Startup Guide Accra
5 min read
ccra is the heart of Ghana’s business community and has a rapidly growing ecosystem of startups and entrepreneurs. But where do these founders and teams work from and gather for events?
Providing business support services, comfortable work environments and offering valuable networking opportunities, there are some excellent coworking spaces in Accra. Informed by Startup Guide Accra, here are coworking spaces the local ecosystem recognizes as the city’s best.
📍14 Koi St., Accra
Launched in 2018, Kukun aims to provide space for small startups and new entrepreneurs to allow them to grow into something bigger. A few teams have been here since the space opened, but most stay for about a year before outgrowing it. “It is satisfying to see that they’re ready for something else,” says founder Danielle Kenner.
Kukun is based in a renovated building and has ten private offices, a meeting room, a coworking area and a cafe, all spread over three floors. The offices are suitable for teams of up to four people and can be rented for $750 per month. Coworking desks are $18 per day or $78 per week and there are discounts on both office and coworking space if they’re rented for more than three months.
The ground-floor cafe is open to the public and spills out onto a large garden. Kukun hosts regular events such as film screenings and panels, and also acts as a gallery for local artists’ work.
📍Justice Azu Crabbe, East Legon, Accra
BaseCamp Initiative was launched in February 2018 to identify African talent through a communal creative hub that facilitates collaboration, networking and leisure.
The space has both indoor and outdoor coworking areas, meeting rooms, private offices, event spaces, a design studio and leisure and gaming facilities. It is a unique environment specifically designed to foster creative-thinking skills, irrespective of area of expertise.
“Our pool of clients includes students, freelancers, entrepreneurs, independent contractors, employees, SMEs, startups and pioneers of all walks of life,” says Sunita Kragbe, founder and CEO.
Members gain access to networking opportunities and admission to creative events, training sessions and workshops. Sunita says BaseCamp Initiative is a unique ecosystem that is seeking to change the status quo.
“The African continent is bursting with jewels and gems of ingenuity hidden under a rough terrain,” she says. “Travelers, returnees and locals are in search of networking opportunities to facilitate meaningful partnerships with like-minded individuals. Many seek to be part of a dynamic community and have access to the right resources to work on their passion projects. That is why we are here.”
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📍Accra Digital Centre, Ring Road West, Accra
Ghana Innovation Hub (GIH) is a coworking space focused on nurturing upcoming entrepreneurs. Situated in the Accra Digital Centre, it welcomes both entrepreneurs who want to use the space for just a day and those looking for a long-term base.
GIH has an open-plan coworking area with hot desks, as well as private offices, boardroom facilities, a separate space to brainstorm and a large training/event space. The organization provides support to members in the ideation, incubation and acceleration stages of their businesses, as well as training, tools and learning solutions, all in an effort to grow the local ecosystem.
It also hosts regular events including monthly meetups that allow members to network with each other and guests, and an annual three-day innovation festival where entrepreneurs present their products and services.
Equipped with a makerspace for hardware prototyping, a space for digital media and creative arts, and dedicated labs for research, development and scaling of local innovations, Ghana Tech Lab aims to accelerate digital innovation across Ghana.
“As a key ecosystem enabler, Ghana Tech Lab also engages in local ecosystem-mapping activities to effectively map out and engage with key local ecosystem players across the country and make this data available to all stakeholders,” says cofounder Jorge Appiah.
The space differentiates itself from other hubs through its proactive approach and its focus on equipping people with the skills and support they need to build innovative tech solutions and create jobs. The organization reaches out to the grassroots and actively seeks partners and investors to help its members’ startups succeed.
“Apart from coworking opportunities, we also provide access to other facilities for startups and entrepreneurs to build their products and services,” said Jorge. “We also provide business development and technical support to startups within our communities, as well as connecting them with both internal and external resources, expertise and opportunities.”
📍F 393/4 Otswe St., Osu Ako-Adjei, Accra
Founded in 2013, Impact Hub Accra provides practical infrastructure and support for early-stage startups, including its pay-as-you-go coworking space. It also works with corporate entities and government agencies to support entrepreneurs who have drive but lack business experience, such as providing fundraising advice or capacity-building programs.
The facility spans three buildings in a residential area, where there is room for the organization to achieve its goal of expanding to 20,000 square meters of live, work and play space.
It started out as a one-room experimental incubator attached to the Open University of West Africa (OUWA), an edtech startup founded by John Roberts. The energy and quality of ideas coming from the incubator prompted leaders within the OUWA community to turn it into a hub, and as it continued to grow they applied to be part of the Impact Hub global network.
“We had serious local roots, but we lacked global leverage,” says cofounder Kelechi Ofoegbu. “Our purpose evolved from trying to consolidate the renewed energy in the Africa Rising narrative to building locally relevant ecosystems that form a giant springboard for the next generation of African businesses.”
📍 14 Otu Adzin Rd., Spintex Rd., Accra
“iSpace is a space that belongs to the entrepreneur,” says cofounder and CEO Josiah Kwesi Eyison. “We provide a conducive environment for entrepreneurs to focus on their ideas and not worry so much about everything else.”
The foundation is a technology and innovation hub for entrepreneurs to meet potential collaborators, apply for funding, work on projects with external clients and ultimately become empowered to work toward societal impact. Members can attend ideation training sessions or business-model workshops and have access to MVP support.
Entrepreneurs who incubate their businesses at iSpace and are ready to launch gain access to the coworking space, which includes private offices and meeting rooms. iSpace also has programs including a coding school, women-focused initiatives, satellite programs for children and more.
Above all, the space is community driven. “iSpace has always been about responding to the needs of the community, as opposed to just being a coworking space,” says Josiah.
Want to know more about Accra’s startup ecosystem?
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Written by Alyx Carolus, Lester Isaac Simon, Rachel Velebny and Tom Jackson.
Repackaged by Hazel Boydell.
