The rain was falling softly on Libreville that morning, but in the corridors of a discreet building in the Batterie IV neighborhood, an unusual buzz filled the air. Young people in jeans and sneakers, laptops under their arms, were exchanging whispers around a whiteboard covered in diagrams. Here, at the heart of a technology incubator, a silent revolution is taking shape: that of a Gabon dreaming of becoming a pioneer of African innovation.
Innovation in Gabon: what opportunities exist businesses?
Innovation in Gabon is progressing around digital services, fintech, sustainable resource management, the green economy and business solutions. the local startups, the main levers remain access to funding, technical training and the ability to sell beyond the national market.
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A strategic shift that began in the 2010s
Long dependent on its natural resources, particularly oil and timber, Gabon embarked on a decisive turning point in the early 2010s. The Plan Stratégique Gabon Émergent (PSGE), launched in 2010, aimed to diversify the economy and focus on local processing, the green economy and the knowledge economy.
“You cannot build a country’s future on resources that are running out. We had to invest in intelligence, in the youth,” explains Alain Moussavou, former advisor to the Ministry of the Digital Economy.
This plan laid the groundwork an ecosystem favorable to innovation: improved internet connectivity, the creation of special economic zones, and support entrepreneurship. In 2019, more than 85% of the Gabonese population had access to the Internet, one of the highest rates in Central Africa.
Libreville, the new tech crossroads of Central Africa
The Gabonese capital is gradually establishing itself as a regional hub startups and technological initiatives. Structures such as the Nkok Business Incubator and the Gabon Digital Nation Lab welcome dozens of young entrepreneurs every year.
“We started from a simple idea: create an app to connect small agricultural producers with urban consumers. Today, we have more than 12,000 active users,” proudly recounts Carine Nziengui, founder of the AgriConnect application.
The city also attracts major events, such as the Forum de l’Innovation Numérique d’Central Africa, which brought together more than 3,000 participants in 2023. Delegations from Cameroun, Congo and Tchad discover the latest Gabonese innovations in fintech, e-health and e-education.
A connected and ambitious youth
With an average age of 22, Gabon is driven by an ultra-connected generation, eager change and concrete solutions. Social networks, online training and local tech communities play a central role in this dynamic.
“I learned to code on YouTube. Then I joined a Telegram group of Gabonese developers. That’s where I found my first freelance contract,” confides Jules Obiang, 24, a self-taught developer in Port-Gentil.
Training initiatives are springing up like mushrooms: FabLabs, bootcamps, coding schools. In 2022, the Université Numérique du Gabon launched a program in partnership with Google Africa to train 5,000 young people in digital skills by 2025.
The government, too, is betting on this youth. In 2021, it launched the “1000 startups Gabon” program, with funding of up to 10 millions de FCFA the most promising projects.
Innovation in the service of local challenges
What sets Gabon apart in the African innovation landscape is its ability to produce solutions adapted to local realities. Far from imported gadgets, Gabonese startups are tackling concrete problems: access to healthcare, waste management, financial inclusion.
“Our app allows pregnant women in rural areas to receive medical appointment reminders by SMS, even without a smartphone. We have already covered 15 villages,” explains Nadège Ella, co-founder of SantéMobile.
In the field of the environment, Gabon is also innovating. The country, which preserves 88% of its forest cover, has developed satellite monitoring tools to combat illegal deforestation, in partnership with local startups.
In 2023, Gabon was even the first African country to sell certified carbon credits, generating more than 150 millions de dollars. A windfall that the government intends to reinvest in green technologies and sustainable innovation.
International partnerships in full expansion
This dynamic has not gone unnoticed. Gabon is attracting more and more international partners, won over by its ambition and relative stability. Giants such as Huawei, Orange and Microsoft have established training or research centers there.
“Gabon is small, but it thinks big. That is what motivated us to launch our smart cities pilot program here,” explains Lisa Zhang, Africa Director at Huawei Technologies.
The European Union, the World Bank and UNESCO also support several projects related to digital education and social innovation. In 2024, the Agence Française de Développement announced funding of 20 millions d’euros the development of Gabon’s digital economy.
These collaborations also allow local startups to access external markets. In 2023, three young Gabonese companies were selected to represent Central Africa at the global startup summit in Lisbonne.
A future still under construction
Despite these advances, challenges remain numerous. Funding remains difficult to obtain many projects, and administrative burdens sometimes hinder entrepreneurial momentum. Access to electricity, particularly in rural areas, remains an obstacle to the widespread adoption of digital technology.
But the momentum is there. And it seems irreversible. “We no longer need to wait solutions to come from elsewhere. We can create them here, with our ideas, our realities, our dreams,” affirms with conviction Stéphanie Ndong, artificial intelligence engineer.
Gabon may not yet be the Silicon Valley of Africa, but it is moving forward, in its own way, with its strengths and its fragilities. And what if the next great African technological revolution were born in the heat of a FabLab in Libreville?
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