The name might sound a bit intimidating, but it actually comes from two words: Fab and Lab (Fabrication Laboratory). In short, these are shared workspaces that provide the public with computer-controlled tools and manufacturing machinery previously reserved for professionals.
In addition, a Fablab is a place where high-performance machines are made available to users to help bring their projects to life. You will find equipment such as 3D printers and high-precision cutting tools.
For history buffs, Wikipedia notes that the concept was originally conceived by American physicist and computer scientist Neil Gershenfeld in the late 1990s. He based it on observations of hackerspaces transforming into makerspaces to meet the needs of local communities. Inspired by this, he designed what he called the FabLab, the first makerspace, where MIT students could gather to tinker and create things using digital fabrication. The concept eventually spread to other continents, including Africa.
With that clarified, it is important to understand how African entrepreneurs can benefit from it.
The success of FabLabs is built primarily on complementarity. Young talents meeting in a shared space have the opportunity to share values, knowledge, and equipment, among other things. Each project relies to some extent on the support of other members of the lab. The success of one is tied to the success of all, ensuring the sustainability of the ecosystem.
The first FabLabs in West Africa emerged around 2010, inspired by French innovation labs like Artilect and ElectroLab. Entrepreneurs like Gildas Guiella, Sénamé Koffi Agbodjinou, and Médard Agbayazon discovered the model and began setting up FabLabs in Burkina Faso and Togo. They quickly captured the interest of young people. Here, furniture, mobile apps, and various connected devices are brought to life. Gradually, these spaces are transforming into hubs for exchange, knowledge transfer, new technology training, and innovation.
In Cameroon, for example, we have Ongola FabLab, a digital fabrication laboratory designed to support young people in launching innovative projects by moving quickly from an idea to a functional prototype. Additionally, on May 23, 2019, the Agence universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF) and the Orange Foundation inaugurated Cameroon's first mobile digital fabrication laboratory.
This is essentially a truck equipped with three 3D printers, a digital embroidery machine, a laser cutter, and a vinyl cutter, all computer-controlled.
Main targets: disadvantaged youth, unemployed graduates, school pupils, students, teacher-researchers, digital startup founders and artisans, businesses, and local decentralized authorities.
Because, as Cécile Fonrouge points out in "FabLabs and the emergence of alternative figures of the entrepreneur, 2018", "FabLabs enable the democratisation of material innovation and thus the physical (re)appropriation of digital technology". They could therefore be at the heart of the digital challenge for the African continent.
FabLabs depend heavily on their social context to establish themselves. In most cases, their immediate environment determines the focus of their activities, as these centers aim to provide immediate responses to local challenges. Above all, they seek to address specific needs within a given environment. As the website The Conversation points out, "They sit precisely at the intersection of the social necessity to innovate 'differently' to solve local problems, and a culture of collaboration and open innovation rooted in Web 2.0." This applies particularly to fields like digital technology (app and website development), education (hosting training sessions), and creating everyday tools, all driven by the ingenuity of the participants.
Ultimately, for young entrepreneurs and innovators across the continent, this is a major opportunity. Fortunately, FabLabs are becoming more accessible and can be found almost everywhere in Africa. Several governments and NGOs support these initiatives, making the business world increasingly accessible to young creators. Professionals predict a bright future for these platforms.
Contributor: Daniel E.
