It’s been a wild ride since February, when I stepped into my role as Citrea Nigeria Community Lead. I came into this expecting energy, collaboration, maybe even a bit of chaos but...
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It’s been a wild ride since February, when I stepped into my role as Citrea Nigeria Community Lead. I came into this expecting energy, collaboration, maybe even a bit of chaos but I didn’t expect how nuanced it would be. Community building sounds simple until you’re on the ground, watching how people behave when incentives are abundant, fragmented, or missing entirely.
Last year, I launched the Beaconsmith House: an AI-powered art gallery and also now blockchain hub. It became a home for creators and now, for builders. A place where people aren’t bound by lack of electricity, poor connectivity, or missing infrastructure. No gatekeeping, just free access to power, internet, space, and a sense of belonging. It quickly became the unofficial HQ of Citrea Nigeria. Communities host events here. Builders come to collaborate. And it’s become one of the easiest ways I connect with seasoned developers and new talent alike.
Having an edge like this makes a huge difference. But it doesn’t make the work easy. Truth is, building community is hard, especially in an environment like ours, where pay disparities and varying access to capital shape everything. Some builders come with large warchests, but ironically contribute very little. They rarely step outside their comfort zones, builders are like evangelists.
Then there are those with smaller budgets; also genuinely trying to build but struggling to keep up with Nigeria’s harsh business environment. For them, the high cost of doing even basic things creates a ceiling they can’t easily break.
Some of these builders come to the Beaconsmith House and make it their home. They fix bugs, mentor newcomers, clean up after meetups. Others? They walk in, ask about the next airdrop, and vanish. I can’t always tell who’s real at first glance and honestly, that’s a drain. You end up spending too much energy trying to read people’s intentions instead of building with those who are clearly here for the long haul. Everyone is also operating in a low trust environment, Founders and builders alike.
The culture of incentives has made this worse. People now connect every skill, every action, every event to a potential payout. Remove the reward, and they’re gone. And on top of that, people are just burnt out. Juggling a hundred Discords, scrolling through Telegram, according to them trying to keep up it’s too much. The noise is deafening, and the useful bits are buried so deep that most newcomers don’t even know where to begin.
Then there are the seasoned Web3 networks; Superteam types. They’re sharp. They know exactly where the money is, and they go there. They contribute, yes. But always with one eye on the prize. And to be fair, that’s not inherently bad; it’s just how the game is played right now.
Then you’ve got the fresh faces. People who saw their friends win and dove in hoping to catch some of the magic. They jump from event to event, looking for the thing that’ll change their lives. If they find it, they stick around for a bit. If not, they move on.
That’s the weird tension Web3 creates. It loves its power users who end up extracting value. And it hates its low-quality users who barely participate before disappearing, but then you look around at events, and who's there? Mostly newbies. Everyone is optimizing for something, and very few are here just to build. You’re left assuming the value is somewhere in the room, even when it’s not obvious. And that’s risky for any project trying to play the long game.
InfoFi didn’t help. With leaderboards like Kaito, platforms like Loudio, and all the hype around “creator seasons,” everyone’s chasing points and retweeting the same threads.
But here’s what I’ve learned: when you anchor your community in a physical space where people can look each other in the eye, share resources, solve problems you create something more real. At Beaconsmith House, we’ve seen that firsthand. When you remove the pay to play mindset and offer consistency, space, and a shared mission, people rise. The ones who care show up. Not because they’re being paid to, but because they believe in what we’re building.
What I’ve observed is that pairing community activities with a physical space like the Beaconsmith House is game-changing. It creates a real shift. I see genuine engagement flourish. People start showing up not for quick wins but to be part of something meaningful. They contribute because they care, and they stick around because they see where it’s going.
Coincidentally, we’re not alone in this approach. Across the continent, we’re seeing similar physical hubs emerge like Web3bridge Garage in Lagos, supported by Lisk Africa.
@LiskHQ also helped launch the @ayahq_ Builder Hub in Kilifi, Kenya a space where builders can connect, work, and experiment together. According to @eannan_24, Lisk recognizes that IRL collaboration isn’t a “nice-to-have” but a necessary vehicle to unlock the African token economy.
The link is clear: when builders are grounded, purpose-driven, and resourced, ecosystems grow in ways digital incentives alone can’t replicate.
Still, one thing that stings for Builders is seeing projects exploit the builders who are contributing the most. That imbalance becomes extractive if left unchecked. Value should be respected and properly compensated. Otherwise, you end up turning contributors into mercenaries or burning them out completely. Building with conviction shouldn’t mean being taken for granted.
This model proves what we’ve always felt: money can’t reliably buy authentic support. But building from a position of strength and clarity can. That’s what we’ve done with ArtwaveDAO and powering our activities with culture, code, and tech; and with the Beaconsmith Collective @D_Beaconsmiths, helping fund initiatives towards the increased adoption of emerging technologies in Nigeria.
This isn’t the end. But it’s a solid beginning.
~Ndiokwelu Nzube
The Beaconsmith
