Hello there, I’m Bukunmi Oyedapo.
I specialize in digital fabrication, where I provide support services to woodwork businesses, and design and construction firms in Nigeria. With a background in architecture, I find it easy to plug into a lot of processes and solutions.
This month I’m holding the fort for Chuma, who’ll be back in June.
In case you missed it, here’s last month’s newsletter.
Some recent good news is the change in legislation on power generation and transmission in Nigeria. It is absolutely ridiculous that government controlled the generation and distribution of power to a large degree until recently; under the new legislation state governments (and maybe individuals) now have the ability to generate and distribute power, thereby opening up the field to competition and modular power generation. I’m looking forward to the impact that will have overall on the power sector.
On a more general note, this article in the American Affairs journal discusses the problem with global development. In their own words, the authors note that “despite attempts to find alternative models of economic development, there is no widely replicable strategy to develop a country—simply put, to turn it from poor to rich—that does not involve an economy becoming highly industrialized.” It’s a fairly long article, but well-written.
Heph Design is a brand that makes original multi-material pieces. [Nigeria]
Josh Egesi makes products that combine traditional games with furniture. [Nigeria]
Zeetin Engineering is a precision fabrication shop specializing in heavy duty machinery. [Nigeria]
The Baobab Network is receiving applications from early-stage startups on the continent. Their program combines funding and mentorship for founders.
Deadline: Rolling.
The Innovation Showcase (ISHOW) of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers is receiving applications for their Kenya competition.
Deadline: May 2023.
In Malawi, Wood Be Nice is woodworking small business that specializes in architectural and product design. Their focus on building their own machines while serving clients as well as selling their own designs is the kind of multi-pronged approach that wood fabrication businesses on the continent need to adopt.
Have a good month,
Bukunmi.
NB: If you’d like to keep up with my work, ask me a question or just say hello, you can find me on Instagram.
This month’s Community Chat has Prince Banini as our guest. He’s an Embedded Systems Developer, and currently a Technical Fellow for Waziup eV - a long range IOT platform built on the LoRa network. In addition, he produces electronics tutorials via the DIY Delali YouTube channel. Join us!