Nigeria's tech experts step in to help those losing livelihoods under lockdown

By Libby George and Nneka Chile
LAGOS, April 30(Reuters) - Tech startup founder Ebun
Okubanjo watched with dismay as his home city of Lagos entered a
coronavirus-containment lockdown, knowing well that millions of
Nigerians on the margins could be left with nothing.
So he and his team used their expertise to create a
crowdfunding site, "We Are Together", to distribute cash to
those in difficulty who apply for help.
Others in Nigeria's flourishing tech sector have also put
their skills to use to help cushion the economic fallout of the
coronavirus.
"The reality is to tell people to stay home, and not work ..
you have to give them something," Okubanjo told Reuters.
Africa's informal sector accounts for more than 85% of
employment across the continent and has been largely bypassed by
limited support measures from cash-strapped governments.
An African Union study warned that the pandemic puts some 20
million jobs at risk in Africa, with the continent's economies
projected to shrink this year. While Nigeria said the lockdowns will begin to gradually
ease from May 4, it is not yet clear who will be able to go back
to work, and the economic impact will be lasting.
Okubajo said his site, and others like it, are effectively a
DIY economic stimulus, allowing those with cash to prevent
people from falling into destitution.
Emmanuel Onyeahiolam, 30, an electrical equipment
contractor, got 10,000 naira ($27.78) from We Are Together.
He said he was abruptly unable to work when Lagos locked
down, and his last client was not able to pay him immediately.
"It's not too convenient for me to stay for a long time
without working," he said, adding that food costs had gone up
fivefold. "It's just scary."
We Are Together raised more than 17 million naira ($47,222)
and distributed it to 1,739 recipients.
Justin Irabor, a tech worker with Nigerian startup Eden Life
Inc, founded "Angels Among Us" with a team of volunteer software
engineers. The site matches donors directly with recipients, and
has enabled more than 2 million naira in donations.
Both platforms are primarily online – a fact that puts them
out of reach to the poorest Nigerians.
Both sites must also to an extent take applicants at their
word, although Angels Among Us tries to vet its recipients and
volunteers call to verify their stories. The site tries to use
bank-issued biometric identification numbers to prevent graft.
We Are Together uses location technology to ensure that
recipients are in the parts of the country under federally
mandated lockdown, and not in wealthy parts of those states.
Okubanjo conceded the system is not perfect - and that some
who do not need cash could get it. But it is a risk worth
taking.
"For now, hope is our strategy," Okubanjo said. "The point
is to avoid utter destitution – hunger, desperation and chaos."
($1 = 360.0000 naira)