General News
How Tech Companies Can Help Reverse Talent Erosion in Rural Communities
By Andrew Bourne, Regional Manager, Africa, Zoho Corporation
For decades, companies, especially tech providers, have followed a certain operational pattern. They start out in a major city, raise funding from investors, attract talent from nearby towns and villages, and then repeat the model in another major city as they expand. However, the events of the last 12 months have shown us that this workforce model may actually be inefficient and detrimental to the world at large, in that it’s causing talent erosion in rural communities. Youth emigration, encouraged by scarcity of choice and opportunity in remote areas, is rendering these communities unstable and helpless in the long run.
One of the countermeasures to address rural decline is for tech companies to recognise that talent can operate from anywhere and provide employees the option of working from anywhere. By allowing skilled tech workers to work from their rural home towns, we can help previously struggling communities to become self-sufficient economic clusters and reduce many of the inequalities that have caused so much societal unrest over the past few years.
At Zoho, we refer to this approach as ‘transnational localism,’ which is all about the organisation’s growth being rooted in closely working with and serving the local communities around the world, all while staying globally connected through shared knowledge, capabilities, and culture. In line with this vision, when it comes to building human capital with a community-level impact, we believe that it’s important for tech companies to take the jobs right where the majority of the talent is – rural towns and villages.
The problem with concentrated resources in the urban landscape
Today, the majority of the resources and opportunities are concentrated in urban areas across the world. That’s why it’s common for tech graduates and entrepreneurial minds to flock to San Francisco, Tel-Aviv, Cape Town, Nairobi and other urban capitals to get a high-paying job or build their startups. The cities are home to top universities (providing the best tech talent), large reserves of capital (needed for investment), established entrepreneurial communities (having the much-needed support networks), and bustling tech hubs. The same holds true for other industries in other cities as well (finance in London, New York, and Johannesburg, for example).
Reversing the impact with rural tech offices, with the help of cloud connectivity
Over the past year or so, however, the uptick in digital adoption (owing to the pandemic) has shown us that remoteness does not limit exposure any more. Even as other supply chains were shut down or disrupted by COVID-19, businesses were able to carry on operating because connectivity and collaboration were unaffected by the pandemic.
Thanks to digital technologies like the cloud, pervasive broadband and virtual networking services, many employees who moved to their native locales (either to be closer to family or for a more relaxed pace of living owing to uncertain times) were able to continue working remotely without any interruptions.
This was also the time when Zoho decided to open small satellite offices to provide our employees, who had returned to their home towns, with an official working space nearby. The rural offices, which we first established in India, received such positive feedback from our employees that we accelerated our plans and opened many offices over the last year.
As of now, there are more than 30 Zoho offices in rural and non-urban areas around the world (most of them are in India; other regions include the US and Mexico). We will continue to build more of these offices across the world, to enable willing employees to relocate to their home towns and villages.
When skilled professionals return to their home towns, it results in a cross-pollination of ideas. Deep knowledge sharing networks slowly emerge and skill transfers become easier, leading to continual upskilling of the rural youth. This, coupled with new job opportunities created by rural tech offices, can contribute towards a better future for smaller communities and also promote holistic economic growth.
Embracing a better way
Today, we are clearly past the times when the only way for tech companies to maintain their corporate culture and build globally-competitive solutions was through city-centre monolithic office towers with sleeping pods and ping pong tables. There’s a better, more sustainable option now, facilitated by digital connectivity – a remotely distributed workforce strategy underpinned by a ‘hub-and-spoke’ model, with hub offices in secondary cities/towns and smaller ‘hubs’ in neighbouring villages that are instrumental in local community development and wealth creation.
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has yet to publish its annual financial statements beyond the 2022 financial year, despite legal provisions requiring the apex bank to release its audited accounts annually.
An annual report is a comprehensive report on a company’s activities throughout the preceding year.
Annual reports are intended to give shareholders and other interested people information about the company’s activities and financial performance.
The most recent annual report and financial statements of the CBN available to the public remain those for the 2022 financial year.
Under Section 50 of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Act, the bank is required to prepare, submit and publish its audited annual financial statements.
Section 50(1) stipulates that the CBN must transmit its annual accounts, certified by an external auditor, to the President and the National Assembly within two months after the end of each financial year.
Section 50(2) further provides that the annual report submitted to the President and the National Assembly should be published in a manner determined by the CBN Governor, while Section 50(3) mandates the CBN Board to ensure the accounts are published in the Federal Government Gazette as soon as possible.
Despite these statutory requirements, the apex bank has not made public any annual financial statements after the 2022 reporting year.
The development comes after the CBN, on August 11, 2023, released its consolidated financial statements covering seven years the first such publication since 2015.
