The campus will be a hub for innovation, technology training, and knowledge exchange, bringing together local and international experts, inventors, researchers, academics, students, and entrepreneurs.
Speaking exclusively to The Standard, Bianca Griffith, the CEO and co-founder of Agua said: “We are aiming to create a place for people to connect, learn from one another and innovate together.”
Michael Nwalozie, a Nigerian working at Agua Inc queried: “Why are products for Africa designed abroad? People here in Africa own cellphones, have access to Facebook, yet we rarely see computers designed here. Often these products come to us from the US, Europe and Asia even though as Africans we know our own needs better.”
Gianfranco Villa, of Agua Inc who worked with Agua in Ghana and has joined the team in The Gambia, added: “Why couldn’t even innovation from Africa become global? Agua Inc believes this is possible and that there are untapped skills and creative potential across the continent. Agua Campus hopes to become a hub for achieving this. There’s no reason the next Facebook can’t be invented by a Gambian.”
Pedro Delgado, a co-founder of Agua Inc, added: “We’re here not only to give knowledge, but also to learn from Africa. For us education is not one-directional, everyone has skills and experience to share.” With offices currently on nearly every continent, Agua Inc has successfully pioneered innovation in sustainable and high quality water treatment around the world. The company said it intends to leverage this experience and engage its existing mentors, including Jeff Hoffman the founder of Priceline; Prince Fahd Al Saud of Saudi Arabia; Hunter Lovins of Natural Capitalism; Martin Guillermo secretary general of AEBR; Cathy Roggers vice president of global opportunities for IBM; Tom Chi co-inventor of Google Glass, among many others, to ignite the campus’ programmes.
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