This Ghana-made app will dramatically alter how you listen to radio

Ghana’s technology scene has recorded significant growth over the last few years. There has been a significant rise in the number of students studying computer classes with coding classes and hackathons springing out of nowhere.

While, the country is yet to produce the next Zuckerberg, some innovators have not done too badly for themselves. The next application hoping to join this growing list is AF Radio.

According to the National Communications Authority, there are 412 licenced radio stations in the country. Research also shows that unlike in previous decades when people listened to a particular station all the time, contemporary audiences (especially young people) listen to shows instead and shuffle radio stations based on the shows.

As radio’s influence continues to reign strong in Ghana, there are many more exciting programmes on offer; from talk to variety shows.

The aim of AF Radio is to bring convenience to the Ghanaian audience so that they can catch up with their favourite radio programmes when they can’t listen live.

“There is a lot of great content on the radio but people are not listening due to the convenience. From WhatsApp to Uber to Amazon, convenience is [at the heart of these creations]”, says Bubunyo Nyavor, founder of AF Radio.

“There is a saying that radio doesn’t repeat itself and we are breaking that rule. When people realise this simple fact they can make radio repeat itself, the feeling is unreal.”

The app has a simple but colourful interface with the various shows on offer. For now, majority of the shows on the app are produced by Accra-based radio stations. The app launched with over 60 shows and over 40 radio stations. They already have a deal with 3FM (92.7).

But is this not essentially just like TuneIn, the US based platform that allows you to stream radio broadcasts anywhere in the world.

“Yes we provide the same functionality but what matters is how we do it. With a show, you get a notification when it starts if you subscribe and you also get a live social feed for a show to know what other people on social media are also saying about the show. AF Radio is your one stop shop for all you audio content needs. Both past and the present” – Nyavor says.

The iOS version of AF Radio should be ready in mid-2017 according to Nyavor; who has hopes that the app will become “a household name for audio content in Africa and around in the next five years.