Two Ghana-based developers have launched an events-based iOS and Android mobile app Suba that allows everyone to see and share photos together in one central photo stream
The African mobile messaging service was developed by co-founders Nelson Klutse and Eric Hackman.
Nelson Klutse, CEO of Suba, said, “We came up with the concept for Suba after attending a friend’s wedding. Everyone was taking pictures, and we realised that we’d never have a chance to see them.
According to both, Suba goes beyond the constraints of a ‘Friends List’ common to other social platforms, and allows event attendees to see, save, and share everyone’s photos — even the photos of people they aren’t already connected to, the developers said.
“Our ultimate ambition is to be globally synonymous with event experiences. Wherever there’s an event happening, it should be known that Suba is where you can find all of the photos taken at the event.”
The name ‘Suba’ has been derived from the word ‘nsuba,’ which means stream in Twi, Ghana’s local language. Suba’s unique features help event attendees relive the best moments from social gatherings in a fun, exciting way, the developers said.
According to the developers, time and place are a lot more central to the Suba experience than in other photo apps. All photo streams are anchored to a specific location, and each stream tells the story of people celebrating together at a particular moment in time.
With the app, a physical location connects event attendees to each other, and so strangers can quickly share photos with everyone else who was there without having to hastily scribble down contact details.
Suba’s doodle feature allows friends to scribble, mark up, and otherwise add a personal touch to the memory described by the photo.
“People are often surprised that we’re developers from Africa. The common narrative of the continent is usually one of poverty or aid, so the idea that something as innovative as Suba could be created here is a contrast to many people’s misconceptions of Africa,” says Eric Hackman, co-founder of Suba.
To expand into international markets, Suba is partnering with event producers in cities such as New York, Rio de Janeiro, Paris, and Mumbai to introduce the app to cultural influencers with the ultimate goal of making Suba globally synonymous with shared event experiences.
Suba is currently available as a free app in the iOS App Store and Google Play Store.
