Ileke-IdI:
[size=28pt]Africa's Hottest Tech Startups: Twinpine[/size]

Oduntan Odubanjo, a 28 year-old Nigerian Computer engineer is the co-founder of Twinpine, a startup Pan-African mobile advertising network which is currently generating a lot of buzz in Nigeria’s advertising and technology circles. In less than a year of setting up operations, Twinpine has already cornered lucrative accounts like MTN, Nokia, Google, Pepsi and Autodesk, among several other local companies. Twinpine doesn’t create the ads for mobile phones; it provides a way for those ads to be viewed on websites via mobile phones.

Odubanjo runs his company from its headquarters in Lagos, Nigeria. A few months ago, he opened another office in Nairobi, Kenya and he is planning to venture into Johannesburg and other major African cities. Twinpine is profitable, but Odubanjo declined to divulge just how profitable it is.

He recently explained his business model to me, walked me through his start-up story and gave me a glimpse into Twinpine’s big picture.

What Is Twinpine?

Twinpine is a mobile advertising network focused on Africa. It is different from other mobile advertising networks because we focus on the tangible value for advertisers and publishers on our network. We dont just serve impressions we work to deliver conversions and revenues to them respectively.

Recount your startup story


The journey for Twinpine so far has been very fast paced and exciting. Beyond trying to turn a profit, we are on a mission to propagate the message of mobile advertising. We have invested in events and initiatives that will expose and educate people on the potential of mobile marketing. One of these saw the sponsorship of the IEEE student professional awareness program last year at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria. Its been an amazing journey filled with a great deal of learning, operational innovation and sense of achievement.

Explain your business model to my grandma. How does Twinpine work, and how do you make money?

Twinpine was founded to enable brands and businesses effectively reach their target audience with their message using the mobile advertising channel. We achieve that by aggregating the leading (in terms of brand and traffic) mobile sites and applications and advertise on them for our clients. That way, we also help our publishers make money by doing a revenue share with them on the advertising we place.

How many users do you have so far? Name some of the more prominent ones.

I’m glad to share that we have run campaigns for leading brands from the likes of MTN, Nokia, Google, Pepsi, Autodesk to fast growing companies like Jobberman, Wakanow.com, Vconnect and Jana. We also work with over 20 local and international digital advertising agencies to develop mobile advertising campaigns across Africa.

On the publisher side of the space we have leading local publishers in Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana including Guardian, Vanguard, Jobberman, Businessday, Complete Sports, Standard Media, Daily Nation and Ghanaweb. We also work with international publishers like Opera, Eskimi, Ubersocial, Ebuddy,

Twinpine has delivered marketing goals from brand awareness to application downloads, event registration, product launch and site traffic boost.


http://www.forbes.com/sites/mfonobongnsehe/2012/03/08/africas-hottest-tech-startups-twinpine/

*Ileke-IdI:
[size=28pt]Nigerian Student Wins Award In Economics Competition In U.K[/size]

Nigerian-born Anu Omotunde-Young, an economics student at the Lancaster University Management School has won second place in The Economics Network Student Challenge 2011 , a national competition for economics students in the U.K.



In this year's competition, students were asked to send in creative entries on the topic "Why Study Economics @ University?" Anu who is in the second year of her BSc Business Economics degree, wrote a poem about Nigeria followed by a creative analytical writing. In addition to her academic studies, Anu is currently editor for Lancaster's Economic Society Journal and volunteers through LUSU Involve on the Schools Partnership Programme, in which she tutors Year-3 and Year-6 children in English and Maths at a local primary school. She has completed internships at the British House of Commons and the Nigerian Government on World Bank and United Nations Development Assistance programmes. Ultimately she sees herself as an aspiring economist – perhaps a chief advisor and specialist on economic growth and development in Africa. I read the poem and analysis and it was indeed an interesting and insightful piece.

http://www.lums.lancs.ac.uk/news/22544/student-wins-economics-award/

*Ileke-IdI:
[size=28pt]First Black to win a Sloan Research Fellowship[/size]


K. Okikiolu: Born to Nigerian and British parents, but educated in the U.S., Katherine Okikiolu (was once on Princeton's faculty) received special distinction in 1997 when she was the first Black to win a Sloan Research Fellowship. Later in 1997, she won the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers for "Innovative research in geometric analysis, particularly the determinant of the Laplacian under smooth perturbations, and developing student workshops and mathematics curricula for inner-city children." This particular award is worth $500,000 and is only granted 60 scientists and engineers in the U.S. per year. Okikiolu's work on elliptical differential operators is considered a major contribution, going well beyond what experts had considered feasible, given the current state of knowledge. Her 2001 publication Critical metrics for the determinant of the Laplacian in odd dimensions in the Annals of Mathematics, is receiving high acclaim. She is Associate Professor of Mathematics at the University of California at San Diego



[size=28pt]
Who are the young mathematicians whose careers exhibit extraordinary promise?

Mathematicians of the 21st Century[/size]

I had anticipated delaying this section until 2007 and young folks had begun to publish. However, as a winner of the AMU/ICMS 2003 Young African in Mathematics Medals, one individual has changed my mind.

Oguntuase: Currently in Italy, Nigerian born and soley Nigerian trained, James Adedayo Oguntuase earned his Ph.D. in 2001, but has published 18 papers in mathematics since 1998. This promises to be a stelar career.



http://www.math.buffalo.edu/mad/madgreatest.html

*Ileke-IdI:
[size=28pt]Adesokan, scientist, wins MIT's World Top Young Innovators Award
[/size]

While several young Nigerians are busy complaining their country has not done anything for them, 35- year- old US- based Nigerian born researcher, Yemi Adesokan, has put his country's name on the map of nations of innovation.

Adesokan's discovery which has potential to change the way mankind responds to disease pathogens, according to experts, may bring an end the era of increased burden of drug resistance in the world particularly, in sub Saharan Africa.


Yemi Adesokan



http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/09/adesokan-scientist-wins-mit%E2%80%99s-world-top-young-innovators-award-2/

vislabraye: I've read expliots about the people above. I do believe there are other tribes who also do better.
What makes the Westerners unique is the legacy Awo has laid. I'm sure if he had been the president, I won't be surprise if everyone from the SW would have gained full schorlarship.