Influential European makes 2014's Most Important Africans in Tech list

Zmyslowski, the only non-African on the list, said, "I feel so extremely honored to have been recognised amongst these African leaders as a tech influencer in Africa. Since moving to Nigeria to set up Jovago.com, I have come to appreciate and love this beautiful continent and I am proud, as a Polish man, to know that I am making a significant impact."

Ideas worth spreading

Marek Zmyslowski, MD of Jovago.com.

Zmyslowski, of Polish descent, started his career in Europe. His first entrepreneurial steps led to failure. However, the 27 year old stayed persistent and it paid off when he took the big chance. Fascinated by the rising economy in Africa, Zmyslowski left his home country to start a business in Lagos. In his recent TEDxIfe talk, Zmyslowski emphasizes the challenges and importance of a competitive market: "Back in school, my coach said that runners only break world records when they have opponents behind them, not when they finish alone." He further enthuses about opportunities in the growing African e-commerce sector at the TEDxIfe event in Nigeria. In the spirit of "ideas worth spreading", TEDxIfe revealed the defiant, challenging and unusual models being used by the speakers to encounter reality and make a difference.

After one year of inception, his leading online hotel booking platform has over 20,000 local hotel listings across Africa and over 200,000 worldwide. Furthermore Jovago has won and been nominated for several awards.

Since Jovago's launch in August 2013, Zmyslowski managed to build a capable team and strong relationships with his partners, as well as outstanding results in customer satisfaction and support. The entrepreneur is convinced that these are the main components of Jovago's success.

Here, Marek Zmyslowski's speech on TEDxIfe, where he shares first-hand insights of entrepreneurship in Africa:

2014's Most Important Africans in Tech