He develops initiatives that are reshaping how young people approach technology, opening new opportunities to experiment, create, and build practical solutions.
Dodji Honou is a serial entrepreneur who has spent several years building fab labs across West Africa. Based in Côte d'Ivoire, he is the co-founder and CEO of HFabLab, a digital fabrication laboratory designed to promote hands-on learning for young people, regardless of their background or language.
Founded in 2021, HFabLab offers a space where people can design, build, and refine everyday objects. The initiative helps turn ideas into prototypes, test new approaches, and develop projects that respond to real-world needs.
The lab develops training programs built around practical, experience-based learning. Participants are introduced to digital fabrication tools and learn to use them to design and carry out their own projects. HFabLab runs workshops for audiences ranging from children to adults, with sessions tailored to different skill levels. Courses cover robotics, drone piloting, laser cutting, electronics, programming, IoT devices and 3D printing.
Alongside HFabLab, Dodji Honou is also the co-founder and CEO of H-Venture, an Ivorian technology company. He serves as President of Forum 2040, a think tank focused on the future of learning ecosystems in Côte d'Ivoire, and as Vice-President of the Francophone Network of West African Fab Labs (ReFFAO). He is also a makerspace and fab lab specialist with JokkoLabs.
Before founding H-Venture and HFabLab, Honou co-founded Digitek Plus in 2016, which he managed until 2019. The company provided tech services to micro- and small businesses in the informal sector and offered IT training to young people who left school early.
Honou graduated from École libre africaine des technologies et des sciences appliquées (ELATSA) in Togo in 2009 with a Bachelor's degree in Marketing Management and Communication. From 2012 to 2015, he served as Executive Director of Woelab in Lomé. During that same period, from 2013 to 2014, he worked with the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) as a Fab Lab facilitator and multimedia specialist.
Melchior Koba
