Clinton Imaro: 17-Year-Old Founder Of Afro Now, An App That Reduces The Amount Of Data Spent On Entertainment
Most African teenagers exposed to digitalisation and technology daily are presented with opportunities to be adequately equipped and attuned to the current revolution. The situation has motivated them to take actions that have both internal and external impacts.
This week, DT Africa reported on 15 years old John Oseni, a crypto guru and author of 4 tech books. Today, we are throwing the spotlight on 17-year-old Clinton Imaro.
Clinton Imaro is a student and a Nigerian from Benin City, Edo State, with an undying passion for the creative and technology industry. He is a self-taught Programmer, Story Teller, Filmmaker, Editor and Tech Content Creator. He is passionate about edtech advocacy and looks forward to becoming a Future Skills Activist.
He is also the founder of CodeSpace and Afro Now. CodeSpace is a platform that aims to build a community for teenagers. Founded in 2020 because of his love for early teaching tech skills to young people, the platform aims to show the world how ready and capable these teenagers are to rewrite the African narrative through technology. The platform further exists as a tech-based freelance portal that bridges the gap between companies and tech gurus.
On the other hand, Afro Now is a mobile app developed to reduce the amount of data spent watching movies and shows online. The app allows users to watch their favourite Live TV channels, Series, News, Movies, and Reality Shows on the go without any interruption on their Android phone. Streaming over 100+ LIVE TV channels and entertainment programs on Android phones, the app has taken online video viewing experience to the next level.
“I have always wanted to be involved in innovation growing up as a kid. So I taught myself these programming languages; Dart, HTML, Javascript, python and Afro Now Java programming language. I was 13 when I started learning Java Programming, a six-month program at KIP Tech in Abuja. However, I had to learn everything in the space of one month.
“In all these, I am grateful to my mum and my uncle for their support. They made my path through the tech space and the creative industry more comfortable. I am also thankful for the likes of Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and Tayo Aina for being icons and significantly impacting my journey so far,” Clinton commented.
In 2018, Clinton participated in a talent hunt competition in his school and emerged as the winner of his category. He crafted a carton Automated Teller Machine (ATM) to dispense cash. In 2020 the programmer participated in the Google Java exam, and he emerged as one of the best and was awarded the BEST JAVA DEVELOPER in 2020. In 2021 Clinton was nominated and won the most Enterprising Youth Male South-South, Edisa award. Again in 2021, he was among the first teens to have an exclusive interview with KCCA, which was published in their nationwide magazines. In that same year, he was also one of the young teen speakers for the 1st Nigeria Teen Cyber Festival, held in Jos and partly online due to covid-19.
Speaking on his challenges, Clinton said, “I must say one of the greatest challenges I have encountered, or I will say that was in me for a very long time, is fear to speak in public and showcase my worth.
In some years time, this is what the programmer has to say about himself and Nigeria:
“Currently, I am building a Nigeria-based social media platform which is still in its testing phase. In the future, I see the platform working and making waves with my talents and being one of the best tech prodigies Nigeria has ever produced. Programming will increase considerably in Nigeria, people will appreciate it more, and our educational system will adapt. We have witnessed numerous tech startups obtaining massive funding in the last year, and there will be more of that.”