President Bola Tinubu appointed Olayemi Cardoso as Governor of the CBN on September 15, 2023, following the removal of former Governor Godwin Emefiele in June of the same year.
Emefiele is currently facing trial over alleged corruption-related offences.
Last week, the Supreme Court ordered the final forfeiture of several of Emefiele’s properties, along with $2.045 million in cash.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals has successfully completed a landmark US$2.5 billion private equity placement, in what is believed to be Africa’s largest publicly disclosed primary equity private placement by value.
This marks a major milestone in the company’s long-term expansion strategy.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the company said the offering was 3.7 times oversubscribed relative to its initial offer size, reflecting strong investor confidence in the refinery’s growth prospects and resulting in the issuance and allotment of approximately US$2.5 billion in new equity.
The fundraising follows the recent equity capital raise in which existing investors expanded their holdings alongside new institutional investors, strengthening the refinery’s capital base to support its next phase of growth.
According to the company, proceeds from the private placement will finance the continued expansion of its refining and petrochemical operations, reinforce its capital structure and enhance financial flexibility for future investments.
The transaction attracted broad participation from international and African institutional investors, sovereign-related investment vehicles, development finance institutions and long-term strategic partners.
Among the key investors were the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and India Infra Buildco, an investment vehicle facilitated by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank). The offering also drew participation from a diverse mix of institutional and individual investors, underscoring strong market confidence in the refinery’s long-term strategy.
Chairman of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals, Aliko Dangote, described the successful capital raise as a strategic move to deepen and institutionalise the company’s shareholder base while complementing internal cash flows and external financing.
“This further demonstrates our profound commitment to developing domestic refining and petrochemical capacity, reducing Africa’s reliance on imported refined products and strengthening the continent’s energy security,” Dangote said.
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the refinery, David Bird, attributed the strong investor response to the company’s operational performance and leadership.
“The exceptional demand we saw is a testament to our operational excellence, execution capacity, and investor confidence in DPRP’s leadership,” he said.
Following the completion of the transaction, the company said it is well positioned to continue executing its long-term growth strategy by expanding world-class refining and petrochemical capacity while strengthening Africa’s energy security.
Once again, The Gathering on 100 Pitchathon has rewarded some of Nigeria’s most promising young entrepreneurs, with three startups sharing ₦5 million in funding.
Pitchathon
The pitchathon took place at the Abuja edition of the Gathering on 100 held between July 18 and 19, at This Day Dome, Central Business District, Abuja.
The competition brought together founders from different sectors to pitch their businesses before a panel of judges.
The Pitchathon remains one of the most sought after experiences at The Gathering on 100, an MTN Nigeria initiative that connects young Nigerians with opportunities for entrepreneurship, innovation and personal development.
Omolola Rebecca, founder of Agrovest, emerged overall winner, receiving ₦2.5 million for her agritech solution, which provides funding for farmers to improve access to capital and boost agricultural productivity.
Reacting to her victory, Rebecca said the recognition would give her business greater visibility and open doors to more investors. “Winning this competition means more people will notice what we’re building.
“It puts Agrovest in front of potential investors and partners, and gives us the opportunity to grow our impact by supporting even more farmers,” she said.
The second prize of ₦1.5 million went to Agbo Obinnaya, founder of Case Radar, a legal technology platform that uses generative artificial intelligence to simplify access to legal services in Nigeria.
The platform enables users to obtain legal guidance, understand legal documents and connect with legal professionals through a single digital platform.
Abdulmuiz Adam secured third place and ₦1 million with WaveBudget, a fintech platform that combines savings and responsible financing.
The platform allows users to save towards financial goals, access buy now, pay later services through partner merchants with a 50 per cent down payment, and manage their savings in one place.
Presenting the prizes to the winners, Lanre Coker, Manager, Customer Acquisition and Compliance, North-West, MTN Nigeria, said the initiative reflects MTN’s commitment to supporting young Nigerians with the resources they need to grow their ideas into sustainable businesses.
“The Gathering on 100 is about helping young Nigerians achieve the height of their endeavours, whatever they may be.
“We know there are brilliant ideas across the country, and through initiatives like the Gathering on 100, we are creating opportunities for innovators to access funding and the confidence to keep building,” he said.
The Abuja edition builds on the success of previous Pitchathons held during The Gathering on 100 across the country.
In Lagos, eight startups received a combined ₦45 million in funding, while three startups shared ₦5 million at the Aba, Enugu, and Kano editions. With the Abuja winners now joining the growing list of recipients, the Pitchathon continues to position itself as a platform for discovering and supporting the next generation of Nigerian entrepreneurs.
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