve the already-connected; the middle-class students, the urban entrepreneurs, the upwardly mobile. Meanwhile, farmers, traders, artisans, and the urban poor are handed tech solutions that don’t fit their realities.
“Technology that ignores context deepens exclusion, no matter how well-intentioned.”
When the Digital Divide Mirrors Class Divides
Let’s talk honestly: digital access in the South often mirrors class and privilege.
- A fintech app that assumes regular income flows? Useless to those in the informal sector who earn in unpredictable bursts.
- An e-commerce platform with English-only interfaces? Alienating the market to women more fluent in Igbo, Efik, or Ibibio.
- A ride-hailing app that doesn’t consider poor road infrastructure or low smartphone penetration in peri-urban areas? Dead on arrival outside the big towns.
The result?
We create digital solutions that work beautifully but only for the few. And in doing so, we risk widening the gap between the digitally included and the digitally invisible.
The Myth of Tech as Automatic Uplift
It’s tempting to believe that just putting tech in people’s hands will transform their lives. But tools are only as useful as the systems that support them.
- What good is a digital payment app in a market where POS machines frequently fail due to a poor network?
- How does an e-learning platform help when a student can’t afford consistent data or electricity to stay online?
- How does a digital health tool help when the clinic has no power to run its equipment, let alone its app?
The problem isn’t tech. The problem is assuming that tech alone is the answer.
The Need for Context-Driven Innovation
What the South needs isn’t more apps copying foreign models. What we need is:
- Low-bandwidth, offline-friendly solutions that work with our infrastructural realities.
- USSD or feature-phone compatible services for those without smartphones.
- Multi-lingual platforms that respect the linguistic richness of our region.
- Collaborations with local governments to ensure tech solutions are integrated into public service delivery, not just layered on top.
And perhaps most importantly:
- Tech that listens first.
Before we build, we need to ask: What do people need? How do they currently solve their problems? How can tech help without replacing what already works?
Who Gets to Build — And Who Gets Seen?
There’s another layer to this: whose innovations are we celebrating?
The startups that get press, funding, and applause often look the same — young, urban, English-speaking founders who know how to craft a fantastic pitch.
Meanwhile, the mechanic in Aba who’s designed a home-grown inventory tracking system?
The cooperative in Cross River using WhatsApp groups to manage credit and savings?
The woman in Bayelsa running digital literacy classes in her community hall?
These builders exist. But we rarely hear about them — because our gaze is fixed on polished decks and flashy demos, not quiet ingenuity that meets people where they are.
“If we only celebrate tech that looks like Silicon Valley, we’ll miss the innovation that’s truly changing lives here.”
The Role of Media and Storytelling
And here’s where our work comes in, those of us telling the stories of this digital age.
If tech journalism(which is presently non-existent in the region only focuses on the loudest founders and the buzziest startups, we fail our region.
We need to document:
- The grassroots innovations.
- The low-tech wins.
- The projects that don’t make headlines but make a difference.
Because tech isn’t just about gadgets or apps. It’s about people — and if we don’t centre people in our stories, we’ve missed the plot.
A Call to Build With Eyes Open
The digital push in the South-East and South-South holds real promise. But only if we build with eyes open to inequality, to context, to culture, to infrastructure.
So let’s:
Build tech that fits, not just tech that dazzles.Design for the many, not just the few.
Remember that progress isn’t progress if it leaves our most vulnerable behind.
Because in the end, the true power of technology isn’t in the tools themselves — it’s in how they help us lift each other.
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