Success is made up of 1% dreams and 99% hard work
At the age of 20, did you envisage your current self? At the age of 20 I was still on the university campus thinking of parties and academic course work rather than thinking of entrepreneurship! But let’s just say that my life has been filled with a lot of interesting
I believe in luck because I’m a product of it
When I started my career, I got a job I applied for despite not meeting the advertised criteria. That was luck at play, but I also believed that I was good enough to make a difference, so I offered myself. Luck was what made my boss at the time read
My dreams for Africa: reflecting on #UBAAfricaConversations for the #UBAAfricaDay2021.
Yesterday, at the 3rd United Bank for Africa Conversations (#UBAAfricaConversations) celebrating Africa Day, I was privileged to moderate a profoundly moving conversation, with some of Africa’s most prominent voices: Rwandan President, Paul Kagame, the World Trade Organisation’s Director-General, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; the World Health Organisation’s Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus;
Celebrating the Value and Dignity in our Labour
On May 1, we celebrated working women and men, in Africa and the world. Work gives us all dignity, it allows us to create value, to sustain our families, secure our futures. As an African, creating sustainable, meaningful employment is what drives me. It is why I champion entrepreneurship. Through
Five Personal Tips to Build a Successful Business
I gave a talk at the Lagos Business School ‘Dinner with…’ event earlier this week, where I addressed the room and shared my journey thus far. For budding entrepreneurs or those climbing the corporate ladder, read my tips below, which I hope will aid your own journey. #1 Save Money
An urgent call for a new African Order
The beginning of the year 2020 which also marked the start of a defining decade ushered in a series of dreadful disruptions. Unlike the 2008 global financial crisis where Africa was largely decoupled from the thick of the crisis and managed to muddle through fairly unscathed, this time around Africa holds the
A ‘Marshall Plan’ for Africa’s employment challenge
Unemployment, independent of any other factor, threatens to derail the economic promise that Africa deserves. It’s a time bomb with no geographical boundaries: Economists expect Africa to create 54 million new jobs by 2020, but 122 million Africans will enter the labor force during that time frame. Adding to this shortfall are
What Tomorrow’s Leaders Are Learning in Africa Right Now
This is the first of several commentaries on “The Paradox of Samsung’s Rise,” an article by Tarun Khanna, Jaeyong Song, and Kyungmook Lee in the July−August 2011 HBR. While it may not be intuitive to global readers, I see many similarities between Samsung’s transformation from local leader in Korea to major
In Africa, the best ‘charity’ is aid for business
he traditional approach to solving Africa’s problems has been to rely on charity and aid – free money, more or less. And while charity has done much good for millions across the continent in terms of food security, health care, emergency response, and education, its chief weakness is that its results
Good governance keeps renaissance on track
Free, fair and well-managed elections will increase confidence in Africa’s political class, its politics, people and economies, says Tony Elumelu. Johannesburg – I am optimistic about Africa and its future. I strongly believe a new Africa has begun to emerge, although one cannot dismiss the odd hurdle and challenge along
Progress in Africa Will Help Ease the Global Migrant Crisis
Images of refugees attempting to reach Europe through any and all possible means have dominated global media for weeks. Yet recent action by EU leaders to address this crisis, although laudable, in no way addresses the underlying challenges fueling the waves of migrants heading for European shores. Most of the migrants are
Africapitalism: empowering people works much better than giving them aid
I’ve long questioned the traditional approach to development where donors and governments invest in basic health, education and access to food in developing countries, with the hope that the beneficiaries will eventually become self-sufficient. While all assistance is to be acknowledged and appreciated,we need to rethink the ways in which
Germany’s New ‘Marshall Plan’ Must Treat Africa as an Equal Partner
One of the downsides of globalization is that local problems rarely stay local. Europe is straining under a tide of migrants, making the perilous journey from North Africa, across the Mediterranean. Tragically, thousands have lost their lives in the attempt, and thousands more who manage to reach Europe arrive only to
