Zone Tech Park begins operations with $6.5m investment

Zone Tech Park, a venture builder for startups, has opened with a promise to turn great ideas into products and services quickly, efficiently and profitably. Located in Lagos, Zone Tech Park is the brainchild of Bolaji Olagunju, an entrepreneur and Founder of The Workforce Group, an HR firm.

At the official unveiling at the weekend, Zone Tech appointed Toro Orero as the Chief Executive Officer. He brings experience with startups both as managing partner at Silicon Valley VC Fund DDF and the founder of the African Startup Institute and SpeedUPAfrica.

To date, $6.5 million has been invested in Zone Tech to build the infrastructure and environment needed to help African startups scale and compete globally.Zone Tech’s startups will have direct access to more than 400 domestic and international corporations, which are clients to Workforce.

Olagunju said: “African startups are faced with significant challenges that hinder their growth. Zone Tech will change the status quo and help individuals and their businesses to realize their full potential through education, venture building and strategic enterprise support.”

Some of the unique features of the hub include that it is open for startups at all stages in their life cycle, from those that are a great idea on paper to those with customers already on-board; its co-working space is free for startups, which are not charged for access to the tech hub’s multitude of services and advisers.

The Park supports its startups in preparing for funding rounds by giving access to a network of potential investors, accelerator programs and ecosystem architects.