Denis Opudo
Tourism is the bedrock of economic growth in many African countries. Many startups have come up to make the sector more productive than before. This has helped African countries to reap much from this sector compared to some years back. Senegal based startup Dakar Lives works on giving people the real Senegalese tourism and culture. The startup was co-founded by Marouane Gasnier, Olivia Codou Ndiaye, Mamy Tall and Mamadou “Papi”.
The startup’s Instagram has managed to get more than 66,000 followers. The startup is now operational in Guinea, Togo, Mali, and Morocco. Growth in every country has every new challenge that comes with them. However, Dakar Lives’ mission to put the shop in any location gets huge support from the locals. The founders are changing the way people take how to reach African countries. Getting African countries through Google have been much harder. This is compared to cities like Lisbon, Rome, Paris, and Berlin.
Instagram is well known for offering appealing images about individuals. But Dakar Lives has gone ahead to develop a business than what just meet an eye. The startup is a hub that comprises of IRL and URL community. It aims at offering economic improvement through a huge network of creative. The hub includes bloggers, freelance photographers, filmmakers and web designers. Furthermore, it promotes collaborative and networking entrepreneurship and nurtures upcoming talents in Senegal. The startup’s Instagram content comes from perceived members. Furthermore, the startup runs as an agency that helps the Minister of Senegalese tourism with events. Example of such events is Dakar’s Biennale which is the biggest scale art festival that takes part at the beginning of 2018. It also develops content for hotels and restaurants. The event has a partnership with Tastemakers Africa getting its workers trips to Senegal.
The power of smartphones and social media has played a key role in making businesses successful in Africa. Globetrotters are becoming huge through the use of various social media platforms. The internet is also improving communication between people and countries. This has exposed different parts of the world to different people which is a positive thing the economic development. The startup has plans to open up in Côte d’Ivoire and Abidjan. Furthermore, they are planning to explore every city they are present in using the mobile app. Dakar Lives will go on with its mission of giving the real picture of Senegal and the whole of Africa. Ndiaye highlighted some of the eight things that she likes doing in Dakar. Here they are.
Early in the morning go for a surf session and have your breakfast at Copacabana, Secret Spot or Plage du Virage in Almadies.
Pay a visit at Leopold Senghor Museum. This is the home of the first Senegalese president that have 9,000 artifacts.
Take your time and hike, picnic and scuba dive at Les Iles de la Madeleine.
Acknowledge the capital’s street art scene in the Medina surrounding.
Take a look at colored local boats (pirogue) at the Soumbedioune fish market.
Have your dinner at Bazoff Pub-Restaurant. This is a place known for great African dishes. Furthermore, it hosts live band performance every Thursday.
On Saturday pay a visit to Fool Moon and party there. You will also have time to meet a number of different people.
Your week will not be over without watching Senegalese wrestlers training at sunset.
