West Africa Herald Interviews Africlick Founder, Dayo Akinrinade
A new dating app is shaking up the romantic and networking scene for young Africans on the continent and in the wider European and American diaspora. Africlick, describing itself as a ‘Networking & Dating App for ambitious African-Caribbean Professionals’ launched initially in London back in 2018. It has since rapidly expanded across West Africa and over into the US. The West Africa Herald spoke with Africlick Founder, Dayo Akinrinade to find out a little bit more about the app and what makes her ‘click’.
WAH: Could you tell us a little, in your own words, about how the app works?
DA: Africlick is where Africans click. We are a new dating and networking app for ambitious professionals and creatives of African heritage, globally.
Africlick is free to download from the app store and our intuitive user interface allows you to easily make a profile. Then, through a gamified interface, Africlick’s proprietary algorithm will show potential matches near you. If two people mutually like each other, then you can chat through the app. Africlick takes the heavy lifting out of dating, because when you match with someone, you already know that they have liked you - we eliminate the initial uncertainty.
WAH: What was your motivation for founding your own online dating app?
My motivation for launching Africlick was to offer Africans a safe and encouraging space for online dating. Although we represent 17% of the world’s population, we have at best been ignored and at worst discriminated against by mainstream dating apps. Personally, I have had numerous poor experiences on other apps where race was the key factor. Sadly, this was not unique to me. Numerous studies have shown that black users are less likely to get matches and face racism, fetishization and other difficulties on mainstream dating apps.
WAH: Before Africlick was founded, what did the dating and networking scene look like for an ambitious black woman or man in London and in Lagos? Did the experience vary between cities? Are there different expectations for dating in the African diaspora?
DA: Due to the dispersed population, a single person living in the diaspora often struggles to meet new people who share their African heritage. Often at work, you are one of two black people in the office. Once you have exhausted your immediate friendship circles, opportunities to meet new people are often few and far between.
Single Lagosians, as with many Africans, say their challenge is quality over quantity. Meaning, although there are millions of eligible singles they are very particular in selecting a partner. We all have dating dealbreakers like having a degree, not smoking or sharing religious beliefs. At Africlick we believe you should have high standards and dating apps let you be selective about who you date, as you can filter out your dealbreakers, to zoom in on your perfect person.
WAH: Where are you hoping to expand to next?
DA: My ambition is for Africlick to be global, whether you live in London, Harare or Houston, Africlick will be available to help you date and network with people who share your culture. I was recently advised to expand to mainland China next, as a sizeable African community is located there.
WAH: Your app is unusual compared to Hinge or Bumble in that it allows users to specify their cultural heritage and religion. Why was it so important for you to have those specified?
DA: Much like the prolific rise of Afrobeats music, African millennials and gen-y want to use products that reflect their culture. For our users, their cultural heritage and religion form a key part of their identity and who they chose to be in a relationship with. My background is in data analytics and I personally designed Africlick’s matching algorithm that takes the desires of an African millennial into account.
WAH: Covid-19 has been shown to deeply affect the health of the BAME community. How do you think dating apps are faring in this time of social distancing?
DA: Social distancing has not stopped the individual’s quest to find love. Due to social venues being closed, increasingly more people are downloading dating apps to give them a new way to make meaningful connections. So, Covid-19 actually caused a boom in the dating industry.
WAH: Africlick has provisions for sickle cell, would you consider expanding this for Covid-19 or other diseases?
DA: Africlick focuses on sickle cell because it is primarily an African blood disorder. As sickle cell is hereditary, us young Africans have a duty to be aware of our genotype and make informed dating and family planning decisions. We take a sensitive approach to this and do not display any sensitive information on the app or publicly. Instead, we encourage our users to be aware of their status and have open conversations on the topic. We are the only dating app in the world to do this.
WAH: Currently, countries all over the world are exploring their relationship with institutions, whether that is systematic racism in the West or police violence and sexism in Africa. What has been your experience growing up British-Nigerian and having a career in STEM as a black woman?
DA: My Computer Science background and career as a Big Four IT Management Consultant has enabled me to acquire valuable skills and work in global tech centres such as Hyderabad. However, I was often the only black person in the business division or project and this made for an uncomfortable existence at times. Technology influences every industry and a more diverse technology workforce is needed to ensure equality in outcomes for black citizens in every aspect of society.
WAH: You have previously spoken about trying to enact “the democratisation of information” in business and technology circles. Have you seen any changes during your career through affirmative action programs or mentoring schemes? What do you want to see changed in professional working structures?
DA: I think that every organisation should be on a journey towards a state where diversity and inclusion is embedded into every departmental function. They should be transparent and accountable on their objectives and this leads to sustainable diversity.
To this end, I co-founded a diversity in tech consultancy called YSYS Consulting. I worked with a number of tech accelerators such as Startup Bootcamp and Geovation and advised on business strategy to enable organisations to achieve sustainable diversity. This was part of the One Tech programme, which was backed by the JP Morgan Chase Foundation and featured in City AM and Forbes.
Africlick is available to download on the App Store now.
Photos: Africlick
