Call for speakers
Take the stage in Lagos
Two days of sessions on 22 and 23 October at the National Art Theatre, Lagos. This year’s theme is New Trade Routes: Bringing Africa Onchain. What it takes to move African work onto open rails, and what changes once it is there.
We are looking for builders, operators, investors, policymakers and creators with something specific to say. A talk about one thing you have actually done beats a survey of a field, and we would rather hear a real disagreement than a safe consensus.
4 formats, across two days
Each day has its own shape, and each format belongs to one of them. Pick the one that fits the idea, not the one that sounds most senior. A sharp seven minutes is often worth more than a talk stretched to fill its slot, and a workshop people leave having built something beats both.
Day 1
9am – 2pmWorkshops and masterclasses. Hands-on, skills-first sessions for founders, builders, creators and marketers.
Day 2
9am – 5pmThe main conference. Panels and lightning talks in front of the full audience.
You can also apply as open to either day.
Workshop
Day 1 · 60 minHands-on, participatory, activity-driven. People leave having built or practised something rather than having watched you do it. Bring the repo, the dataset, the contract or the worksheet.
Masterclass
Day 1 · 20 min + 10 min Q&AAn expert-led deep dive with structured questions at the end. Best for a method you have refined and can genuinely teach in one sitting.
Panel discussion
Day 2 · 45–60 minSeveral voices on a question that genuinely divides them, with a moderator. Bring the disagreement, not the consensus.
Lightning talk
Day 2 · 7–10 minOne speaker, one idea, sharply made, no room to warm up. Often the most memorable thing on a programme.
6 tracks
The programme runs on these six. The application asks you to place your session, and lets you pick more than one, so if it sits across two, say so and say why.
AI & Blockchain
Where intelligence meets ownership. Exploring the convergence reshaping the next decade.
Government & Policy
Direct dialogue with regulators, lawmakers, and ecosystem shapers.
Investment & Funding
Bridging founders with the capital fueling Africa's next wave.
Technical Infrastructure
The protocols, primitives, and rails powering what comes next.
Creative Economy
Music, art, fashion, and culture meeting Web3 and AI.
Talent & Career Launchpad
Where Africa's brightest builders meet their next opportunity.
Have these ready
The form needs a Google account and saves a draft as you go, so you can leave and come back. The writing is the slow part, though, and twenty minutes gathering this first is the difference between a considered application and an abandoned one.
Who you are, and where to find you
Full name, email, phone number with country code, company, job title, and the city and country you live in. Plus your LinkedIn or personal site and your X handle.
The day and the format
Which day you are applying for — day one, day two, or open to either — and which of the four formats fits. The formats are tied to days, so these two answers move together.
A session title and description
100 to 300 words on what attendees will actually learn or do. Specific beats broad: a session about one thing you have done lands better than a survey of a field.
Two or three key takeaways
What people leave with. This is the question that separates a talk with a point from a talk with a topic, so it is worth drafting before the description.
Who it is for
Which audiences the session serves — developers, creatives, founders, policy and legal, investors, marketers, newcomers — and whether it assumes no prior Web3 knowledge, some, or a room of practitioners.
Your bio and your case
A bio of up to 200 words in the third person, a short answer on why you are the right person to deliver this session, and one to three events you have spoken at with the topic, year and links.
Logistics
What you need in the room — projector, microphone, high-capacity WiFi for a workshop, a live coding or demo environment — whether you are Lagos-based, travelling in or joining virtually, and whether you can cover your own travel and accommodation.
Why Blockfest, and one last yes or no
A short paragraph on why you want to speak at Blockfest Africa in particular — a different question from why you are the right person for the session — and whether you are willing to do a short video interview after the event.
Before you apply
4 consent questions close the form. None of it should be a surprise by the time you get there.
- Applying does not guarantee a speaking slot.
- If selected, your name, bio and session title may be used on the site, in promotional material and on social media.
- Sessions may be recorded and photographed, and published or shared online afterwards.
- The team will contact you by email or phone about your application, and about logistics if you are selected.
Apply
Sessions are selected on the strength of the idea and the fit with the programme, not on follower count.
Coming in from outside Lagos? Getting to Lagos covers the venue, visas and accommodation. Not a speaker but still want in? Volunteering is open.