LOCAL SPOTLIGHT: Shalom Rayhamen: The Whiz-Girl Who Put Lagos In A Game

At 26, Nigerian software developer Ijeoma Shalom Rayhamen has become one of the country’s most talked-about young tech creators.

Rayhamen is the brain behind Lagos Life, the browser-based simulation game that turns everyday Nigerian experiences — jobs, rent, transport, money and social life — into a virtual world. She began building the game on the night of September 30 and released it the following morning, October 1, 2026.

But her journey into technology began years earlier. Rayhamen started learning software development as a teenager, taking a coding internship in 2018. She has spoken about learning under difficult conditions, including unreliable electricity, poor internet access, and limited equipment.

Those years of experience came together with Lagos Life. Inspired in part by *The Sims 3* and the Nigerian browser game Lagos Run, she built something distinctly Nigerian — and millions responded.

Today, Rayhamen is the co-founder of Vatar, the company behind Lagos Life. Days after launch, Vatar raised $500,000 at a reported $10 million valuation.

For Rayhamen, Lagos may only be the first stop. Her ambition is to build more virtual worlds rooted in places Africans recognise as home.