Partner Profile: iHub

Part of InternewsNext, a series highlighting 30 youth-led media initiatives.

Internews has engaged iHub_Research to track and report on a mobile banking and revenue stream project for local radio. (credit: Kate Holt/Internews)

In Kenya, young technologists and innovators have created a unique space for collaboration and incubation at iHub, a community facility with a focus on young entrepreneurs, web and mobile phone programmers, designers and researchers. iHub members utilize the workspace itself, with high-speed internet connections, as well as mentorship opportunities and connections to potential investors.

The iHub serves a distinct need in the fast-paced development community in Nairobi, where mobile phones and access to technology are changing the landscape for media and technology. Led by Kenya, Africa already leads the world in mobile banking, and is home to such influential start-ups as Ushahidi (co-founder Erik Hersman is also a co-founder of iHub).

In addition to collaborating with several iHub members on projects under development, such as apps to aid in data journalism and local traffic reporting, Internews has engaged iHub_Research, a research arm of the hub which conducts local qualitative and quantitative studies in Africa, to track and report on several pilot projects initiated by the Internews Center for Innovation and Learning, including mesh networks in Nigeria, mobile banking and revenue streams for local radio, and a mobile helpline to support victims of trafficking in Ghana.