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Good practice Imported

iCampus Liberia — Monrovia's First Multi-Disciplinary Innovation Space

Liberia · Monrovia · See the Liberia profile · See the Monrovia profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 83% 52/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

Liberia's first multi-disciplinary innovation and co-working space opened in Monrovia in 2018, growing to 10,000+ members, 500+ events and 150+ mentored startups and organisations, backed by USAID, UNDP, Orange and Mercy Corps.

10,000+ members
Community members (by mid-2020s)
500+ events
Events hosted (since 2018)
150+ organisations
Startups and organisations mentored (since 2018)
iCampus Liberia — Monrovia's First Multi-Disciplinary Innovation Space

Details

Maturity
Scaling
Promoter
iCampus Liberia (iLab Liberia & Accountability Lab)
Period
2018-present
Keywords
innovation hub, co-working, entrepreneurship, civic tech, youth employment

Context

iCampus Liberia grew out of iLab Liberia, established in 2016, and was formally launched by iLab Liberia and Accountability Lab on 5 July 2018 at 150 Carey Street in Monrovia, as the country's first multi-disciplinary innovation and community space at the intersection of technology, accountability and social change.

Activities

The 4,000-square-foot facility offers tiered co-working memberships, from a $25/month hot desk to $350+/month private offices, hosts Orange's FabLab digital-fabrication space, and channels the LiYEPA results-based grants facility (grants up to $8,000 per SME) delivered with UNDP, Mercy Corps' PROSPECTS IV programme and Liberia's Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Funding and programme partners include USAID, UNDP, Indigo Trust, the Tecovas Foundation, Open Gov Hub, the AfriLabs pan-African hub network, and Orange.

Results

By the mid-2020s, iCampus reported a community of more than 10,000 members, over 500 events hosted, and 150+ startups and organisations mentored, with resident groups ranging from the Monrovia Football Academy to Landesa and the Liberia Visual Art Academy.

Conclusions

All operational figures are self-reported by iCampus and its partners; no independent third-party evaluation of jobs, revenue or firm survival was found.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k)
Time to results
Long (> 3 years)
Staffing & skills
Founded and run by iLab Liberia and Accountability Lab; hosts Orange's FabLab digital-fabrication space on-site, LiYEPA grants facility delivered jointly with UNDP, Mercy Corps' PROSPECTS IV programme and Liberia's Ministry of Commerce and Industry

Conditions for success

  • Tiered co-working membership pricing ($25–$350+/month) sustains part of operating costs alongside donor funding
  • Results-based SME grants (up to $8,000) give the space a concrete business-support function beyond co-working
  • A diverse funding base (USAID, UNDP, Indigo Trust, Tecovas Foundation, Open Gov Hub, AfriLabs, Orange) spreads dependency risk

Common failure modes

  • All operational figures (membership, events, mentoring) are self-reported by iCampus and its partners; no independent evaluation of jobs, revenue or firm survival was found

Where it fits

Governance type
NGO-led innovation hub
Scale
city (Monrovia)
Income level
low-income

Commonly funded by

Philanthropic / foundation funding

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

Attachments

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