Africa’s first coworking report shows more and more Nigerian entrepreneurs are embracing the trend

40% of the workforce are predicted to be entrepreneurs and freelancers by 2020, a major driver in the rise in demand for coworking spaces.

After 6 months of research, over 200 survey participants and 76 coworking spaces listed, Venia Business Hub presents the first coworking report in Nigeria.

The report shows that 68% of coworkers are able to focus better while working, 64% of coworkers were better able to complete the task on time and 90% of coworkers felt more confident.

There is a 41% annual growth of people using coworking spaces, 24%annual growth of coworking spaces, $1 billion investment funding in 2016 alone, 1.3 billion predicted number of remote workers by 2020, and in 2016 a total capacity space was available for 1.5 million members globally.

Also according to the report, the estimated number of coworking spaces in Africa grew from about 24 spaces in 2013 to over 250 spaces in 2016. These numbers suggest that the African coworking space will follow a similar growth path to that observed for Europe and America. As at the time of the report, there are coworking spaces in 46 African countries, with representation in every region of the continent. South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, and Egypt appear to have the most developed coworking markets in their respective region. Places in Nigeria with coworking spaces are Lagos (50), FCT (10), Rivers (4), Ogun (3), Oyo (3), Akwa-Ibom (2), Delta (1) 8. Plateau (1), Kwara (1), Kaduna (1) and Kano (1).

Certain drivers in Nigeria that make the demand for coworking space high include entrepreneurial energy, digitisation, infrastructural gap and foreign investment.

Coworking increases  job creation and investment financiers, improves business quality and growth and creates traffic optimisation: the realization of urban areas, ease of doing business and creative space.

The future of the industry in Nigeria is bright, but not without its risks. A large downward correction in real estate prices or substantial hike in rental fees by landlords upon current lease completions could have a significant impact on coworking space economics and viability of the business.

The continued proliferation of coworking spaces could also negatively impact on quality and industry perception if there are no clear standards or guidelines to ensure quality is maintained. The increase in spaces also means an increase in member choice and possible reduction in member loyalty.

The industry operators will need to be intentional in managing the landlord relationship while ensuring reasonable occupancy ratios and identifying additional sources of revenue. Despite these risks, the report remains very optimistic.