The Tech Founder's Journey

Broad and powerful, the creative industry in Africa holds great promise and spans multiple sectors including film, art, fashion, music, social media content creation, among others. This panel will engage different actors across the value chain on how to break down the barriers that are holding back the industry from achieving its full potential. In this discussion, we will cover the tailwinds that have supported the growth of African creative content so far, how to further increase access to financing for creative entrepreneurs, how to formalize the industry to better realize the economic benefits of its output, how to boost investment in the physical and digital infrastructure that support the creative economy, how to better leverage global digital platforms to distribute creative products more effectively and finally government policies needed to support the overall development of the industry.

From 0 to 1 Million+ Followers: How to Leverage Social Media to Build Your Business in 2023

Taught by Olivia Barnard, a former McKinsey consultant and social media influencer with 1.3 million followers

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Social media is the future. There were 50 million content creators in 2020. In 2022, the number jumped to more than 300 million (Adobe). As the creator economy continues to grow, so does the shift away from traditional forms of marketing to social media. In 2022, social media video ad spending grew by 20.1% to $24.35 billion (Hootsuite). Social media is the future; don't get left behind. 

In this lunch and learn, Olivia will share her personal experience growing her online brand to 1.3 million followers across 3 platforms - Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

Through social media, you can: 

💼 Generate new leads for your business (real estate, coaching, teaching, medical) and scale it to seven figures 

🍰 Create a side hustle (photography, baking, pottery) that makes multiple six figures

📲 Build a career as a digital marketer for small businesses or Fortune 500 companies

🎤 Establish yourself as a thought leader and receive invitations to speak at conferences 

🏑 Share your hobbies and build an audience of people with similar interests

💋 Become an influencer and get paid to talk about products you love 

The possibilities are endless! 

There continues to be a significant gap across the African continent with regards to increasing access to high quality and affordable healthcare. Brick and mortar healthcare solutions continue to play a major role in improving access to care, accelerated by the push toward Universal Healthcare Coverage. Technology has demonstrated the ability to strengthen health systems, leveraging existing platforms to increase access. These innovative strategies such as digital health are needed to ensure long term success in the continent. However, their successful deployment on a wider scale faces several challenges on the continent. We will be discussing the opportunities, the risks and myths associated with digital health transformation and the successes achieved to-date.