The first edition was officially launched in Johannesburg, South Africa on 31 July 2012 to delegates attending the IT News Africa Innovation Dinner. The event focussed on the implications of Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology for Africa.
African Innovator magazine will showcase innovative solutions to business challenges within the ICT sector in Africa. This is achieved by talking to African business leaders responsible for driving innovation within their organisations. The publication will also highlight innovative ICT solutions to socio-economic challenges on the continent.
On the front cover of the first issue readers are asked "What is Innovation?", a recurring theme throughout the edition.
There are several articles that deal with innovation in-and from Africa, including profiles on Ndubuisi Ekekwe "A doctor of innovation" and Saheed Adepoju, a Nigerian Tablet PC maker who has attracted global acclaim, as well as South African born innovator Elon Musk.
There is also a list of Africa's most influential women in science and technology, as well as an article about the key to accelerating progress towards the millennium development goals by Dr. Hamadoun Touré, the Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union.
Speaking at the launch Abby Wakama, the publisher, said the magazine meets a growing need for news of technology development, innovation, application and integration in key regions throughout Africa.
"African Innovator will be initially distributed in South Africa with plans to futher expand the footprint to Kenya and Nigeria. Our aim is to grow the reader base and branch out into new regions. The vision is to be the premier voice of Africa's larger ICT community, covering issues that impact on commerce, trade, industry and the lives of everybody who uses IT," said Wakama.
The entrepreneur and marketing specialist acknowledges that the publishing space, particularly that which is focused on ICT, is competitive. However, he is adamant that African Innovator is differentiated by its service as a platform for individuals who influence the sector, from Africa, to discuss, deliberate and debate the continent's position.
"Readers do have a choice of publications that talk about ICT, that cover technology and products. But there are very few that have an inside track into innovation in Africa. There are not many publications that discuss how technology is making an impact in the lives of Africans. Our objective is to empower senior executives and decision makers with information that is relevant to any sized operation within an environment that is constantly changing," Wakama adds.
African Innovator also features several high calibre advertising partners, including MTN, NetApp and Dimension Data.
Wakama says the publication helps to position sponsors and advertisers as leading innovators within their sector and offers an unrivalled opportunity to promote their products and services in a high quality, quarterly publication - one that is hand-delivered to a pre-qualified list of senior executives in the public and private sectors.
For more, go to www.africaninnovatormagazine.com.
